Stillpoints: A Podcast with Scott Johnson
Stillpoints is a podcast hosted by Scott Johnson, director of Stillpoint Yoga London. It explores how contemplative practice has evolved in modern culture through conversations with yoga and dharma teachers, practitioners, authors, and creatives. Each episode asks how these guests' practices have landed in their lives and work. The show aims to offer insightful, inspiring, and moving perspectives on contemplative life today.
Episodes
#52 Tara Mitra on How the Yoga Tradition Helps Us Study the Mind
Tara Mitra: How the Yoga Tradition Helps Us Study the Mind Tara Mitra has been studying the human mind since 1989. She began through management, self-help, and every healing modality she could find. Then yoga found her and eventually led her deep into the Yoga Sutras, Sankhya philosophy, and Vedic chanting. Now a yoga teacher and certified yoga therapist in the Krishnamacharya lineage, she brings
#51: Wade Oakley on The Long Game of Yoga, Strength and Devotion
In this wide ranging conversation Scott Johnson talks to Wade Oakley, yoga teacher, strength coach and long-time Ashtanga practitioner, about what it means to sustain a practice across a whole life. Among many honest, personal and thoughtful exchanges, Wade shares how strength training, injury and repeated trips to Mysore have shaped not just his body but his understanding of what devotion to prac
#50: Memories of Sharath - Episode 5 - Shraddha Jois
Episode 5: Shraddha Jois on the life of her father, Sharath. In the final episode of Memories of Sharath, we hear from someone who knew Sharath Jois more deeply than any student ever could: his daughter, Shraddha. Speaking with quiet strength and heartfelt clarity, Shraddha reflects on growing up in the Jois household, surrounded by yoga, devotion, and community. She shares the moment she chose th
#49: Memories of Sharath - Episode 4
Episode 4: The Final Collective Memories - Stories from Sharath's Friends & Students In this fourth episode of Memories of Sharath, it will be the last time we bring collective voices in one place. Over the four collective episodes , the memories shared have revealed not only the depth of Sharath's connection to people, but also how the practice of Ashtanga Yoga shapes all of us us in deeply perso
#048: Memories of Sharath - Episode 3
Episode 3: A Life Remembered, A Practice Continued - Stories from Sharath's Friends & Students In this third episode of Memories of Sharath, we continue to explore the life and legacy of Sharath Jois through the voices of those who knew him well. This episode features deeply personal reflections from long-time students, close friends, and those whose lives were shaped by his steady presence and q
#047: Memories of Sharath - Episode 2
Episode 2: A Deeper Look into Sharath's Impact – Voices from His Close Students and Family In this second episode of Memories of Sharath, we continue our journey through the life and legacy of Sharath Jois, one of the most influential figures in the Ashtanga Yoga tradition. This episode features heartfelt stories from Sharath's family, close students and long-time friends who reflect on his life,
#046 Memories of Sharath - Episode 1
Memories of Sharath Jois (episode 1) | Stillpoints Podcast Join Scott Johnson on a journey through the life and legacy of Sharath Jois, one of the most influential figures in the Ashtanga Yoga community. In this special series of the Stillpoints Podcast, Scott brings together the voices of those who knew Sharath personally—his family, long-time students, and close friends—to share stories, memorie
#045: Mark Williams on How We Created Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy
In this wide ranging conversation Scott Johnson talks to Dr Mark Williams, professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Oxford and director of the Oxford Mindfulness Centre, about mindfulness meditation and its ability to treat and prevent depression. Mark was raised in a devout Christian household, and at a young age believed his calling was with the ministry. His path changed while stud
044: Gregor Maehle on Yoga as a Mystical Experience
In this deep and rewarding conversation Scott Johnson talks to author, yoga teacher and mystic Gregor Maehle on his life as a seeker in the contemplative and spiritual traditions. Gregor shares how his childhood created the bedrock for a life of spiritual discovery, the outcome being a life embedded within the mystical limbs of yoga and contemplative practice. ___ We'd like to invite you to join
#043: Peter Levitt on How Mindfulness Is Creativity
In this beautiful and enlightening conversation Scott Johnson talks to Zen teacher, poet and author Peter Levitt about his book Fingerpainting On The Moon, his life as a Soto Zen practitioner and poet and how we can all use contemplative practices to find our own unique creative process. --- We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Online Yoga community. For just £20 per mont
#042: Waylon Lewis on The Story of Elephant Journal
In this deeply inspiring and wide ranging conversation Scott talks to Waylon Lewis on his life as a buddhist and the growth of the world renowned yoga and wellness magazine, Elephant Journal. --- We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Online Yoga community. For just £20 per month you can support the podcast and every Monday evening, between 7.30pm - 8.30pm UK time, join our
#041: David Swenson on Practicing Yoga Because You Love It
In this deeply inspiring and wide ranging conversation Scott talks to David Swenson, one of the worlds foremost and well loved teachers and practitioners of Ashtanga yoga. --- We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Online Yoga community. For just £20 per month you can support the podcast and every Monday evening, between 7.30pm - 8.30pm UK time, join our live stream yoga ph
Reflections 2022 - What does it mean to live a contemplative life?
