NAAM YOGA LA is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) global center for spiritual and physical wellness. Our mission is to empower people to improve their lives, heal themselves, and to support them in the process of balancing the Mind Body Spirit connection through the power of community, a variety of classes, a healing clinic, workshops and events, many of which are available free or at low cost.
The story of how the ancient wisdom of Sukshma Vyayama and the power of the Word, the Verbum or Naam were merged to give birth to Shakti Naam Yoga.
Years ago, in the distant lands of the Himalayas, there lived a man who possesed the secret of the fountain of youth. His name was Maharishi Karthikeyaji Maharaj, a Himalayan yogic master that lived to be over 300 years of age. The secret of his long life has remained hidden from much of the Western world, that is until now...
Our story begins at the source, deep in the Himalayan mountains. The secret of Maharishi Karthikeyaji's long life was an ancient form of yoga called Sukshma Vyayama, a precious collection of advanced techniques that free the body from the ravaging effects of disease and aging. To those that have discovered its true potential, it has become known as the yoga of immortality.
This self-healing art has been practiced by those serving some of the most demanding roles of their day, including government officials, respected scientists and elite athletes. And it is these and more advanced techniques that have now formed the basis of Shakti Naam, a powerful yogic practice that allows the body to optimally express the blueprint of its DNA, bringing out the best version of that person.
This yoga of youth and immortality first became known in India in the 1940s when Swami Dhirendra Brahmachari Ji, a devoted student of Maharishi Karthikeyaji, taught it to India's first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, who was later succeeded by his daughter, Indira Ghandi, also a devoted practitioner. In her own words, she writes, "My father attributed his fitness to a lifelong habit of beginning the day with Yoga-asanas. I myself was initiated at an early age. Later, when my father and I met Shri Dhirendra Brahmchari, we learnt his system of Sukshma Vyayam which I found more convenient to follow as a keep-fit routine when one is rushed for time and constantly on the move."
The great demands of being a political leader required huge reserves of strength, clarity and intelligence and this form of yoga, was called upon to support these public figures with their sacred responsibility to their country and people. These techniques have made such a profound impact on the prime minister's family that in the 1940s, the Indian government commissioned a film, to share these benefits with the people.
With the great advancements in technology over the last few decades our way of life has only become more demanding. Our minds are in a continuous loop of processing an endless stream of information. Most of us spend hours sitting at our desks, working on the computer. We live a fast-paced stress driven life. The changes to our lifestyle have caused detrimental effects to our health. It is for this reason that Dr. Joseph Michael Levry, a master yogi and beloved teacher, has begun actively sharing these ancient, once secret techniques through the yogic and meditative practice of Shakti Naam.
In his numerous travels throughout the world, especially in India, Dr. Levry has met various masters from whom he received many advanced yogic techniques. One of Dr. Levry's spiritual journeys to India led him to Shri Bal Mukund Singh Ji, a master teacher that served as the right hand man of Swami Dhirendra Brahmachari Ji.
Shri Bal Mukund Singh Ji was personally trained by Swami Dhirendra himself, in the mountains, forests and ashrams of the Himalayas. He was also the yoga demonstrator for Swami Ji's nationally televised program on health and wellness through yoga which ran for nearly a decade in the late 1970s and early 1980s in India. During his extensive training, Shri Bal Mukund Singh Ji received many personal and secret yogic techniques from Swami Dhirendra Ji. Now, Shri Bal Mukund Singh Ji has passed this secret and ancient traditional yoga practice to Dr. Levry, which has formed the foundation of Shakti Naam, a modified form of the advanced yogic practice of Sukshma Vyama.
Based upon the traditional yogic principles of Sukshma Vyayama, Shakti Naam is an anti-aging practice; an ageless yoga that fills the body with life, slows down the aging process and removes the signs of old age.
Shakti Naam has a rich and royal lineage. It is an ancient and secret part of a higher yogic science not known to most schools of yoga in the world today. The name Shakti Naam is a combination of Shakti, the universal creative power, and Naam, the cosmic sound current vibrating through all of Creation. Shakti Naam is a spiritual art and science that merges the rejuvenating techniques of Sukshma Vyayama with the power of sound, the Word or Naam as it is reffered to in the Vedic scriptures, to greatly magnify the already potent healing effects of Sukshma Vyyama on the mind and body. When we study the vedic texts we become exceedingly aware of the emphasis placed on Naam, the creative Word recognized by every sacred teaching as the primal energy flowing 'all life.'
