Shouldn't this headline say
YOGA"?
In the late 1970s, a 17-year-old disillusioned with his family's fundamentalist Christianity walked into a yoga class at Aiken Technical College.
Thus began a journey that led Michael Carroll to Pennsylvania, the Berkshire Mountains of western Massachusetts, an Indian monastery and, finally, back home, where he's the highest-level yoga teacher in the Augusta area.
"I left a rebellious teenager, and now I'm a contributing member of society," Mr. Carroll joked.
The owner and operator of Radiant Well-being Yoga Studio in North Augusta, Mr. Carroll is a master-level yogi, registered with the national Yoga Alliance as an E-RYT500, the highest designation. There are only 34 instructors at that level in the Southeast and 991 nationwide.
The ancient Hindu spiritual path has become a mere fitness regimen for many Americans, but yoga has been a way of life for Mr. Carroll for almost three decades, evidenced by his chiseled physique, rubber-band flexibility and gentle manner. In most circles he goes by Yoganand ("one who aspires to the bliss of yoga"), the name given to him when he became a monk at Kripalu Ashram in Stockbridge, Mass.
The yoga teacher at Aiken Tech told him about the ashram, a hermitage for practitioners, then located in Pennsylvania. Mr. Carroll visited and was enthralled.
Whereas his parents went to church on Sunday and spent the rest of the week living as they pleased, Kripalu's residents immersed themselves in yoga, giving all their time to God, he said.
"Here was a level of absorption, a level of integrity that I had never seen," Mr. Carroll said. "Find me a church where the pastor will say, as Jesus did, sell all of your possessions, give your money to the poor, and come follow me."
He took up residence there at age 21 and moved with Kripalu to its current location in a former Jesuit seminary in Stockbridge. He lived a communal lifestyle, practicing yoga -- coordinated breath, movement, meditation and poses -- for 10 hours a day and studying with masters in the United States and India.
But after the death of guru Swami Kripalu, his successor, Amrit Desai, resigned amid a sex scandal in the mid-1990s. Kripalu was restructured into a secular retreat and training center, and Mr. Carroll renounced his monastic vows.
He and more than 100 other former residents organized to file a class-action lawsuit, but the center negotiated a settlement.
Disillusioned once more, Mr. Carroll found work as a print shop worker and part-time yoga instructor in nearby Northampton, Mass.
He learned another lesson: he could make a living by teaching.
He met his wife, Amy, in a ballroom dancing class. She told him she'd move to the South with him if she could have a dog.
So they bought Bina, a long-haired German shepherd, and moved to Edgefield County in 2004.
One of the reasons he wanted to set up shop in his hometown was that, unlike Atlanta and Columbia, yoga hasn't quite caught on yet in conservative Augusta, Mr. Carroll said.
"It's changing, and it's changing fast," he said, "and I love being on that wave."
Reach Johnny Edwards at (706) 823-3225 or johnny.edwards@augustachronicle.com.
"YOGANAND" MICHAEL CARROLL
Occupation: Owner/operator of Radiant Well-being Yoga Studio & Training Center, 501 West Ave., North Augusta; phone: (803) 613-0684; www.radiantwellbeing.com
FAMILY: Wife, Amy Carroll; two cats and one dog
QUOTE: "Yoga will help you clear your glasses, but it won't tell you what you'll see when they're clean."
Comments
Shouldn't this headline say
YOGA"?
The headline is correct. Yogi = One who practices yoga. I believe "yogi" is the masculine form and "yogini" is the feminine.
This is sad, I know his parents. I've never met better Christain people in my life. They act the same on Sunday's as they do through out the week. This is really going to hurt his mother.
I was thinking that this place was somewhat of a good place but after reading your statement about christians...i think it that was harsh to make that comment about your family..hey, I am a fundamentalist Christian to !! I would not come there now, or encourage any of my "fundamentalist friends" either...sad!! you should have left the negative comments out!!!
nanna12263, I have taken classes here and really enjoyed them. But I agree with you, I'm a fundamentalist also. I will not be attending anymore classes. I also feel that this is a cruel way to punish your parents because you don't agree with them.
Mr. Carroll, concerning your statement, "Find me a church where the pastor will say, as Jesus did, sell all of your possessions, give your money to the poor, and come follow me." Though these are the words of Jesus, it would be a statement of error for a Pastor. I have heard Pastor's say, "sell all of your possessions, give your money to the poor" but unless they are self centered and trying to make themselves a god, they will say,"and come follow Jesus".
I wonder if all of the profits that you make will be used to help the poor? Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life and no man comes to the Father except through HIM" Yoga won't do it.
You state that your parents "went to church on Sunday and spent the rest of the week living as they pleased" Well, what about your former Yogi leader, Amrit Desai that was married, told people to practice celibacy and yet he had sexual relations with his students?http://www.wie.org/j17/desai.asp (5th paragrah) Why didn't you rebel against that? You say you renounced your vows but your site says,"Under the guidance of Amrit Desai, Yoganand was instructed to pass on the deeper teachings to Kripalu practitioners as he felt appropriate.
(I ran out of characters to use) Mr. Carroll, while you are looking inside yourself....If you listen to the Words of the One TRUE God, the Creator if the Universe.. you will find that you along with your family, and myself are sinners (For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God Rom. 3:23) We all fail, and rebelling from the Truth will lead us to a countefeit. Mr. Carroll, Jesus died for you, no amount of self discipline, no body poses will bring you to the God that your soul seeks. Only Jesus can do that.
When I was interviewed for this article I spoke candidly about the experiences and observations that led me on my yoga journey. I was a very zealous young man looking for perfection. What did not come through the article to some folks is that I have grown over the last 32 years and my views are different.
Both I and my parents have matured. We do live in integrity with our beliefs and respect our differences. If my words were upsetting to my mother I offer sincere apologies. I have studied and practiced many religions in my wondering years. I rarely speak about my beliefs to my students. Through yoga practice I encourage everyone to live in internal integrity. Yoga won't tell you want to see when you look for god, it will help to clean your glasses.
Yoganand Michael Carroll
I am an active member of Radient Well Being Yoga Studio and always will be. I am saddened to read this other comments because of how critical, harsh and judgmental they were.I indeed read Mr. Carroll's " Story" the article in the Augusta Chronicle however, it to me was not in ANY WAY A DIRECT ATTACK ON FUNDAMENTALIST'S OR HIS FAMILY, rather his journey of where he is today. No one is perfect RIGHT AND GOD FORGIVES US ALL FOR OUR SINS and does say" love thy neighbor as thyself." So why not as my grandmother used to say:(whom is a Christian Fundamentalist) if you have nothing nice to say DON'T SAY ANYTHING!!!!!!!!!
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