Scott shares intimate moments with his guests over the year. Hear beautiful words from his conversations with Ty Landrum, Sarah Powers, Ty Powers, Nadia Gilani, Pamela Weiss, Shyam Ranganathan and Jon Yuen. You can listen to all this years episodes here. Scott also intersperses the guests words with poetry that has inspired him over the year, words that he has shared with his online and work
#040: Jon Yuen | Freedom To Move
In this light hearted, fun and inspiring conversation Scott talks to online trainer, author and entrepreneur Jon Yuen on his life as a movement educator. Jon shares how he sees movement education, how the body can be controlled through time and how we can all find our own unique freedom to move in our bodies. --- We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Yoga community. We
#039 | Shyam Ranganathan (with Greg Nardi) - Understanding Yoga Philosophy
In this deep conversation Scott Johnson is joined by his good friend Greg Nardi. They talk to Shyam Ranganathan, a field-changing researcher, scholar, author and teacher of philosophy, and an expert in the neglected traditions of Indian moral philosophy. Shyam talks about his life as a philosophy researcher, his work on decolonisation and his translation of the yoga sutra named, Patanjali Yoga Sut
#038: Pamela Weiss | A Fierce Feminine Buddhism
In this heart felt conversation Scott Johnson talks to Pamela Weiss, the first layperson to receive dharma transmission in the Soto Zen tradition. They talk openly about her life of Buddha dharma practice and her book, A Bigger Sky: Awakening A Fierce Feminine Buddhism. --- We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Yoga community. We teach in-person in London Bridge and live
#037: Nadia Gilani | The Yoga Manifesto
In this raw and wide-ranging conversation Scott Johnson talks to Nadia Gilani, yoga teacher and author of The Yoga Manifesto. They both go deep on yoga, practice, life, creativity and the shadows and light of yoga that Nadia discusses in her her new book, The Yoga Manifesto. ----- We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Yoga community. We teach in-person in London Bridge and
#036 | Ty Powers - Finding Equanimity
In this deeply honest conversation Scott Johnson talks to Ty Powers, co-founder of the Insight Yoga Institute. They have a moving conversation on Ty's life of contemplative practice and his teaching of mindfulness meditation for over 25 years. ___ We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Yoga community. We teach in-person in London Bridge and live stream online Ashtanga Yoga
#035: Sarah Powers | Lit From Within
Scott Johnson talks to Sarah Powers, a long term teacher of yoga and Buddha Dharma, about her life of contemplative practice and its culmination in her new book 'Lit From Within'. We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Yoga community. We teach in-person in London Bridge and live stream online Ashtanga Yoga assisted self practice and guided classes, with weekly yoga clinic
#034: Ty Landrum | Living Yoga Philosophy
Scott talks to Ashtanga yoga teacher Ty Landrum about yoga and how it 'ruined his life' in the best possible way. ________ We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Yoga community. We teach in-person in London Bridge and live stream online Ashtanga Yoga assisted self practice and guided classes, with weekly yoga clinics and philosophy sessions guided by Scott Johnson and the S
#033: J.Brown | How Yoga Talks
Scott talks to yoga teacher, writer and renowned podcast host J.Brown ________ We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Stillpoint Yoga community. We teach in-person in London Bridge and live stream online Ashtanga Yoga assisted self practice and guided classes, with weekly yoga clinics and philosophy sessions guided by Scott Johnson and the Stillpoint teaching faculty. We also have a
#032: Tim Feldmann | Ashtanga Yoga: Past, Present & Future
Scott talks to Ashtanga yoga teacher and co-founder of the Miami Life Centre Tim Feldmann about the past, present and future of teaching Ashtanga yoga. In this nuanced and meaningful conversation, Tim and Scott discuss dancing as a spiritual practise, movement as a healing modality, and the teacher's role as a vessel for knowledge. ________ We'd like to invite you to join our growing monthly Still
#31: Ellen Johannesen | Ashtanga and Buddhism
