Who's Involved

Event Producers & Teachers

Introducing Trikaya®: The Yoga of Intentional Creation®

Meet Kris

Kris Ward, B.A., has been teaching self-empowerment through the movement arts for twelve years. She has a love for music and dance that stems all the way back to age three when she was first enrolled in dance. In college she started teaching aerobics, hip hop dance and Pilates, and soon after, stumbled into a yoga class. Being raised in the deep south of the Carolinas, the philosophies of yoga were curious and even strange for her. Even still, it was like coming home. Over the next few years, she dug her roots in Hatha, Ashtanga, Kundalini, Anusara and Vinyasa yoga, and has integrated elements of all these sytles in her own classes ever since.

Yoga was a doorway for Kris into the unknown territory of self-observation, self-awareness, and self-leadership. It beckoned her to really "know thyself". Beyond her strengths and weaknesses, beyond her tendencies and personality traits, she saw that she was governed by a default set of thoughts, judgments, actions and reactions; a set of beliefs and behaviors.. She saw that these patterns basically repeated themselves over and over. By noticing the patterns, she saw that she had a choice to play comfortably small... or EXPAND in every moment; that SHE alone was responsible for that choice AND for its consequences. With this new desire to be the architect and designer of her life, Kris plunged into multiple schools of thought on living authentically and intentionally according to her biggest and greatest vision. She knew at her first self-leadership training that "one fine day" (as her Indian teacher would say) she would bridge the gap between these empowering programs and the life-long practice of yoga. And the seed of Trikaya was planted.

Trikaya evolved out of Kris's unique and dynamic teaching style when she realized that becoming a CHOOSER, rather than a seeker, and taking on the responsibility of being in CHOICE POINT in every moment, was where the real change was unfolding in her students as well as herself. Kris attributes her inspiration to all the teachers in her life... her family and friends, yoga mentors, fellow entrepreneurs and philanthropists, artists and authors, especially Abraham-Hicks, Robin Sharma, Marianne Williamson, Eric Butterworth, Debbie Ford, Byron Katie, Shiva Rea, John Friend and Neale Donald Walsch.

Kris has taught yoga and holistic wellness to a wide variety of people ranging from young children to the blind elderly, from professional dancers and athletes to sufferers of stroke and Parkinson's disease. She facilitates Trikaya Tribe Awareness Events and retreats both nationally and internationally, as well as interactive "Bhakti Buddy" MasterMind Teleclasses for turning your passions into your greatest outlets for service, joy and symmetrical success. Teaching is her absolute bliss. Outside of the Trikaya events, Kris teaches in-home private lessons as well as group classes at Yoga One. She currently lives in downtown San Diego with her husband and best friend, Kraig Ward.

Mara Harris Yoga

Meet Mara

Mara Harris, Yoga Explorer / Yoga Coach – her offering of yoga is inspired by an eclectic background in the movement arts (Tai Chi, Contact Improv Dance, African Dance, Rhythmic Gymnastics). Mara believes in harmonizing mind, body and will through a unique blend of yogic styles and allowing the spirit to play. Her intention is to “transpire” yoga as a sacred and advantageous means to delve into subtle aspects of mind, body and energy -teaching that when conditions of compassion and acknowledgement are present, transformation happens exponentially.

Mara holds a B.A. from the University of Oregon and became a certified yoga teacher through the Nataraja Yoga and Meditation Center in San Diego. There she received training in Hatha Yoga-Sivananda Style and also completed their two-year Expert in Life Program. Mara was one of 25 yoga teachers selected to be in the first lineage of AcroYoga teachers certified in the United States. Having completed the AcroYoga Teacher Training in August 2006 she now teaches AcroYoga workshops through out San Diego/Los Angeles County.

Mara began her exploration as a yoga teacher in 1999; she currently teaches at the University of San Diego, Frogs-Club One in Mission Valley, Downtown San Diego Athletic Club, OB Namaste Yoga Center, Yoga Del Coronado, and serves as a Teaching Artist for the transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project using yoga/AcroYoga and Contact Improv dance as tools to train the youth. As a Yoga Coach, Mara serves corporate and private clients and maintains a steady teaching schedule through out San Diego County.

