Speakers at Shakti Kumbh 2024
Aditi Kaul
Aditi Kaul is a seeker working towards bringing the perennial wisdom of self-knowledge to the field of psychology and developing ways that can facilitate an integral approach toward life. ‘Conscious living is a full-time job’ is her living aspiration. Currently, she teaches Integral Yoga Psychology at the university level and also conducts online courses and workshops focused on dialogue-based inquiry and self-exploration.
Dr. Arati Sharma, Director of Centre for Homoeopathy at Sri Aurobindo Society, Pondicherry is an esteemed homoeopath with over 30 years’ experience. A former lecturer at S.K H. Medical College, author for health journal NAMAH, and ex-editor of Homoeopathic Clinical Case Recorder, she’s a compassionate healer. Committed to social welfare, she has aided leprosy patients, underprivileged children, and destitute seniors at Volontariat. Guided by Integral Yoga, Spirituality and Indian Culture, she integrates holistic well-being with research for a comprehensive healthcare approach. Recognized for keloid research, she received the 2005 Excellence Award from Dr. S.P. Singh, Adviser of Homoeopathy to the Govt. of India.
Dr. Alok Pandey
Dr. Alok Pandey is a well-known authority on Sri Aurobindo and the Mother’s writings, especially on the subject of Yoga, Psychology, Education and Health. A Medical Doctor who has specialized in Psychiatry, he has served in various capacities in the Indian Air Force before taking voluntary retirement and settling down permanently in the Sri Aurobindo Ashram Pondicherry.
Beloo Mehra
Dr. Beloo Mehra is Senior Academic Mentor at Sri Aurobindo Society, and edits its online journal, Renaissance. With a PhD in Education from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA, and a Master’s in Economics from Delhi School of Economics, she has more than two decades of experience as educator and researcher at higher education institutions in the US and India. She writes regularly in various journals dedicated to Sri Aurobindo studies. Her recent works include ‘Understanding Contemporary India in the Light of Sri Aurobindo’, ‘Indian Literary Tradition in the Light of Sri Aurobindo’, and ‘Indian culture from an evolutionary perspective’.
Academic Director at Chinmaya International foundation. Renowned scholar of Sanskrit and IKS. Published 8 books and more than 100 articles, successfully guided 18 students for Ph.D. Many videos on IKS and Sanksrit Sahitya on YouTube. Adi Sankara Fellowship by Madhya Pradesh Government. International Ramakrishna Award given by Canadian Education Foundation, Ontario, Adi Sankara Puraskar by Kanchi Kamakoti Math, Kalidasa Puraskar by Maharashtra Government and many more.
Gitanjali J B
Gitanjali is a social entrepreneur and educationist. After having founded several business and social ventures, she is setting up Himalayan Institute of Alternatives, Ladakh, as its Founding CEO & Dean. HIAL is an alternative institute for mountain development that aims to revolutionise higher education in India through the pedagogy of contextual and experiential learning. Gitanjali is a spiritual seeker with a deep interest in Indian Spirituality. She is a lifelong student of Sri Aurobindo & The Mother, Sanskrit, Vedas & Upanishads and strives to apply her learnings gleaned from these sacred texts to indigenise existing educational frameworks.
Born in Sweden, I came to India in 1971 at the age of 19. After visiting India and Auroville several times during the 70-ties I settled in Auroville in 1982. My life has through this time been devoted to the Integral Yoga of Sri Aurobindo as applied individually and collectively through the context of building Auroville. I have worked in all fields of life and activities over the years in Auroville. Since the 90s I became involved with the the City and the master plan through my involvement with the International Zone. From this emerged the project of the Unity Pavilion with its focus on the realization of human unity and unity in diversity; and from that flowed naturally the deep research in the twelve qualities of the Matrimandir and the Matrimandir with the City as a matrix for the new paradigm and the transformative next step in evolution of humanity.
Lopa Mukherjee
Lopa Mukherjee is a writer, teacher and psycho-spiritual workshop facilitator. She teaches Indian culture and Sri Aurobindo’s works. She has conducted workshops and has done presentations on a variety of themes in several organisations. Her workshops have been on drama therapy, dreamwork, inner journeys and thresholds, emotional intelligence, and so on. Her historical fiction, The Soul of India, was inspired by Sri Aurobindo’s first dream. It shows how the three countries are one in a deeper sense and can realise it externally. Her other books include cultural short stories and journeys into the spiritual and occult realms. She was educated in the ashram school in Pondicherry and did her masters in psychology at CIIS, San Francisco
A Mystic teacher-healer, a life coach and mentor, Maa Gyaan Suveera is a gifted yogini who lives by the banks of Mother Ganga, on the outskirts of Rishikesh.
