Yogi Bare: Naked Truth from America's Leading Yoga Teachers [Paperback]

Philip Self (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1998

America's foremost "how to" yoga experts share intimate moments of their lives in Yogi Bare: Naked Truth from America's Leading Yoga Teachers. Through twenty engaging and insightful interviews, provocative questions are posed and explored, as you embark on an enjoyable and spiritual journey with yoga's premier "how come" book.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

America's foremost "how to" yoga experts share intimate moments of their lives in Yogi Bare: Naked Truth from America's Leading Yoga Teachers. Through twenty engaging and insightful interviews, provocative questions are posed and explored, as you embark on an enjoyable and spiritual journey with yoga's premier "how come" book.

Depression, death of a spouse, obesity, and financial ruin are a few of the heartfelt challenges America's leading yoga teachers have overcome. These inspiring personalities share their human imperfections and limitations, and most importantly, celebrate how yoga brought healing and transformation to their lives. Self-esteem, enlightenment, inner peace, and love were awakened as they experienced the mind/body/spirit connection.

Learn how to follow your heart and listen to your inner voice, as these world-renowned yoga masters reveal: How they discovered the life-changing path of yoga.
Highlights of their extraordinary journey.
Wisdom garnered along the way.

Dare to do as you are prompted to do. -Erich Schiffmann

You are supreme, and there is tremendous goodness and worthiness inside of you. Find the blessing in your limitations, instead of seeing them as a curse. -John Friend

Out of my greatest tragedy came my life's work, my life's inspiration. Out of the mud comes the lotus. -Julie Lawrence

Yoga was the first thing I studied that allowed me to more fully live the things I believed in. Yoga brought back hope. It brought the feeling I could realize my dreams. -Rodney Yee

Yogi Bare presents truth-honest, forthright, naked-as seen through the eyes and hearts of remarkable people who are shaping the future of Western yoga. Whether you are an advanced practitioner or a lotus novice, Yogi Bare: Naked Truth from America's Leading Yoga Teachers

About the Author

Philip Self is a music business executive specializing in film and TV. He received a Sociology degree from Louisiana Tech University and attended Candler School of Theology at Emory University. The avid yoga practitioner lives in Nashville with his wife and son.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 302 pages
• Publisher: Cypress Moon Pr (September 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0966689402
• ISBN-13: 978-0966689402
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #862,428 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A unique, captivating treasure filled with wisdom and humor!, April 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Yogi Bare: Naked Truth from America's Leading Yoga Teachers (Paperback)

It is a rare and worthwhile book that stays with you long after you've turned the last page. This one does.

Whether you are a yoga practitioner or simply an evolving human being, once you read this book you can't forget its words or delightful wisdom. Yogi Bare is just as likely to show up when you're walking your dog and life is grand as when you're thinking about doing bodily harm to the guy with the cell phone who just cut you off in traffic.

Filled with wisdom and humor, Yogi Bare offers a revealing look at the personal stories, triumphs, and struggles of twenty one of the world's leading yoga teachers. As the book jacket says, this is a "how come" book which allows world renowned teachers such as Rod Stryker, Alan Finger, Lilas Folan, and Rodney Yee to tell their journeys and insights in their own words. Yee talks about confronting racism; Finger tells of a lifelong struggle to control his weight; Julie Lawrence talks about her husband's death in Viet Nam and its impact on her life today; Donna Farhi talks about the pain of a father who couldn't connect with his daughter or the world. It is the honesty of these women and men's stories which makes their wisdom so much more relevant and moving.

What a joy the author must have had traveling around the country talking with these teachers. . .and one on one asking them the big questions: Do you believe in the eternity of the soul? Can we remove suffering? What do you strive for every day? Their answers often surprised me.

And of course, since these are some of the most respected yoga teachers in the world, the masters share advice and stories that will enhance and strengthen your own yoga practice. The fun thing about Yogi Bare though is that it doesn't matter if you know a sun salutation from a full moon, you will find something (or like myself a bunch of somethings)that touch, teach, entertain, or inspire you.

Human tragedy, disappointment, healing, humor, love, joy, and triumph all bound together by the thread of yoga postures. . . .and the yoga teachers who have used their discipline as the structure around which they have journeyed through all of them. A wise and wonderful book!!!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars As close as many of us will get..., September 5, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Yogi Bare: Naked Truth from America's Leading Yoga Teachers (Paperback)

to having what amounts to as a chat over tea or coffee to some of yogas current luminaries. From these interviews we learn how the various teachers paths led them to yoga. Mind you, there are no tough questions asked or answered here as to how the west has changed yoga to suit its needs and draw a wider base of clientel thus losing some of the spiritual foundations that it is based upon. Nor does it offer up insight as to why some of these teachers deviated from the type of yoga they originally learned whether it be Iyengar, astnanga, kripalu etc. and created their own style. Also, as one reviewer mentioned, some of the truly great teachers have been left out ( Tim Miller, David Life, David Swenson, Manuso Manos to name a few) and thus this book probably requires a volume II to make it complete.

However, if you are looking to skim the surface of some of the west best yoga practioners and gain just a little more insight into their philosphy and personality than this is a fine, easy reading book.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring tales to wake your mind!, January 13, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Yogi Bare: Naked Truth from America's Leading Yoga Teachers (Paperback)

Fun,easy to read and a delightful travel book. I was moved to tears by some of the stories and moved to practice by others.Let's contact the author and request a sequel.