“I have found that the transformative nature of yoga is exponential effecting our mind, body and spirit on and off the mat; the adventuring spirit is called out to join with others to play, to explore, and reflect our gifts and worth in each others presence.” -Mara Harris

Deep Yoga

Meet Laura and Bhava... bios coming soon

Deep Yoga is a system of Yoga evolved by the husband and wife team of Bhava Ram and Laura Plumb. It is Yoga beyond Asana, Yoga beyond body. Yoga beyond mind. It is a an integrated Yoga practice for the whole person.

Bhava Ram came to Yoga after a broken back left him immobilized, cancer left him near death, the sudden loss, due to illness, of his career as an NBC News correspondent left him severely depressed, and the combination of the three left him pickled on western medication, still in great pain, and almost hopeless. Yoga saved his life, restored his physical and emotional health, and lead him to a brand new life teaching and sharing the power of Yoga to heal and transform.

Laura began a meditation practice while still young. Meditation guided her safely through numerous challenges, especially the sudden loss of family, friends, job, income, and home. Yoga helped her rebuild her life after divorce and moving continents. Teaching Yoga is an opportunity for Laura to remind all of the miracle we are, the gift life is, and the power we each have to overcome our challenges, to heal, to love and to make beautiful this world.

Both Bhava and Laura are certified Ayurvedic practitioners and offer Vedic healing, counseling and guidance to individuals. They incorporate aspects of the entire Vedic system into their Yoga classes to direct people to their true and greatest self.

Performers & Speakers

Emcee and SelfCentered Guide:

Meet Darshana

The name Darshana Atman literally means “insight into the true self”.
Darshana has taught thousands of people to understand connection and communication with one another through spiritual philosophy and the simple ability to listen, be present, and observe.

He has passed through many fields in his life, to include an eight-year stint in the Army, owning and operating his own graphic design business, becoming a performer, practicing and teaching massage therapy and energy work as a Holistic Health Practitioner, and ultimately studying the world’s major religions and traveling to China, Thailand, the Middle East, Central America, and all throughout the U.S. seeking higher spiritual understanding. After spending a year teaching the Learning Annex course “The Power of Now” based on the best selling book by Eckhart Tolle and writing an approved supplemental, Darshana opened the Center for Connection, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and connecting the holistic vision of others.

Darshana has been asked to speak and hold workshops at the World Wellness Weekend sharing space with prominent speakers Marianne Williamson, Deepak Chopra, and John Gray, is a Master Architect for the self-centered Tour, a meditation inspired revolution for authenticity seekers, founded by Max Simon, formerly of the Chopra Center, and currently collaborates with over 30 holistic organizations to create positive change in the world.

All the accolades aside, Darshana describes himself as, “always smiling, authentic, and wondering what ego-self wrote this Bio.”

To contact Darshana please visit www.centerforconnection.org/Spirit

Or you may call him at (619) 851-9527 (for the month of July, he will be in a vow of silence, so please txt)

DJ: Om Gaia Tree

Meet Murray

Inspired by travels, magic, and music from all over the world, Om Gaia Tree harnesses the essence of sacred and world-infused electronic music in her mixes. She lays it out on all levels - from downtempo and dub, to breaks, glitch, and world beats that are sure to take you on your own timeless journey. With an ear for tasteful tunes, Murray has been spinning internationally from Thailand to Indonesia, Canada, Hawaii and all over the west coast USA.

JacobEye

Meet Jacob

JacobEye is a well-traveled visual artist who uses photography and video to capture the moments through a unique, custom-built fisheye lens that adds an intoxicating effect to its visual result. Inspired by gatherings and the coming-togetherness of all the tribes, JacobEye projects his imagery of people and places, mixing it with layers of color, light, and other friend's artwork onto canvases of big screens and inflatable spheres that dangle in trees at festivals. His work can influence the ambiance of any event, providing a surreal and moving experience for all.

