Light on Yoga and Meditation

About Light on Yoga and Meditation

Big Shakti’s podcast covers all forms of higher yoga, including Indian philosophy, Samkhya, raja yoga, bhakti yoga, jnana yoga, yoga tantra, mantra and yantra, chakras and kundalini, Sri Vidya, Eastern and Western psychology, which includes yoga psychology and the analytical psychology of Carl Jung, dreams and imagination, karma, Indian astrology, Jyotish. Published by www.bigshakti.com

Publisher

Dr Swami Shankardev Saraswati & Jayne Stevenson

Category

health & fitness · health & fitness · health & fitness

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

16 Feb 2023

Latest episode

15 May 2026

Latest episodes

25 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   15 May 2026

   #25 - Dr Swami Shankardev The Yoga-Informed Therapist Interview

   Swami Shankardev was recently interviewed by Dr. Lauren Tober as part of The Yoga-Informed Therapist Interviews—a series that brought together therapists and yoga teachers who are integrating these two worlds with care, depth, and ethical rigor. The series covered the scope of practice, nervous system regulation, trauma sensitivity, and the training pathways that allow this kind of integration to be done responsibly. In this interview, Swami Shankardev traces a fifty-year journey that began with medical training at Sydney University in 1976 and ten years of immersive study at the Bihar School of Yoga in India — a dual formation that has shaped everything since. He describes how he integrates yoga not as an add-on to conventional care but as a complete parallel system: Sāmkhya philosophy as the theoretical foundation, pranayama, mantra therapy, chakra work, and Jungian depth psychology as the practical tools, all applied to the individual's specific constitution, temperament, and stage of development. Central to his approach is the principle that foundation comes before depth — a stable, resilient ego must be built before deeper meditative or kuṇḍalinī work is introduced — and that both yogic and Jungian frameworks insist on treating the person in front of you rather than applying a formula. He addresses the ethical dimensions of this integration directly: cultural integrity, scope of practice, and the amplified responsibility that comes with holding both the doctor-patient and teacher-student relationship simultaneously. His vision for the future is clear and unambiguous — yoga in healthcare needs to move well beyond stretching and stress reduction toward a genuine recognition of yoga psychology as a rigorous clinical science, with mantra and pranayama as legitimate therapeutic tools and the deep inner work of the tantric and Jungian traditions understood as fundamental to healing. This interview with Swami Shankardev Saraswati and Dr Lauren Tober was created by the Yoga Psychology Institute (https://www.yogapsychologyinstitute.com/) for the Yoga-informed Therapist series (http://www.yogainformedtherapist.com/). 📩 Subscribe to our Newsletter (https://www.bigshakti.com/subscribe) 🎙️ Big Shakti Podcast (https://www.bigshakti.com/podcast) 🎧 Big Shakti Meditations (https://www.bigshakti.com/meditations) 🌿️ Big Shakti’s Yoga and Meditation Courses (https://www.bigshakti.com/courses) 🧘🏻♀️️Jayne Stevenson’s intuitive healing and dream therapy practice (https://www.jaynestevenson.com/healing-services) 🧘 Dr. Swami Shankardev’s medical and psychotherapy practice (https://www.bigshakti.com/consultations/consultations-with-dr-swami-shankardev-saraswati) 📹 Big Shakti’s YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/@BigShakti)

2. 

   31 May 2025

   #24 – What are Mantras?

   This episode explores mantras as powerful sound vibrations that liberate energy and expand awareness, functioning as mind tools to break destructive thinking patterns and stimulate inner joy.

3. 

   30 Apr 2025

   #23 – Yoga Day Sydney 2025 Interview - Dr Swami Shankardev and Janie Larmour

   Welcome to this episode of Big Shakti’s podcast, an interview with Dr Swami Shankardev by Janie Larmour, the organizer of Yoga Day Sydney, which will be held at Sydney Boys' High on Sunday, June 22nd, 2025. Get 20% off your ticket price using the coupon code BIGSHAKTI20. https://www.tickettailor.com/events/yogaday/1413531 (https://www.tickettailor.com/events/yogaday/1413531) Janie states - "Swami Shankardev is this year’s featured teacher and headline speaker. He is a medical doctor, yoga acharya, psychotherapist, and all-around wisdom ninja. In his keynote, “The Principles of Yoga Therapy for Mental Wellness—Ancient Wisdom for Modern Minds,” he’ll unpack how Samkhya, Vedanta, Patanjali’s Yoga, and Tantra can team with modern psychology to develop mental strength and emotional resilience and illuminate the path to deeper Self-realisation." Yoga Day—Sydney is a full-on, feel-good yoga festival created to “teach, inspire, and unite” the community in one jam-packed day. There will be 30+ yoga, meditation, and wellness sessions running four at a time from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., a buzzing marketplace for healthy goodies, and plenty of space to meet kindred spirits of every bendy (or not-so-bendy) level. The doors swing open at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, 22 June 2025, at Sydney Boys High School in Moore Park, giving you a whole winter-solstice weekend reason to roll out the mat and warm up body, mind, and humor muscles. Yoga Day is a fantastic gateway for individuals to delve into various yoga styles and wellness practices that they might not typically encounter in their daily lives. By attending this immersive event, participants can learn new skills, broaden their perspectives, and embark on a journey of exploration and growth. Yoga Day 2024 was a huge success for all attendees, yoga teachers, and vendors. The founder behind Yoga Day is Janie Larmour. With a career spanning 30 years in health and wellness, she has been sharing her passion nationally at large expos and festivals for 16 years and most intensely, internationally for the past 9 years in the USA and UK. Her extensive global experience has exposed her to the transformative power of yoga events, witnessing firsthand the excitement and wonder they create in both beginners and experienced yogis. Janie was inspired to create Yoga Day, recognizing the need for a dynamic platform in Australia. The vision is to provide a remarkable opportunity for yoga teachers, studios, and wellness brands to showcase their offerings to a large and diverse audience. 📩 Subscribe to our Newsletter (https://www.bigshakti.com/subscribe) 🎙️ Big Shakti Podcast (https://www.bigshakti.com/podcast) 🎧 Big Shakti Meditations (https://www.bigshakti.com/meditations) 🌿️ Big Shakti’s Yoga and Meditation Courses (https://www.bigshakti.com/courses) 🧘🏻♀️️Jayne Stevenson’s intuitive healing and dream therapy practice (https://www.jaynestevenson.com/healing-services) 🧘 Dr. Swami Shankardev’s medical and psychotherapy practice (https://www.bigshakti.com/consultations/consultations-with-dr-swami-shankardev-saraswati) 📹 Big Shakti’s YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/@BigShakti)

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

72,506

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

7 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

12 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 40 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

19

Social presence

0

YouTube

76

Engagement

77

Contact Light on Yoga and Meditation

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.