For this episode, I sat down with Yogarupa Rod Stryker. Rod is a world-renowned yoga and meditation teacher, guiding and sharing his wisdom for 40 years. He is the founder of ParaYoga®, and the author of The Four Desires: Creating a Life of Purpose, Happiness, Prosperity, and Freedom. He is the creator of one of the most comprehensive online yoga trainings in the world and most recently, the app Sanctuary, a premier destination for all levels of those wanting to experience the life-changing practices of meditation and Yoga Nidra, Rod has dedicated his life to improving lives through his lectures, writing, practice, teaching, leadership, service and family life.

Listen to the full episode here :

MY 5 BIGGEST TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

1. Hierarchy in teaching doesn’t have to be informed by patriarchy or dominance. The role of a teacher is to lead by definition but to eventually make themselves obsolete, by empowering their students so they can walk away and stand in their own wisdom and capacities.
2. Ultimately what determines the quality of your life is the quality of your perception of life and the depth of your own self-awareness. Yoga is about the mind more than it is about the body. The end goal is the refinement of the quality of your perception, so a yoga asana is a meditation tool.
3. Yoga Nidra is the conversion of sleep and meditation. Your body is fundamentally asleep and your mind gets into a delta pattern; it’s the quietest, most relaxed, deep state of relaxation, but there is still a thread of being conscious. It recalibrates our perception of ourselves by being both a practice and a state of consciousness.
4. To live a happier, more purposeful life, you have to start by getting still. Then, you get clarity on how to live in alignment with your purpose. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing in life, but you won’t find happiness until you live a purposeful life. You will feel lost for not having done what you were here to do, not being who you were meant to be, and creation will suffer from you not playing your role in it. “An undisciplined mind is unfit for any path”.
5. Understanding your life purpose helps you deal with the small things in life, not only the big challenges. When you learn how to responds better to those small things, your destiny changes. You take the driver’s seat in shaping your destiny by making those everyday small right decisions. Peace is never guaranteed but we are each responsible for finding our own peace and the best form of self-care is to overcome our nature.

QUESTIONS HE ANSWERED DURING THIS EPISODE

• How do you describe ParaYoga?
• You recently launched a new meditation app called Sanctuary, why did you choose to call it that?
• One of the things you teach is Yoga Nidra, for listeners that have never done Yoga Nidra before, can you explain what it is?
• How do to start moving towards a happier and more fulfilled life? How do you uncover your true purpose?

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Thank you so much for listening and being part of our 64th episode! If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe, rate and review anywhere you listen. As always, I really appreciate your support with this podcast whether it’s through reviews or through Patreon. I have just added 2 new tiers to the premium memberships. As before, with a small donation of $5/month you can get access to more content, exclusive episodes, tutorials, guided meditations. on August 1st, you got a 25 minutes delicious Yoga Nidra, perfect after today’s episode. Now you can also have access to some or all the classes we’ve recorded on zoom and continue to record during this shelter-in-place. If you’d like to have access to all this and/or support me in the creation of this podcast, please visit www.patreon.com/onandoffyourmat and become a PREMIUM member on the tier of your choice.

ABOUT OUR GUEST

Yogarupa Rod Stryker is a world-renowned yoga and meditation teacher, guiding and sharing his wisdom for 40 years. He is the founder of ParaYoga®, and the author of The Four Desires: Creating a Life of Purpose, Happiness, Prosperity, and Freedom. He is the creator of one of the most comprehensive online yoga trainings in the world and most recently, the app Sanctuary, a premier destination for all levels of those wanting to experience the life-changing practices of meditation and yoga nidra, also known as Enlightened Sleep. Rod has dedicated his life to improving lives through his lectures, writing, practice, teaching, leadership, service and family life.