Scott talks to Ashtanga yoga teacher Ellen Johannesen. A professional dancer at the time, Ellen travelled to the Lakshmipuram Institute (the 'old old' Shala) in 1997 where she spent three months studying with Pattabhi Jois. ------- You can become part of our Stillpoints Podcast Patreon Community and get weekly updates on the podcast, plus a monthly Stillpoints Podcast Live Stream Chat where you c
#30: Frank Jude Boccio | Yoga and Mindfulness
Scott talks to Yoga and Dharma teacher Frank Jude Boccio. Frank took refuge in the Dharma after a period of practising with Thich Nhat Hanh in the 1990's. In 2000, he began to study with Korean master Samu Sunim, who ordained Frank as a Dharma Teacher in 2007. - You can support The Stillpoints Podcast through our Patreon page and help us to continue to share inspiring and meaningful conversations.
#029: Lucille Meyer | Yoga As Service
Scott talks to Lucille Meyer about her powerful work as an activist, yoga teacher and CEO of Chrysalis academy. Chrysalis is one of the largest and most prestigious youth service organisations in South Africa. Lucille has overseen the transformation of thousands of young men and women, using the techniques of yoga and mindfulness and other modalities. ____ We'd like to invite you to join our grow
#028: Martin Aylward | Reality is Playful
Scott and Dharma teacher Martin Aylward 'chew the dharma fat' over topics including contemplative practices, the inherent 'juiciness' of life, and the ultimate inevitability of liberation. ___ We'd like to invite you to join our growing Stillpoint Online Ashtanga Yoga and Mindfulness community. You can sign up for a free yoga and meditation course and a free week on our online platform here.
#027: Kino Macgregor | Yoga and Covid
Scott has an open, honest and heartfelt conversation with colleague and international yoga teacher Kino Macgregor about Covid-19 and the year of the pandemic. _______________ We'd like to invite you to join our growing Stillpoint Online Ashtanga Yoga and Mindfulness community. You can sign up for a free yoga and meditation course and a free week on our online platform here. We live stream beginne
#026: Petri Räisänen | Learning From The Past
Scott talks to colleague and yoga teacher Petri Räisänen about his life as a yoga teacher and as one of the most respected names in Ashtanga yoga. Petri is deeply open and honest about his relationship to Mysore over the years and Petri and Scott talk about how we can move on from the abuses of Pattabhi Jois. _______________ We'd like to invite you to join our growing Stillpoint Online Ashtanga
#025: Eddie Stern | The Yoga Dialogue
Scott talks to yoga teacher and educator Eddie Stern about his early life as a seeker of yoga and how the deeply spiritual aspects of his life evolved through his impact with India and hindu temples. Scott has known Eddie since 2014 and has co-hosted him in the UK twice. Both times Eddie performed Puja's at the workshops and these were deeply moving rituals. Scott talks to Eddie about the evolutio
#024: Daniel Simpson | The Truth of Yoga
#024: Daniel Simpson Scott talks to Daniel Simpson, on his life as a yoga philosophy teacher and practitioner. Daniel presents ancient texts for modern times. He is the author of The Truth of Yoga, a comprehensive guide to the historic tradition and texts of yoga for contemporary practitioners. We'd like to invite you to join our growing Stillpoint Online Ashtanga Yoga and Mindfulness communit
#023: Kia Naddermier | The Practice of Pausing
#023: Kia Naddermier Scott talks to his dear friend and colleague Kia Naddermier on their friendship and her life as a renowned yoga and pranayama teacher. They talk about the ability to pause being a key component in the evolution of yoga in your life. We'd like to invite you to join our growing Stillpoint Online Ashtanga Yoga and Mindfulness community. We live stream beginner classes, Ashtan
#022: Josefin Wikström | Bringing Yoga Home
Scott talks to dear friend and colleague Josefin Wikström about how yoga changed her life and how she now shares yoga and Bollywood dancing to people in prisons and to those who suffer from complex trauma. We'd like to invite you to join our growing Stillpoint Online Ashtanga Yoga and Mindfulness community. We live stream beginner classes, Ashtanga Yoga assisted self practice and guided classes
#020: Prem & Radha Carlisi | Finding Humility Together
