Inspiration
Shri Kali Ashram India is inspired by Doctor Arun Rajeev Nair Sarika Arun AS Aadith Menon and Shri Ma Kristina Baird. Ma has long wanted an ashram in India. Doctor and Ma have been associated since early times of www.shrikali.org in Galgibaga, South Goa, where Doctor ran all the Āyurvedic lectures, Pañcakarma (पञ्चकर्म) treatments and consultations for Shri Kali students. In that time, also, many Shri Kali students had the opportunity to get Pañcakarma Certification in India with an affiliated institution and we will be able to offer this again. Due to Shri Kali Ashram migrating to Koh Phangan island, Thailand, in the interim time, Ma and Doctor decided to preserve their combined knowledge in this Shri Kali Ashram of India.
This ashram has now eventuated in Siddapura, Karnataka, in association with Dhanvantari College Hospital and Research Center http://www.siddapurayuredu.org (1996), a subsidiary of the main Āyurvedic Hospital in Udupi. The main advantage of being in Siddapura is that we have Āyurvedic hospital facilities nearby. Not only this, it is a beautiful and śāntiḥ area steeped in ancient Tantric lingayat history, surrounded by lush forests, subsistence agriculture as betel nut plantations and plentiful waterfalls and rivers to cool down in, as the Shalmala river near Sirsi, sacred site of Sahasralinga (1000 lingas).
Credentials
Dr. Arun was born and raised in Calicut, Kerala, the heartland of traditional Āyurveda. He has been traditionally trained by his father and grandfather, with further accredited study (B.A.M.S) from Dhanvantari Āyurvedic College and M.D Āyurveda in Kayachikitsa (internal medicine) with thesis on Āyurvedic management of gastrointestinal disorders from Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences in Bangalore. Prior to joining us at http://www.shrikali.org, Dr. Arun had been practicing at Dhanvantari Vaidyasala based in Thodupuzha, Ernakulam, Kerala (a pioneer Āyurvedic school group in Kerala since 1931) and also Indus Valley Āyurvedic Center, Mysore (Center of Yoga and Āyurveda).
Ma has B.A. Honours in Religion (Otago University) with Sanskrit papers from Australian National University and Second Major in English Literature (Auckland University), and is looking to do her Ph.D with a suitable mentor in Kashmiri Śaivism/Traditional Medicine systems. Ma studied twenty-five years Traditional Tantra with Ācārya Bhagavan Shri Shanmukha https://www.shrikali.org/teachers.php and wishes only to preserve his teachings in India. Ma is registered with Yoga Alliance as an E-RYT-500 hours yoga teacher and completed Pаn̄cakarmа certification with Athreya School of Āyurveda in 2016. Ma also has qualifications in web design and loves hand-programming websites. Ma’s dream is also to study B.A.M.S with Dr. Arun as her Guru.
Teachings
All the subtle teachings of Āyurveda as Nāḍi pulse reading and all Āyurvedic medical science will be taught by Dr. Arun. All esoteric teachings of Tantra and Āyurvedic walking massage as taught to her by Bhagavan will be taught by Ma, as well as direct traditions of K. Pattabhi Jois and B. K. S. Iyengar, as taught to her by her NZ Gurus of the Auckland Yoga Academy https://www.yoga.co.nz (1991) and also Ma’s Tibetan Tantric Nyingma lineage of Kum Nye Yoga will be taught, as propounded by Tarthang Tulku of Berkeley, C.A. https://nyingmainstitute.com. Ma is currently on sabbatical in New Zealand but yoga representatives of these traditions will be made available. If you belong to any of these direct lineages or any other traditional lineages, and would like to join us, please feel free to drop us a line, https://shrikaliindia.org/contact. We also offer all traditional ashram teachings as Sanskrit, Vedic Astrology, and musical education for both adults and children.
We are happy to open this Shri Kali Ashram, in India, in 2018, and we hope you will bless us with your presence in Siddapura. May the blessings of all traditional lineages descend upon you!