How did this auspicious union come about you may wonder. It was in December 2004, while travelling in India, that Dr. Levry first met Baba Virsa Singh Ji. A holy man full of love, goodness, and compassion, Baba Virsa Singh Ji blessed Dr. Levry by bestowing upon him the gift of Naam. It was this spiritual and mysterious encounter that sparked the birth of Naam Yoga, which has now gracefully merged with the powerful practice of Sukshma Vyyama to give birth to Shakti Naam. The significance of this rare meeting with Baba Virsa Singh Ji cannot be overstated. This is because Baba siri chand ji, for it was baba siri chand ji, a yogi known to have tremendous spiritual power, with the help of his father guru nanak, the founder of Sikhism, that originally bestowed the gift of Naam on Baba Virsa Singh Ji.
Through Shakti Naam, we can now trace this pure and direct lineage back to Baba Siri Chand and his father, Guru Nanak, the first Sikh Guru, who was born in the year 1469.
Our story, however, does not end here, let us go back even further to the great Hindu Sage Patanjali, and the foretelling of the coming of Guru Nanak in the vedic scriptures. Patanjali is thought to be the father of yoga as we know it today. In this karmic Age, which the Vedas refer to as the Kali Yug, the time period we are living in right now, Naam was heralded as humanity's saving grace by the ancient scriptures, including the Vedas and Puranas, and by Patan-JA-li and Vyasa, dating back to as early as 2100 BC.
Throughout humankind's collective history, there have always been those that preserved the Light of Divine Spiritual Wisdom for the coming generations, so that humanity may never lose their birthright of reconnecting with their Divine source. This is the precious wisdom that teaches humanity how to work with the Cosmic Sound Current or Naam.
In the physical world we speak to each other through speech but to communicate with the Heavens we need Naam.
It is Naam referred to in the Gospel of Saint John when stated,
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
Everything comes from the Word. Everything comes from Naam. The same theme runs across all sacred scriptures. All the powers of the Universe are contained in Naam, which is the Logos - the Verbum. And it is the repetition of Naam that is vital in this karmic Age, which the Vedas refer to as the Kali Yug.
That is why the Hindu poet-saint, Goswami Tulsidas, has said, "Kalyug Kewal Naam Adhara, (Simar-Simar Nar) Utarahin Para"
In our present Age of Kali Yug, it is only by vibrating Naam will human beings sail through the deep sea of the world. Only Naam will give bliss, peace and liberation.
In the Ramayana, the great epic of Hinduism, it is written, "Naam was the ruling means for spiritual liberation in all four ages; In Kalyug especially, there is no other means." Adding, "Those that repeat the Naam are blessed."
Guru Nanak himself has said that "only those that recite the Naam are liberated and peaceful."
The healing power and beauty of Shakti Naam comes from the fact that it brings together, Sukshma Vyyama, from Maharishi Karthikeyaji Maharaj, who himself lived to be over 300 years of age, and Naam. This is the very Naam spoken of by Patanjali, the father of all yogas. The very Naam spoken of by Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhisms, and by the poet-saint Tulsidas. Through this rare union the powerful benefits of Sukshma Vyyama on the body and mind are greatly enhanced. Shakti Naam is a deeply healing, highly evolved practice that can carry humanity across the turbulent ocean of karmic waters of this Age - with grace.
Shakti Naam is direct, efficient and powerful. It offers numerous health benefits not found in other systems of fitness, yoga or meditation in the world today.
In fact, this rare healing system that creates a pronounced relaxation response within 3 minutes of beginning the class. Furthermore, the standing style of Shakti Naam Yoga helps prevent, and assist in healing obesity and its many associated health issues.
Shakti Naam Yoga enhances the body's capacity to nourish itself, bringing oxygen to the brain, strengthening the heart, clearing the energetic pathways of the body and detoxifying and nourishing the organs.
The popularity of Shakti Naam, under the umbrella of Naam Yoga, has been growing exponentially with three subsequent world record breaking superclasses led by Dr. Levry in Mexico City and bringing a global movement of Love, Peace and Light to people from all walks of life.
Under the guidance of Dr. Levry, Shakti Naam continues to spread, being heralded as humanity's collective gift for the New Age, a priceless offering for the benefit of all humankind.