#020: Prem & Radha Carlisi Scott talks to Prem and Radha Carlisi (and their lovely dogs) about their friendship since 2008 and how they've evolved over an incredibly close, and tender, twelve years of knowing each other. --- We'd like to invite you to join our growing Stillpoint Online Ashtanga Yoga and Mindfulness community. We live stream Ashtanga Yoga assisted self practice and guided classe
#19: Laruga Glaser | Leaning In To Vulnerability
#019: Laruga Glaser Scott talks to Laruga Glaser on her life as a yoga student and teacher of Ashtanga yoga. She also shares her experience as a woman of colour in the yoga industry. On 3rd June Laruga shared a 52:39 face to camera Instagram post on her experience as a POC in Ashtanga yoga. The majority of her conversation (with Scott) references Laruga's post. It would be highly beneficial to
#18: Simon Borg-Olivier | Finding The Real Yoga
#018: Simon Borg-Olivier Scott talks to Simon Borg-Olivier on his 50 years as a teacher and practitioner of yoga. Simon Borg-Olivier is a maverick and someone who has truly done his own research into how yoga works for him. Simon Borg-Olivier has been studying traditional forms of posture, movement and breathing for over 50 years. He has worked as a research-based scientist, exercise-based physiot
#17: Greg Nardi | Empowerment Through Ashtanga Yoga
#017: Greg Nardi Scott talks to close friend and colleague Greg Nardi on his life as an Ashtanga yoga practitioner and teacher. --- In this podcast we talk about the sexual abuse commited by Pattabhi Jois on a number of his students over the years. While this conversation centers Greg's experience, it is not meant to detract from the victim's experience. We acknowledge the sexual abuses and other
#016 | Wambui Njuguna-Räisänen | Reclaiming Joy Through Heartbreak
Scott talks to Wambui Njuguna-Räisänen on her life in yoga. An up and coming wellness advocate, Wambui has a blend of formal Ashtanga yoga training, Chavutti Thirumal (massage by foot press) and life experience that gives her a unique ability to see and hear those around her in a way that is tender, gentle and real. Wambui started practicing Ashtanga yoga in 2008 and began assisting Petri Räisäne
#015: Zephyr Wildman | Yoga and Recovery
Scott talks to his good friend and fellow yoga teacher Zephyr Wildman... Originally from Idaho, Zephyr Wildman is one of London's most well loved and highly regarded yoga teachers. Yoga and the Twelve Step recovery programme have supported her during difficult times, and Zephyr now works closely with treatment centres for addiction, depression and other dependency problems, sharing therapeutic pra
#014: Mark Robberds | Into The Unknown
#014: Mark Robberds Scott talks to Mark Robberds, a friend, senior Ashtanga yoga teacher and movement educator. Mark Robberds has been practicing yoga since 1997. He is one of the few people to be certified to teach Ashtanga Yoga by KPJAYI. Over the years he has become one of the leading figures of movement in yoga culture, pushing the boundaries around how yoga and movement can interrelate. Mark
#013: Deepika Mehta | Movement into Stillness
Scott talks to Deepika Mehta, a friend and fellow long term practitioner and teacher of Ashtanga yoga. Deepika has been practicing yoga for over 20 years, where she used the tools of yoga to heal from a devastating climbing accident. Since then she has thrived, studying the Sivananda and Ashtanga yoga traditions and becoming an Authorised Level 2 teacher, from her teacher Sharath Jois, in the lat
#012: Dr Matthew Clark | A Naturally Sceptical Mind
#012: Dr Matthew Clark Scott talks to Dr Matthew Clark, a long term yoga practitioner, philosophy teacher and academic. Since 2004, Dr. Matthew Clark has been a Research Associate at SOAS, University of London. He is one of the administrators of the SOAS Centre of Yoga Studies in London and is one of the editors of the Journal of Yoga Studies. His publications include: The Daśanāmī-Saṃnyāsīs: T
#011: Joey Miles | Blending Yoga Traditions
#011: Joey Miles 'This book is to help you sit like a mountain, so that when you see the big mountains you'll know what to look for'. Scott talks to Joey Miles, an authorised level 2 and highly inspiring Ashtanga yoga teacher, about how yoga has evolved through his life. Joey came to yoga in 1998 and since that time has become one of the most loved and influential Ashtanga yoga teacher