Hoopdance Performances: HoopNectar

Meet Michelle

Nayeli Michelle is an evolutionary revolutionary schooled in the arts of yoga, dance, flow, ecology, earth-based spirituality and natural living. Her mission is to connect people to themselves, to each other, and to the beauty of the world we live in through playful and sacred experience. A yoga teacher for nearly a decade, she looks for ways to integrate the sensitivity and unifying consciousness of yoga practice into living in the world in a harmonious, sustainable and creative way.

Michelle has been a mover her whole life --ballet, jazz, swimming, biking, dancing, roller skating, modern dance, Capoeira, aerial circus arts, psychosomatics, and 15 years of yoga practice with in depth studies in Ashtanga Vinyasa, Iyengar, Therapeutic, Forrest, Anusara, AcroYoga, and Prana Vinyasa Flow Yogas. Guided by her love of Nature, Michelle earned her degree from UCSD in Ecology and Evolution, and like so many in the coming generations, she feels the deep desire and responsibility to heal earth and human hearts however she can.

Nayeli Michelle is grateful to be a catalyst within the HoopDance movement ~ a mind-body practice of self-expression and radiant health. Michelle is constantly humbled and awed by the power of moving with and within the circle of the hoop ~ as it has transformed her life in tremendous ways. Her performance at Global Mala is offered in prayer that we always remember that we're all part of the circle!

Kids Yoga Demonstration

Meet the Kids of Integral Elementary

The Center for Integral Education is creating a new paradigm in education
for children! We started with a preschool we opened in 2002 (Rainbow Kids
Integral Preschool, in Mira Mesa area), and now an elementary school which
we opened in 2006 (Integral Elementary School in the La Jolla/UTC area). Our
Integral approach is innovative, holistic and individualized. Our mission is
to inspire a true joy in learning, and to create lifelong learners. Our
curriculum includes academics, arts, PE, values, communication skills, yoga
and daily meditation.

Integral Education is a philosophy and practice of education for the whole child: body, emotions, mind, soul, and spirit. The modern practice of education for utility or for productivity is not enough for the children of the 21st century. It ignores the highest and truest parts of their being. Too often it ignores the physical and emotional development of the child as well.

Integral Education unites the ancient educational goal of self-knowledge with the modern goal of world-knowledge. Both of these goals are admirable, and the two of them must go hand-in-hand in any educational system that is integral.

Integral Education assists the child to discover for himself/herself out of his/her own temperament and being the aim of life and the purpose that he/she has to play in it. If everyone truly has a spark of the Divine as the center of his/her being, a comprehensive education must do more than ignore it or passively acknowledge it. Integral Education takes that spark, the soul, as the guiding principle for the education of each child.

Drums: Teachers and Students of the World Beat Center

At the AFTERPARTY!!

Contortionist

Meet Victoria

Acclaimed Contortionist, Victoria Costello hails from the Bay Area just south of San Francisco. Ms. Costello has performed all across the U.S. most recently returning from an extensive east coast tour. Victoria enjoys wowing audiences with her extreme flexibly, grace and elegance. Ms. Costello's passion is to combine European, Mongolian and Western styles of contortion to create her own unique, jaw dropping performance.

Face & Body Art Painter

Meet Damaris

Damaris Marwarixa offers a wide variety of unique colorful designs (over 80 different samples) including body jewels, creamy metallic paints and tons of fun GLITTER!

Here are two examples of her work.

Tarot Card, Palm Reader & Psychic

Meet Barbara

According to Barbara Marks, she has had clairvoyant capabilities her entire life. “I discovered my powers when I was five-years-old and I have had more than 3,000 satisfied clients since,” Marks said, noting that she has used her psychic abilities for more than 15,000 people.
Marks services include tarot card, palm, psychic, crystal angel, tea leaf and coffee readings.
“What’s unique is that I get clients in touch with their guardian angels and spirit guides. I give information in all areas of life,” she said noting she often answers her clients’ questions before they ask them.
The married mother of four said that her children are her biggest inspiration for helping others in need.
“I do a lot of nonprofit work and I often contribute to Stepping Stone and many other nonprofit organizations,” she said.

Excerpted from an article written on Barbara poster in Gay & Lesbian Times.