Paramananda

Paramananda has been traversing the path of yoga for over 25 years. His journey toward higher consciousness began early in life as a punk guitarist in New York City’s hardcore scene, where he played in influential bands such as Youth of Today, Judge, and Shelter.In a music scene often clouded by drugs, negativity, and violence, Youth of Today stood out by championing a straight-edge lifestyle of positive thinking, personal empowerment, and freedom from substance use. His band Shelter took this further, incorporating Eastern spirituality, yoga ethics, and self-discovery into their music. Selling hundreds of thousands of records, the band toured extensively, spreading a message of hope to Generation X kids searching for something deeper.Inspired by the Krishna Bhakti tradition, Paramananda began living in ashrams, immersing himself in the study of ancient Sanskrit texts, meditation, kirtan (the chanting of sacred mantras), and Bhakti Yoga—the yoga of devotion. His path led him on yearly pilgrimages to India, where he learned to live the life of a yogi directly from the culture where it originated.Driven by a desire to share his knowledge and experiences, Paramananda became a yoga teacher, specializing in arm balances, inversions, kirtan, and storytelling from the wisdom literature of ancient India.