Finding a yoga or spiritual teacher can be challenging. It’s easy to go to a yoga studio and just take a class, but if you’re looking for a deeper approach to practice it’s important to find someone who can guide your experience. It’s just like looking for a spiritual director – you wouldn’t just take any old person for such an intimate quest, but you’d want to find someone with whom you’re really comfortable.

Download tips for finding a yoga or spiritual teacher. Scroll down for a list of useful books and links to websites of other contemplative teachers.

Yoga Practice and Philosophy

Yoga Sutra of Patanjali. Translation by Alistair Shearer, 2002. Thousands of translations of the Yoga Sutra are available but Shearer’s is highly accessible.

Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Translation by Christopher Key Chapple and Yogi Ananda Viraj, Sri Satguru Publications, Dehli, India, 1990. Word-for-word translation with very little commentary. Excellent source for those familiar with Sanskrit.

How We Live Our Yoga. Valerie Jeremijenko (editor), Beacon Press, 2001. Lovely essays about the role of yoga in real life.

Yoga for Body, Breath, Mind. A.G. Mohan, Shambhala Press, 2002. Clear overview of the role of postures, breathing, meditation, and philosophical practices. Edited by an American so very accessible to Western readers.

Yoga for Your Life. Martin and Margaret Pierce. Sterling, 1999. Beautifully photographed sequences of postures and breathing practices designed for particular occasions.

Yoga for Wellness. Gary Kraftsow, Penguin Arkana, 1999. Concise articulation of the role of yoga in therapeutic applications.

Yoga for Dummies. Georg Feurstein and Larry Payne. IDG Books, 1999. Great overview of the system of yoga, very easy to read.

Bhagavad Gita. Translation by Winthrop Sargeant, SUNY Press, 1994. Nice combination of word-for-word translation, commentary, and inspiring text.


Prayer and Contemplative Practice

Christian Meditation. James Finley, Harper San Fransisco, 2004. Excellent source on meditation for both beginners and seasoned practitioners.

The Way of a Pilgrim. Translation by R.M. French, Seabury Press, 1965. A favorite spiritual text articulating one student's path. The author's sincerity is palpable.

Everything Belongs. Fr. Richard Rohr. Crossroad, 2003. Rohr always provides a beautiful articulation of Christian contemplative practice side-by-side with a reality check.

Prayer of Heart and Body: Meditation and Yoga as Christian Spiritual Practice.  Fr. Thomas Ryan. Paulist Press, 1995. Nice intro to yoga from a Christian perspective.

Reclaiming the Body in Christian Spirituality.  Fr. Thomas Ryan (ed). Paulist Press, 2004. Essays given at a 2003 conference of Christian yoga practitioners.

Purely Inspirational

Letters to a Young Poet. Rainer Maria Rilke. It's a classic for a reason!

The Essential Rumi. Translation by Coleman Barks. Castle Books, 1997. Ditto above!

Other Websites

Loyola Marymount University Yoga Studies Program

Courses in the Yoga Sutra, Bhagavad Gita, and other texts and the Sanskrit language, for yoga teachers and serious practitioners.

Contemplative Way

The Contemplative Way is headed by Dr. James Finley, who lived as a monk in Kentucky where the world-renowned monk and author, Thomas Merton, was his spiritual director. Dr. Finley now leads a sitting group in Santa Monica and retreats worldwide.

Hill Street Center

A haven where people from all walks of life may find community in the spiritual path. Most classes are taught on a donation basis.

Center for Action and Contemplation

Run by Fr. Richard Rohr, the Center offers programs and resources for action-based Christian contemplative practice, focusing on social justice and peace.