She has revived and recreated many ancient healing and divination arts, like the 10 great incantations (Mahavidya Sadhana), Scanning and Divining, Mokshapata, and the Gyaan Cowries. She is founder of the Cosmic Intelligence Evolutionary Path (Ci Plus meditation).
Maa Gyàan is a healer at heart, a specialist of life force energy. She now imparts lessons on Vedanta, takes personal processes, and offers spiritual life coaching for a chosen few seekers.
Mukta is a Ayurvedic Practitioner, Primordial sound meditation teacher trained at the Chopra Centre in California, and Energy medicine practitioner trained in ACMOS method of energy balancing based on Chinese medicine, muscle testing and dowsing. She also does chakra healing through these modalities.
She is a MBSR (mindfulness based stress reduction) certified teacher and had been practicing mindfulness for 25 years when was introduced to vipassana at the age of 19. She has been trained in Sri Vidya Tantra from Sri vidhya templerush newyork, Raja choudhury and davipuram and guru karunamai and is always in service of Divine Mother.
Distinguished Professor in Gender & Conscious Leadership, Faculty of Excellence, Tec de Monterrey, Mexico.
Nilima Bhat is a leader in the fields of Personal Mastery, Leadership, Gender Equality and Wellbeing. A Sivananda Yoga Teacher and practitioner of the Integral Yoga of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother, she is a dancer and coauthor of two books, Shakti Leadership and My Cancer Is Me.
An original thinker and creator, she is the Founder of the global Shakti Fellowship Program for women changemakers and co-convener of the Truth&ReconciliationWork from the inside-out and also of the Shakti Kumbh.
Nilima Chitgopekar
Well-known academic and Indian religious studies expert Nilima Chitgopekar has written extensively on goddess worship, the Shakta tradition, and Shiva. She has lectured extensively at Harvard and Oxford, and has published six books – some academic and some meant for the general population.
Priti is an artist, integral educator and a parent adopting Integral Education practices for more than two decades. Currently Priti resides in Puducherry, India, and works with Sri Aurobindo Society’s Integral Education section [SAFIER] as a teacher trainer and research scholar.
She embarked on an inner journey since the age of 21 with traditional spirituality as a base, which led her to the world of integral education practiced at Mirambika, a free progress School under the aegis of Sri Aurobindo Ashram — Delhi Branch, India. This period of working had helped her to be a part of an evolving, philosophical and spiritual organisation, in the area of education as envisioned by Sri Aurobindo.
Living an ‘inside out’ life are her watchwords in life.
A double graduate in Physics and Indian classical dance, Radha imbibed the principles of Sri Vidya right from her childhood.
Guruji Sri Amritananda’s second daughter, she received the mantra diksha in her teens. She focused intensely on spiritual practice and meditation in equal parts for many decades and resides at Devipuram.
Actively engaged in the research on Sri Vidya scriptures and content curation for different audiences, she has been teaching the Sri Vidya residential and online courses offered by Devipuram.
Rahila Sujatha Santhanam is a respected yoga teacher in India, the US, Canada and Morocco for her expertise in the ancient yogic system.
At the age of 16 she studied yoga therapeutics at the Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari. She earned her Master of Philosophy degree (M.Phil) in Yoga and Psychology from the University of Madras, with the personal guidance of Sri Desikachar and with the blessings of his father, the renowned yogi, Sri Krishnamacharya.
Though she offers tools for healthy living to students at every level she enjoys teaching yoga for women’s empowerment and overall wellness. She has set up Shakthi Circles to enable women to understand their connection to the Divine Feminine. Having done an intensive year’s study of Ayurveda, she teaches about conscious living which promote eating as a healthy celebration of life.
Ms. Santhanam has helped corporations such as Cisco, Tesco, McKinsey to increase job satisfaction and productivity among their employees.In her capacity as a psychologist and yoga therapist she has conducted workshops for women’s empowerment at the Rehabilitation Center of Oklahoma City and the Women’s Penitentiary in Columbus, Ohio. Ms. Santhanam has also given lectures and classes at the Integrative Medical Center at Oklahoma State University, the University of Dallas, the University of Arizona and Loyola Marymount College.
Having stradled the space of classical dance and sports, she has conducted talks and workshops for dancers, Nike Runners Club, soccer and cricket players and golfers.
Ms. Santhanam has designed intensive teacher training curricula for international students of diverse ages and abilities. She assists in conducting YTTs in India and Morocco in her capacity as Chief Instructress.
In the past decade and half her focus has been on teaching and transmitting the esoteric practice of Chandra Namaskar and its connection to women’s biology. She does this through story telling from Puranas and Ithihasa, through body and breath work, and through mantra chanting.
