Joel & Diana's Yoga Background

Joel Kramer is considered a founder of modern American yoga for his seminal contributions to re-visioning yoga in the West. A pioneer and innovator of physical and mental yoga, his evolutionary vision of yoga is foundational for many of today’s teachers. His book The Passionate Mind illustrates mental yoga. His early Yoga Journal articles, the widely influential “Yoga as Self-Transformation” (1980) and “A New Look at Yoga” (1977), present his original mind/body approach. Many of its principles – playing the edge, yoga as self-exploration, lines of energy – have become an integral part of modern yoga.
     Joel was on the resident faculty at Esalen Institute from 1968-70. His yoga seminars dealt then as now, with the basic concerns of living and the evolution of awareness. He taught throughout North America, in Europe and Asia with Diana Alstad until 1982. They began teaching again in 2006 to address the spiritual and global challenges humanity faces.

Diana Alstad taught seminars on yoga of body, mind and relationships with Joel from 1974-82. Through Diana's vision, they developed a Yoga of Relationship. Her Yoga Journal article "Exploring Relationships: Interpersonal Yoga" (1979) created a foundation for it by extending Joel's yogic approach to the social arena. They taught relationship seminars at Esalen, Omega and other centers, and continue to develop and teach it.

Joel & Diana currently teach on spirituality, yoga, relationships, and many issues. Their talks on A Modern Approach to Yoga and An Evolutionary Approach to Spirituality offer new perspectives relevant to the current human condition. Their co-authored books present a different view of spirituality:  The Passionate Mind Revisited: Expanding Personal & Social Awareness (2009) concerns individual and social evolution and The Guru Papers: Masks of Authoritarian Power (1993) unmasks hidden social, mental and spiritual authoritarianism.

Video Clips

YouTube video: A New Spiritual Framework - 2007

YouTube video: Power and Control - 2007

More video clips from The Yoga of Relationships talk - 2007

Yoga Podcasts

Darren Main talks with Joel about his transformative vision of yoga and the evolution of yoga in the West.

Yoga Peeps, Episode 31 - Lara Hedin and Joel talk about hidden authoritarianism in spirituality and ideals, yoga as an anti-entropic, awareness process, and with Diana, about the Yoga of Relationship.

Audio interviews on The Guru Papers

Yoga as Transformation - Body, Mind, Relationships
The Yoga of Relationship
Spirituality & Evolution
Bringing Spirituality Down to Earth
Yoga of the Mind
Unlivable Spiritual Ideals
Unmasking Spiritual Authoritarianism
Yoga in These Times
Heart of Asanas and Pranayama

Talk Descriptions for "A Modern Approach to Yoga"

Talks on An Evolutionary Approach to Spirituality

The Yoga of Relationships (Joseph Dispenza's interview)

Moving Past the Knots: The Yoga of Relationships by Diana

Exploring Relationships: Interpersonal Yoga by Diana (foundational)

Transforming Sexuality: Changing the Context of Conquest
-- Dialogue by Joel & Diana

Unraveling a Knot (exercise for getting unstuck)