Meet Our Teachers

Nayaswami Jaya is co- spiritual director of Ananda Sangha India. He became a student of Swami Kriyananda soon after graduating from the University of California, Berkeley in 1968. Upon learning of Swami Kriyananda’s interest in spiritual communities, Nayaswami Jaya joined him as a founding member of Ananda. Nayaswami Jaya has been authorized by Swami Kriyananda to give initiation into the advanced meditation technique Kriya Yoga. He travels widely sharing the teachings and techniques of Paramhansa Yogananda with audiences throughout the world.

Nayaswami Dhyana, is co- spiritual director of Ananda Sangha. She started to study the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda in 1978 and met Swami Kriyananda in 1980. She has shared the teachings of Yogananda in the US, Europe, Africa, Australia and India and helped in the founding of several of Ananda communities and centers. She has been authorized by Swami Kriyananda to give initiation into the advanced meditation technique Kriya Yoga. She teaches locally and travels around India offering training in meditation and Raja Yoga.

A long-time Ananda minister and Kriyacharya (authorized Kriya Yoga teacher), Nayaswami Devarshi joined Swami Kriyananda in 1977 and has been serving Ananda Sangha full time since then. Service to his guru has taken him all over the world teaching meditation and Kriya Yoga. He currently lives in India and serves as the director of Ananda’s Global Kriya Yoga Sangha and the Ananda India Monastery.

Dr. Aditya Gait is a Medical Practitioner, whose chief interests lie in sharing the teachings and benefits of yoga as a healthy and successful way of life. Aditya came to Ananda Sangha in 2008 and has since then actively helped with the Pune community operations. He is also a Trustee with Ananda Sangha. He also serves as the Spiritual Director of Ananda Sangha Pune. Apart from full time activities within the sangha, Aditya conducts yoga, meditation, health workshops in colleges, companies and institutions. He has conducted workshops on Health, Happiness and Success for many global industry leaders such as Tata Management and Training Center (TMTC), Infosys, Amdocs, Apollo Hospitals, and Metro.

Latha Gupta is the Director of the Ananda Yoga School of India and an experienced Yoga and Meditation teacher. She is passionate about inspiring her students to deepen their practice and learn yoga in a safe and enjoyable way. As a Yoga Alliance certified Ananda Yoga teacher and a certified Coach from the International Coach federation (ICF) she brings in an encouraging and practical approach. Latha has over two decades of experience in Leadership Development and has conducted several Executive Development Programs internationally.

Vibha has been managing software companies in India over three decades. She has been serving and sharing teachings in Ananda Centres in Gurgaon, Delhi, Ahmedabad,Noida and Singapore and Hyderabad since 2010. She has taught Kriya Yoga meditation to many people and is now primarily engaged with Home Study Kriya Yoga course since 2016. She helps prepare the students for the final steps before taking Kriya Initiation. She has dedicated her life now to serving Paramhansa Yogananda and is grateful for the opportunity to serve her Guru!

They have lived in India since the founding of Ananda’s work by Swami Kriyananda in India in 2003. They serve as the Spiritual Directors of Ananda Delhi and live in the South Delhi center (in Panchsheel Park). Together they have 65 years experience with Meditation and Kriya Yoga. Both Keshava and Daya are authorized Kriyacharyas (one who can initiate others into Kriya Yoga).

Promilla Kulkarni is a disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda for more than ten years . She came to Ananda Sangha in 2007 and has been an active member since then. She is a Kriyaban and enjoys sharing her Master’s teachings, whether online or in person . She is also a certified Ananda Healing teacher and is a part of the Healing group in India.

Bharat and Shamini have been sharing the principles of yoga & meditation in cities across India. Their current service entails building the offerings on Ananda India Online, serving as the Spiritual directors of Ananda Chandigarh and sharing classes and workshops on how to use art and music to uplift consciousness.

Nayaswami Bhavani is an internationally certified Yoga and Meditation teacher by World Yoga Alliance. She is also a certified healing teacher and has conducted many classes on meditation in Pune. Bhavani has served in the corporate industry for more than a decade and is well-versed with the challenges and opportunities of a corporate life, bringing that experience into her classes. She also helps with corporate training programs in companies.

Amit Purohit is a yoga, meditation teacher. He has been conducting courses, workshops for schools, corporates and other audience based on spiritual principles. He holds a Master’s in Computer Science degree from Stony Brook, New York. He has worked with IBM India for over five years and also has experience working in United States and Canada. Amit has been instrumental in setting up the foundation for Ananda India Online and has been an active member of Ananda Palo Alto and Ananda Gurgaon since 2010. 

Nayaswami Shankara has been a part of Ananda India since 2005, leading the Ananda monks here in India for most of that time. He has given lectures and classes throughout India. He is currently in charge of Ananda’s Kriya Home Study program, where he works with students throughout India and abroad, assisting them to prepare for receiving Kriya yoga.

Tyagis Shurjo and Narayani are the Spiritual directors of Ananda Mumbai. Narayani Anaya, moved from Spain to India in 2004 to help establish Ananda’s presence there. She served as the personal assistant to Swami Kriyananda for the last 4 years of his life. She is the author of the book, My Heart Remembers Swami Kriyananda. Shurjo joined Ananda in 2009 after completing his B.F. Tech degree from the National Institute of Fashion Technology, India. He has been a founding member of Ananda’s work in India. He, along with his wife, served as Swami Kriyananda’s personal assistant for a year, until the latter’s passing in 2013. They have been sharing the principles of Yoga & Meditation in cities across India for many years.

Dr. Radhika Sehdev is a practicing radiologist and a long term yoga & meditation practitioner as taught by Paramhansa Yogananda. She is a long time devotee of Paramhansa Yogananda and has been associated with with Ananda Sangha for over a decade. She applies these teachings in her daily medical practical and shares practical experience in regular workshops and classes.

Brahmachari Devendra has been a disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda for over 15 years. He joined Ananda Sangha as a monastic with blessings of Swami Kriyananda. He has taught classes on meditation and health in all major cities of India, also in corporates and abroad in Singapore, Dubai, and China. He is a flower essences practitioner and loves music and nature. Currently, he also serves as the Spiritual Director of Ananda Sangha Ahmedabad.