Ms. Rama Kandarpa is a Civil engineer by qualification but a development practitioner by experience. Her primary focus has been on Institutional Development with over 20 years of experience both in the NGO and the corporate sectors. The youngest (3rd) daughter of Guruji Sri Amritananda, she received the mantra diksha from Guruji in her teens and learnt the various rituals including Homa. Rama manages the Sri Vidya Trust, Devipuram and strives to ensure the goal of providing global access to Sri Vidya using Technology, active learning methods and Communication. She is engaged in the conducting and sharing of the spiritual practices at Devipuram and other locations.
Visionary Leader in Theatre, Arts, and Experiential Learning
Recipient of 11 International and 22 India-level awards for acting, directing, and facilitating workshops. Renowned as a transformational pioneer, Rashi harnesses theatre, arts, music, and meditation to drive change in India.
Founder Director of Banjara Theatre since 2001, impacting diverse audiences. Notable achievements include training frontline staff of Indian Railways and Delhi Police under PMO’s Mission Karmyogi. Represented India in international festivals across the USA, Europe, and Russia.
Recipient of Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar and “WOW ICONIC PERSONALITY AWARD.” Integrates spiritual philosophy into workshops, fostering holistic growth.
Recent endeavors include leading a healing water meditation session at the UN Water Conference and conducting “Power in Me” Theatre workshops in Auroville. Committed to integral education and transformation of consciousness in human society.
Sraddhalu Ranade
Sraddhalu Ranade is a scientist, educationist and scholar. He has been residing at Sri Aurobindo Ashram since he was six months old, where he grew up in the care of late Sri M. P. Pandit. He is presently involved in various activities including video productions, teacher-training programmes, and software development. A multi-faceted personality, he delivers talks and conducts workshops on numerous themes including Integral Education, Management, Self-Development, Indian culture, Science and Spirituality, Yoga. He has conducted numerous intensive teacher-training workshops in Integral and value-based education all over India. In the last few years over 4500 teachers from more than 200 schools and colleges all over India have benefited from these programs.
Sudha Seshayyan
A Medical Doctor with over 35+ years of academic, teaching, research and administrative experience; interested in literature, spirituality, history, philosophy and all things that make the world a better place.
Sukhvinder Sircar
Sukhvinder Sircar is a dedicated follower of the Gaudiya Vaishnava School of Bhakti. For a span of 25 years, she has been wholeheartedly devoted to Bhakti yoga under the guidance of her Guru. Sukhvinder is a proficient Process Work practitioner, skillfully assisting both groups and individuals in their journeys of self-discovery. Serving as a healer and life coach, her true calling lies in nurturing the emergence of the divine feminine essence within both women and men.
Sukhvinder has pioneered transformative ‘Joyous Woman’ workshops and retreats, extending a warm invitation to countless women to embrace leadership roles. Her insightful writings on the divine feminine can be explored on her blog, joyouswoman.wordpress.com.
Uma Prajapati is a visionary, social entrepreneur, RTL (radical transformation leadership) facilitator, Expressive Art Practitioner, filmmaker, coach and fashion designer. Uma designs for abundance with wisdom and courage.
Uma is founder of a conscious fashion brand Upasana, Auroville.
Uma Prajapati created Ocean Icon Tsunamika, for empowering fisherwomen with ecological resilience. It is currently on the clean Ocean Mission under the UN. She creates future housing as community living space. She heads a few social projects, guides young entrepreneurs and teaches conscious fashion nationally and internationally. She lives in Spiritual international township “Auroville” in South India. Uma has redefined fashion as a pioneer and made sustainable fashion a trend today.
Vivechana is an artist, designer, and publisher who has dedicated over 15 years to exploring the intricate world of mandalas, sacred geometry, and symbols. With a keen interest in the archetypal meanings inherent in symbols from various cultures, Vivechana shares her findings through her art and workshops, which she conducts through her company, Soulscapes.
Zia Nath is an international performer and teacher of ancient Sacred Dances of India & Central Asia (specialising in Gurdjieff Movements, Sufi Whirling & Indian temple dances). She is the founder of Realms of Dance® – a sacred dance performance showcase inspired from diverse spiritual traditions of the Indian subcontinent. She created her own style of whirling movements called Whirling Mandala® and teaches it as a sacred art for evolving consciousness. Zia teaches whirling the way she learned it: holistically. She believes that even though these dances are so ancient, they are still profoundly relevant today.
Zia is also a trauma informed therapist specializing in Craniosacral Therapy, Somatic Intelligence, Mother-Infant Birth Dynamics & Mindful Nutrition. She founded her clinic Quanta Health Care Solutions, Mumbai in 2001 and has been supporting individuals & families with a naturalistic, non-invasive healthcare system. Zia has been in the practice of these disciplines – sacred dances and therapeutics since almost 3 decades and continues to be inspired by it in her own spiritual path.