Instructors for Yoga and Healing classes

Tushti Conti manages Ananda's East West Bookstore in Mountain View with her husband, Surendra. She is a long-time yoga postures instructor and enthusiast, with years of nursing experience. She is an radiant example of health and fitness, and a former marathoner. Her passion is yoga and holistic healing.

Dr. Connie Hernandez is co- founder and director of Pacific Naturopathic in Palo Alto, and Pacific Naturopathic Retreat Center in Hawaii. In a busy naturopathic medical practice for more than 15 years, she has treated men and women of all ages with many chronic and acute concerns. She believes that Divine Will Healing, as taught by Yogananda, offers the keys to the deepest healing of body, mind, and soul.

Kripamayi (Suzanne) Caughlan has been teaching yoga since 1986, and group classes continuously since 1994. She teaches many levels of yoga from a very basic introductory level to an advanced, experienced level. Currently most of her classes are within the State College system, where she teaches in a way that brings about a deep level of experiential understanding of the asanas and their intrinsic connection to breath, meditation and energy.

Lauri Moschini is a gifted Pilates instructor, and works one-on-one with clients at Poised, a Pilates and strength training studio, helping improve posture and health. She holds a degree in psychology, and is certified in Pilates, Balance, massage, Reiki, Ananda Yoga and Ananda Meditation Training. She has been teaching fitness since 1988. Her goal is to create beauty in body, mind and soul by educating and empowering people to achieve optimal health.

Luca Moschini is a certified Asian Bodywork Therapist, and is the founder of Need Relaxation, providing therapy for stress relief including TuiNa massage and Acupressure, meditation training, and yogic approaches to lifestyle. He teaches throughout the Bay Area, and integrates many healing modalities into his work, including traditional Chinese medicine, medical Qigong, Jin Shin Jyutsu and Tai Chi. He is passionate about his work and a radiant personal example of a healthy lifestyle.

Susan Brochin was introduced to yoga in college and became a serious practitioner in 1996. She began teaching in 2000 after certification in Ananda Yoga Teacher Training at Expanding Light Retreat. A teacher in public education for over 25 years, she has a strong interest in yoga as a transformational tool for young people. She is a gentle and skilled yoga postures instructor who teaches throughout the Silicon Valley.

Nirmoha (Neil) Gladen, prior to becomming an Ananda minister, served as a Lutheran pastor for 16 years, mostly in Minnesota and North Dakota. He came to the Bay area to study Transpersonal Psychology, and discovered his true home in Ananda. He has been a student of Yogananda since he was 15, when he first read the Autobiography of a Yogi. He is a cerified Ananda Yoga instructor and teaches meditation classes.

Karpani Rakela, Doctor of Oriental Medicine, is the spiritual director of Berkeley Ananda Yoga and Meditation Center. For over 20 years, she has helped people with physical, emotional, and stress-related health problems to heal on a deeper, more holistic level. She guides them to optimal health through acupuncture, affirmation, yoga, and meditation.

Amara (Barbara) Fiesterman teaches classes in healing and yoga, and is a warm, welcoming friend to students. She also helps to manage Ananda Community, home to some 50 Ananda members, and serves on staff at Ananda's East West Bookstore in Mountain View.

Tali Miller is an Ananda Yoga instructor, a Pilates mat teacher trainer, and studied yoga and Ayurveda in India. She majored in Dance (and Mechanical Engineering) at Washington University. She has performed various styles of dance professionally, including Salsa and Bollywood. She is currently the Wellness Director at the El Camino YMCA.

Doug Andrews is the founder and director of Ananda Sangha of the Redwoods, with teaching centers in Boulder Creek and Scotts Valley. Doug has taught the Ananda style of hatha yoga, meditation and Raja Yoga for 13 years. When not sharing yoga he can be found teaching science in grades K-8 at the Living Wisdom School in Palo Alto.