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Krotona School of Theosophy
Spring 2026

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Embodied Awareness: A Gentle Yoga Series

Alana Mitnick

February 19 and 26
Thursdays 10:00 – 11:15 am PST
Krotona School (On-site and Zoom)

In this 6-week yoga series we will explore what it feels like to move gently, from a place of self-compassion and embodied ease. Drawing awareness towards the breath and subtle sensations, we explore simple asanas, somatic movements, and meditation techniques designed to calm the nervous system – offering relief, increasing mobility, and inspiring a flow of energy.

Drop-ins welcome!

Please bring a yoga mat, a yoga blanket (or towel), and any props you would like to use during your practice.

Single Session $20.

Click here to register.

Alana Mitnick, E-RYT 500, YACEP, has been a devoted yoga practitioner since 1996 and a beloved teacher in the Ojai Valley since 2006. Known for her skillful, compassionate leadership, Alana brings a steady presence and deep integrity to her work within the yoga community. A lifelong spiritual seeker, Alana is committed to a path of service. Her teaching emphasizes somatic awareness, mindfulness, and an inclusive approach that welcomes students of all ages, bodies, and abilities. Alana teaches Restorative and Yin Yoga Teacher Trainings, and co-leads 200 & 300-hour Yoga Teacher Training programs.

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Meditation and Exploration
of the Yoga Sutras

Ravi Ravindra

March 3 – 6

Tuesday – Friday, 10:00  – Noon PT

Zoom

In these four gatherings we will begin with nearly a half an hour long meditation, followed by an exploration of the significant teachings in Yoga Sutras, the great spiritual text attributed to Patañjali. There is a strong emphasis in this text that the whole purpose of the manifested universe (Prakriti) is to serve the Divine Energy (Purusha) which has created the universe. A searcher needs to inquire how the individualized Prakriti in me, which is my body-mind, can serve the individualized Purusha in me, which is the spiritual element that has taken on my body-mind for its own evolution. We will explore the specific obstacles that interfere in the spiritual journey of a seeker and the practices that can help.

Recommended Reading: The Wisdom of Patañjali and Yoga Sutras by Ravi Ravindra

Single Session $15, Series $50

Click here to register.

Ravi Ravindra, PhD is professor emeritus at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada, where he taught in the departments of physics, philosophy and comparative religion. He has authored many papers in these fields and several books, including Pilgrim Soul; the Gospel of John in the Light of Indian Mysticism; Science and the Sacred; the Wisdom of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and The Bhagavad Gita: A Guide to Navigating the Battle of Life. Ravi travels and teaches internationally as well as online.

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Exploration of the Katha Upanishad

Ravi Ravindra

March 10 – 13

Tuesday – Friday, 10 – noon PT

Zoom

Katha Upanishad is an ancient text in the Indian tradition and is regarded as one of the primary Upanishads. This Upanishad contains the first mention of yoga as a practice of liberation, defining yoga as the steady control of the senses and mind, leading to a supreme state of stillness. In this text, an archetypal searcher Nachiketa, whose name literally means “one who does not know,” implying that he does not already have a conclusion, but he is interested in learning, encounters Yama, the Lord of Death and also the Maintainer of dharma, the cosmological order. The important question that arises is: Is death the end? What dies and what does not die? Some aspects of the teaching in this Upanishad resonate in the Bhagavad Gita.

Recommended Readings:

Katha Upanishad by Swami Ambikananda Saraswati.

The Bhagavad Gita: A Guide to Navigating the Battle of Life by Ravi Ravindra

Single Session $15, Series $50

Click here to register.

Ravi Ravindra, PhD is professor emeritus at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada, where he taught in the departments of physics, philosophy and comparative religion. He has authored many papers in these fields and several books, including Pilgrim Soul; the Gospel of John in the Light of Indian Mysticism; Science and the Sacred; the Wisdom of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and The Bhagavad Gita: A Guide to Navigating the Battle of Life. Ravi travels and teaches internationally as well as online.

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Embodying Unity: Art, Work, and the Spiritual Life

Daniela Yamez Arrey

March 10
Tuesday 7 pm
Onsite and Zoom

This talk explores the unity of matter and spirit through lived experience, artistic practice, and conscious work. Drawing from years of communal life at Saint Elmo Village and from an ongoing land-based project in the foothills of the Andes, Daniela shares a vision of spirituality not as abstraction, but as embodied action. Rather than presenting theory or doctrine, the talk offers a deeply human narrative about creativity, service, simplicity, and courage—inviting listeners to reconnect with their own inner voice and creative responsibility in the world.

$10

Click here to register.

Daniela Yamez Arrey is a multidisciplinary artist based in San Rafael, Argentina. Her work integrates art, ecological construction, perma-culture, and community-oriented practices. Through land-based projects and educational initiatives, she explores how creativity, spirituality, and service can converge in everyday life.

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Death Café: Tea, Cake, and Conversation

Francine Oller and Ananya Sri Ram

April 14

Onsite only

Inspired from the work of Swiss sociologist Bernard Crettaz’s “Death Mortels,” Death Cafes became more well known in the US by Jon Underwood and a team of other people. The objective behind a Death Café is “to increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives.” It is not a support or counseling group, but a place for people to sit together over cake and tea to discuss in an “accessible, respectful and confidential space” about death without “an agenda, theme. or objective.”

Donation

Click here to register.

Francine Oller has been a student of Theosophy since 2009. She is continually inspired by the reflection of the Ancient Wisdom in her life.

Ananya Sri Ram comes from a Theosophical family. She serves as director of the Krotona School.

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Radiance and Reflection: The Making of Mandalas

David Orr

April 25

Saturday 10am – noon, 2 – 4 pm

Onsite and Zoom

The Mandala has long served as a symbol representing the universe. C.G. Jung noted that although the mandala is most often associated with Eastern thought, the form has appeared in myriad cultures for centuries. In his introduction to The Red Book, Sonu Shamdasani noted that Jung “held that the mandala represented one of the best examples of the universality of an archetype.” David Orr will take you through his own work with Mandalas, discuss their use across cultural and philosophical spectrums, then open the process to attendees. The series will demonstrate how the mandala appears in myriad belief systems, exploring similarities between various uses of the form—ranging from ancient celestial maps, sacred geometry, and contemporary diagram used in particle physics. David will guide your own creation of mandala symbology using elements of your own mythology. Sessions will include artist lectures, mandala making, and group discussion.

Single Session $20, Series $35

Click here to register.

David Orr is a visual artist based in California. He exhibits his work internationally, and has spoken about it at a wide range of venues including Cal State LA, the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, Death Salon, Dublintellectual Ireland, The Director’s Guild of America, The Mütter Museum, The New School, Parsons School of Design, The Philosophical Research Society, Reed College, Tibet House