Living Tantra: Find Inner Peace in a Tumultuous World

Living Tantra is a tantra yoga weekend retreat at Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, led by Kripalu Legacy Faculty member Todd Norian. It is for people who want practical ways to feel grounded and present when life is shifting, and who are curious about yoga, meditation, mantra and the five elements of earth, water, fire, air and sky.

Over a weekend, Todd draws on the life-affirming teachings of tantra to offer a down-to-earth approach to yoga that meets you where you are. The questions at its center are simple: how to move through change with more ease, how to live more fully rather than merely tolerating life, and how difficulty can become a doorway to greater freedom.

What to Expect

The weekend is built around Ashaya Yoga for the Five Elements, a therapeutic, alignment-based style of asana that builds strength, balance, flexibility and vitality while opening the heart. Alongside it come heart-centered tantric teachings, contemplation, breathwork and meditation. Rather than resisting change, you practice facing it and flowing with it, and finding the awareness, compassion and inner strength that are already there.

Each morning begins with a special sadhana of mantra, pranayama and meditation. Savasana and Yoga Nidra offer deep relaxation and time to let the practice settle. Hands-on support to deepen poses and refine alignment is available if you want it. Todd also brings live music and sacred chanting throughout the weekend.

The rhythm is steady. Opening day starts with check-in at 2:00 pm, a Kripalu Yoga class from 4:45 to 6:00, dinner, and a program session from 7:00 to 9:00 in the evening. Full days begin with a program session from 7:00 to 7:45 am, followed by a silent breakfast. The main session runs from 9:00 to 12:00, with lunch after, then another session from 3:00 to 5:30, a Kripalu Yoga class and dinner. On the closing day, sessions run from 7:00 to 7:45 am and 9:00 to 11:30, and the program ends with lunch and departure. Times may shift, and the schedule given at check-in has the final word and the room locations.

About Todd Norian

Todd Norian, E-RYT 500, YACEP, is an internationally acclaimed yoga teacher, author and musician who has taught yoga for over 42 years. In 2012 he founded Ashaya Yoga, an alignment-based, transformational system that embodies Tantric philosophy, the five elements, shadow and light work, and the integration of body, mind and heart. Students know him for his depth in therapeutic alignment and Tantra philosophy, and for his warmth and unapologetic sense of humor. His recommended reading includes his memoir, Tantra Yoga: Journey to Unbreakable Wholeness, and the Ashaya Yoga manuals.

The Setting

Kripalu is a yoga and health center in Stockbridge, in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. Its accommodations are intentionally simple, meant to help you unplug. You can choose a minimalist private room if you want solitude, or a shared dormitory if you prefer the company of other guests. Rooms are ready by 4:00 pm, and earlier arrivals can store bags in the Luggage Room. Meals are served three times a day, and breakfast is taken in silence.

Before You Go

The workshop suits practitioners with some yoga experience. The asana is therapeutic and alignment-based and does not require advanced flexibility or strength, and all levels are welcome. It is taught in English.

Tuition covers the program sessions with Todd, more than ten daily yoga classes, three nutritious meals a day, and access to the Kripalu grounds and amenities. Lodging is booked separately. Healing Arts sessions and items from the Kripalu Shop and Cafe are available for purchase. Check-out is at 10:00 am on the last day, but you can stay on campus and take part in workshops until 2:00 pm.