In this episode of the Chai Sessions I’m talking to good friend and yoga philosophy maestro, James Boag. He’s a regular guest with me here on the podcast and for many of you needs no introduction.

But for anyone who hasn’t met him yet I first met James way back in 2011 when I was practising at what was then the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute in Mysore, South India and he was teaching yoga philosophy nearby.

Originally from Yorkshire James has a Masters in Sanskrit. He works with the original Sanskṛt texts and skilfully brings the timeless wisdom of these traditional scriptural teachings of yoga into the context of our modern lives.

He’s been teaching yoga since 2003 and leading programs on applied yoga philosophy around the world since 2009.

Because we’re chatting ahead of James’s next visit to MCY when he’ll be taking us on a deep dive into the Bhagavad Gita I wanted to talk more about the Gita and what it might have for us as we live today.

The Bhagavad Gita goes right back to the beginning of the time I’ve spent with James - the very first thing I wrote in my notebook from my first session with James in Mysore, South India references the Gita!

So I start by asking James, what is the Bhagavad Gita? And why does he believe it’s still so relevant for us as modern yoga teachers and practitioners? No small question!

He says: “And so why is the Gita relevant? Because it is set here and now in the reality of our experience.”

James explains that the Gita is often considered to be the distillation of all of the Upanishadic wisdom, a foundational text of the Yoga method which provides practical wisdom on how to live skilfully in the world.

It's setting on a battlefield represents the internal conflict we all find within us and I think it’s more relevant than ever in the uncertain and turbulent times we find ourselves in today. The process of change, the process of meeting and confronting our own limitations, can be triggering and create resistance. And so the Gita is all about meeting that resistance in a skilful way with its teachings offering us a way to reconnect with our inner voice and live more harmoniously in the world.

We talk about many of the key themes of the Bhagavad Gita including:

• The difference between studying and studying about

• The importance of direct personal experience and practical application in the yogic method of learning

• Meeting and transforming resistance

• The importance of dialogue and conversation in human evolution

• Acknowledging one's ignorance and embracing the unknown

James sums it all up when he says: “The time on the mat or the meditation cushion is just preparation for the real practice of exploring these principles in day-to-day life. And that's where I find that the teachings of the Gita and the stories of the tradition, the mythology, the distilled teachings of the Yoga Sutra, are such a practical help.”

I never run out of things to talk to James about, and this time is no exception! I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did…

I’m chatting James ahead of his next visit to Merchant City Yoga 28-30 March 2025 when he’ll be taking us on a deep dive into the Bhagavad Gita and showing how it’s really about each of us, and gives us a manual for being human.

You’ll find all the details and booking for the weekend with James HERE

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Until next time, thank you so much for listening!

Judi x

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