Dharma Mittra

Who he is, Online Yoga Lessons, the Yoga Wheel and More

Dharma Mittra
Credit: Dharma Yoga Center, NYC

Dharma Mittra is a yoga master and was a student of  Swami Kailashananda. 

He studied the classical eight limbs of yoga full time for nine years under his guru. After just 3 and a half years he was  initiated as a Sannyasi and started teaching intermediate and advanced classes in Asana (postures) and Pranayama (breathing exercises) to both his fellow disciples and the general public at the Yogi Gupta New York Center.

In 1975 he found what is now called the Dharma yoga center in New York.  

After photographing himself in 1300 yoga postures he is famous for creating the Dharma Yoga poster which is hung in ashrams around the world.

About Sri Dharma Mittra

Sri Dharma Mittra was born on May 14th, 1939 in a small village in Brazil called Pirapora, a municipality in northcentral Minas Gerais.

In his early years he spent his time practicing and winning high honors in body-building and Brazilian Jiu-Jitzu.

In 1958, during his time in the Brazilian air force he started studying yoga. Then four years later in 1964 he left the air force and moved to New York to study under guru, Swami Kailashananda or yoga Gupta as he is known in the United States of America. 

For two years he studied Ashtanga and Karma Yoga.

After this, 1966 he was initiated as a sannyasi (one who renounces the world in order to realize God). 

Then the following year, in 1967 he started teaching. He has taught daily since this time. For many years, he was the only yoga teacher in NYC who taught advanced yoga postures.

At this point he had spent ten years  as a full-time yogi and brahmachari (a celibate religious student who lives with his teacher and devotes himself to the practice of spiritual disciplines). 

In 1975 he left the Ashram and set up the Dharma Mittra yoga center.

Age 68, he still teaches there today and is said to lead  and inspire with challenging sequences, compassionate charm, winning humility, and message of devotion (4).

The Dharma Asana Yoga Center

He founded and is director of the Dharma Yoga Center in New York City. He is an inspiration for all students of yoga (1). 

The Dharma yoga center recently relocated to a 7,500 foot building which is located in the new bustling Flat Iron district on Manhattan. The center is said to be beautiful and a spectacular testament to SRI Dharma Mittra’s 50 years of teaching the public.

Beginners to advanced students can attend classes for health and well-being 7 days a week.

Dharma still teaches as the yoga center in NYC (3). Whilst in class, our friend found that he leads a vigorous workout whilst encouraging students to make each move “an offering to God.”

There are classes available online, or you can practise with a  number of Dharma yoga certified teachers around the globe. 

Publications

The Poster

At the age of 45, Dharma Mittra took 1300 photos of him in yoga postures and  created a Master Yoga Chart using 908 of the postures (2). Since completing the project in 1983 nearly 50,000 copies of the Master Yoga Chart of 908 Postures have been printed and hung in ashram studios around the world.

If you would like your own copy of the Dharma Yoga poster you can pick one up on Amazon. 

He took the pictures of himself in the poses using a Nikon and a remote control. In 2008 he told Diane Anderson that he had to click the remote with his mouth and spit it out seconds before the flash went off! He then the photos to be printed on a poster, 43 inches by five feet and sold the posters for 10 cents each. Now the poster has been sold all over the world and costs a little more than 10 cents but it is twenty years later and prices have risen. 

The pictures he took can also be found in the books he has written. 

Dharma Yoga Center
Credit: Dharma Yoga center FB Page

Yoga Video Series

Maha Sadhana, the Great Practice DVD

In 2006, he released an instructional Yoga video series entitled Maha Sadhana: The Great Practice.

This DVD is now out of print. But if you would like to see Dharma videos available today look above in the section on online lessons below.

Books

Dharma has written two books for those around the world to access. Whilst some have tried to copy Dharma’s books, none are quite good enough to compete with it’s originality.

The second book he wrote is called “Asanas: 608 Yoga Postures”. This is a comprehensive illustrated guide to classic hatha yoga. The book is a stylish, design-driven book that for the first time ever collects Dharma’s black and white photographs and provides brief commentary. 