#010: Ann Weston | 62 Years of Practice
#010: Ann Weston Scott talks to Ann Weston, a UK based yoga teacher and teacher trainer, on her 62 years of yoga practice. Ann began her yoga practice at the age of sixteen in 1957. She has been a quiet pioneer of yoga in Britain since that time, quietly practicing and sharing to others what she has found to be so beautiful in her life. Yoga. Ann still teaches classes near he
#009: Jess Glenny | Movement Through Life
Scott talks to colleague and fellow yoga practitioner Jess Glenny, a London based yoga teacher and educator, on her lifelong dedication to movement practices. Those were the days my friend We thought they'd never end We'd sing and dance forever and a day Jess is a long term and highly skilled yoga/movement teacher, facilitator and therapist specialising in teaching people ho
#008: Danny Paradise | Creating Your Own Way
Scott talks to Danny Paradise, one of the original Ashtanga yoga teachers and pioneers from the 1970s, about his life and practice in a vast and wide ranging conversation. Danny Paradise is one of the longest practicing western practitioners of Ashtanga yoga,. He began studying with David Williams and Nancy Gilgoff in 1976 and became a pioneer of the method through the late 1970s, 80s and 90s. He
#007: David Keil | Owning Your Practice
Scott interviews David Keil, a long term SYL friend and collabarator, about his life and evolution into becoming one of Stillpoint's most loved visiting teachers and a highly sought after yoga anatomy educator. David Keil is a yoga teacher, yoga anatomy educator and entrepreneur who is changing the way we integrate with and learn yoga anatomy. He has written a yoga anatomy book, called Functional
#006: Caroline Taylor | A Transformative Pathway
Scott talks to Caroline Taylor, a long term SYL practitioner, about how she has navigated her yoga practice since the time she started in 2012. Caroline has been a practitioner of Ashtanga yoga since 2012 when she first met Scott after walking into Stillpoint Yoga London as a beginner. She joined Stillpoint at the time just after Ozge Karabiyik had passed away and has been an integral part of the
#005: Ian Cheney | A Broader Perspective On Practice
Scott talks to his friend Ian Cheney about Ian's evolution from an Ashtanga yoga practitioner to a KPJAYI authorised teacher. Ian runs an Ashtanga yoga Mysore programme in Melbourne, Australia. He has been friends with Scott since 2013 and taught at SYL before his move to Australia. Ian was first introduced to Ashtanga Yoga in 2002 and after many years of evolving his own practice he felt the urge
#004: Liz Lark | Yoga As A Creative Process
Scott talks to Liz Lark about her life. Scott and Liz have been friends and colleagues for nearly 15 years. Liz is one of the foremost and most well loved teachers of yoga in the UK over the last 30 years. She has written 8 books on yoga and brings a sense of creativity, fun and beautiful intelligence to the teaching and sharing of yoga. She continues to teach nationally and internationally and is
#003: Maria Jose Pantoja | Remembering Precious Times
Scott talks to Maria Jose Pantoja who between 2009 and 2013 was one of the most consistent members and teachers at Stillpoint Yoga London. She turned from one of the most beautiful practitioners into one of our loveliest ever teachers. Maria was loved by everyone who was part of our community. She moved back to her native Mexico in 2013 ------- Remembering Precious Times When do you get the
#002: Laura Graham-Dullaert | Becoming Your Own Teacher
Scott and Laura talk deeply about how they're relationship has evolved over 8 years. They share how they met, the shift of their relationship through teaching and Laura apprenticing at Stillpoint Yoga London, how they both navigated the death of SYL co-founder Ozge Karabiyik and then moved into becoming colleagues and dear friends who still goof around together. Laura also talks candidly about how
#001: John Scott | How Practice Changes Over The Years
In a beautifully revealing conversation at the Purple Valley Retreat Centre in Goa where they were both teaching, John and Scott share intimate moments of their lives. The teacher/student relationship that has evolved between John and Scott over the years has turned into friendship. One where they deeply support each other's work, aren't afraid of having challenging conversations but they can als