One review states “For the Intermediate to the Advanced student, you don’t really need a descriptive guide – the pictures tell you all. This is going to be an inspiration to me all the time. For the great price Amazon offers, think no further. Just buy it and your Yoga practise is bound to get more inspired.”

What is Dharma Yoga

Here is a lovely definition that we found on a Dharma yoga studio in St Albans London. 

“It is a wonderful interpretation of classical Eight-Limbed or Hatha – Raja Yoga, that includes elements of flowing Vinyasa, inversions and held poses that will help you to discover deep healing relaxation and Meditation.

Dharma Yoga was created by Sri Dharma Mittra in 1975. The practice of Asanas (physical postures) tones and invigorates the body and mind, leading to enhanced flexibility, strength, balance and concentration.

Pranayama (breathing exercises) and meditative techniques regulate the heartbeat, de-stress the nervous system and calm the mind. Guided deep healing relaxation or Yoga Nidra relieves stress, calms the mind and recharges one’s physical body.

Dharma Yoga is a complete practice that will lead to radiant health, a peaceful life and, eventually self-realisation. Dharma Yoga is traditional, yet contemporary — perfect for all kinds of practitioners in the fast-paced world of today.”

Series & Sequences

The best way to follow the dharma yoga sequence is to get yourself signed up for the online lessons or better still visit Dharam yoga center in New York or perhaps the two centers in the UK.

Failing that you could buy the Dharma Yoga Poster discussed above.  

Dharma Yoga Sequence

Online Lessons Reviewed

Dharma mitra online lessons

You want to take lessons with Dhara Mittra but can’t make it to class because you live on the other side of the USA or the other side of the world? then this is the prefect solution for you. 

Online Dharma Yoga Lessons with the great yoga master himself.

There are over 130 videos in the collection so far. All are well over an hour in length. Many are 90 minutes long.

the brilliant thing is that you can access this video’s world wide so if you want lessons with the great master himself then this is your chance!

The videos are the perfect way to explore Dharma yoga with Sri Dharma Mittra and his Certified Dharma Yoga Instructors.

The Online Dharma yoga lessons give you the chance to practice an array of Dharma Yoga Levels.

 

Choose between Dharma Gentle, Dharma I ,  Dharma Yoga Flow,  Dharma II, Dharma III,  Dharma IV, Dharma Yoga Classic Wheel, OM Mantra Japa and Psychic Sleep.

If it’s the man himself you are looking for the following series and sequences are led by exclusively by  Sri Dharma Mittra – Maha Shakti ,Charging Practice, Master Sadhana, Yoga Nidra,  Pranayama Meditation & Chant, Devotional Kirtan and Self Realization Satsang.

The lessons are very reasonably priced just $7 per lesson (circa £5). 

It looks as though the Dharma yoga center have tried to make the affordable and accessible to all, which goes long with the yogi masters way of thinking. 

Have you tried the Online Dharma Yoga lessons yet? 

We tried some last night and we think that the are brilliant! They are available for 30 days so once you have purchased it you can keep practising for the rest of the month. 

The online Dharma yoga lessons can be watched on iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, and Chromecast. 

Dharma Yoga Wheel

Sri Dharma Mittra originated and invented this Wheel for use in Yoga back in 1977. Many have copied his design but you can buy one of the classic Dharma yoga wheels with Mittra’s face on the wheel for your practice from . 

The Dharma Yoga Wheel was designed to help stretch and release tension and muscular tightness in the back, chest, shoulders, abdomen and hip flexors.

We found this Dharma wheel which is made in the USA by the company, Dharma Yoga Wheel which was found in 2014 by two of Dharma Mittras certified teachers by Dov Vargas and Raquel Vamos in August 2014. 

The wheel is manufactured in the U.S and is now being sent around the world. 

If you don’t know how to use it you can find sequence charts on the website and a poster including 108 poses created by the founders of the company and a soon to be release DVD.  

The yoga wheel is a prop, one that we are looking to buy as we think it will aid our bank bends for when we practice aerial yoga

Sophie

Sophie Green has been pole dancing and aerial arts at home and in studios around the world for over 13 years. She’s taken a number of instructor courses in pole and aerial. Plus attended a course on rigging. She takes part in lots of exercise.