A garland of faith: Śraddhā, Agni, and Medhā sūktams
10 classes Tuesdays 7am CST November 4- January 27. Learn the first set of requisite or important sūktams of the Veda: śraddhā or faith, Agni or willpower, and Medhā, an aspect of Saraswati having to do with a potency, richness, and capacity of memory retention.
-
śraddhā sūktam
-
November 4 2025
Introduction to śraddhā and adhyāyam of mantraḥ-s 1 & 2
-
November 11
Review out loud last week’s mantraḥs, receive adhyāyam of mantraḥ-s 3 & 4.
-
November 18
practice 1-4, learn 5 & 6.
No class Tuesday November 25. We will be reciting the whole sūktam in every class moving forward, so let it become more and more fluent in your personal practice!
-
-
Agni sūktam
-
December 2
Recite the entire śraddhā sūktam. Get a little deeper teaching on the role of spirit, now as regards will and will power.
Learn a little bit about Agni - the divine fire - in the tradition, in your body mind, and as a part of the path.
Learn mantraḥ-s 1-3.
-
December 9
recite what you’ve learned and get a little more (mantraḥ-s 4, 5, & 6).
Explore the role of Agni as intermediary/priest.
-
December 16
Review prior teaching, receive mantraḥs 7-9.
Learn a little bit about the process/path/unfolding of yoga from the śastra.
-
-
Medhā sūktam
-
January 6
Start the new year with conviction, a sense of empowerment, and now a little bit of honey.
Explore ‘holy days’ and ṛtucharya (the seasons of truth or dharma).
Get an introduction to pattern, liberation, and the sweetness of liberation through discipline aka the Goddess Medhā.
-
January 13
The meaning of the world Medhā (in the feminine gender, as used in Medhā Suktam) is "power of understanding endowed with consciousness". This is a collective - rather than a merely individual - prayer. It culls our deepest resources toward the grace of what can be known, experienced, and learned in this life, specifically what can be spiritually accomplished.
Let’s discuss ‘revelation’, ‘spiritual awakening’, and ‘ecstasy’.
-
January 20
Let’s discuss letting go, śāntiḥ (peace or equinimity, serenity), and ‘happiness’. We’ll also explore the integrity of calling in supports: Indra, Sūrya, Agni, the apsaras (divine dancers) and ghandharvas (divine musicians) play an important role in the realization of wisdom.
In other words, we’ll go a little more deeply into different ‘divinities’ and possible human experiences in this lifetime, as well as the importance of living a full human life.
-
January 27
Celebrate the profound promise and lived experience of the Veda - a vision of an ordinary human being overcoming all conceivable odds. We’ll return to an exploration of personal meaning, with presence, a glance back, and an optimism about what still lies ahead.
-
Meet your instructor
✳
Meet your instructor ✳
“In the crowded yoga marketplace of short courses and single workshops that promise much but leave you with more questions than answers, Karin’s longer style of immersive learning-through -practice stands out for its depth, honesty and authenticity. Many teachers say ‘deep dive’ — Karin actually offers it. She teaches from a declared lineage mediated through her own deep experience (of life, of yoga) to offer teachings that are relevant and applicable yet still rooted in the texts and the tradition. She’s also very respectful of her students and in studying with her, you’ll find yourself in company with an amazing group of people from around the world who will also fuel your learning and become your new yoga friends.”
Karin has been authorized to hand on Veda Recitation within the living Mysore lineage. She is a writer, an anthropologist, and a recovering barmaid. She’s been around the yoga block and has a skill of delivering the gems without selling you a gimmick.
KARIN
What you’ll learn
-
“faith” or “sincere conviction” is said to be the first step and most important part of a yoga practice. Everything depends on it.
It’s also said to be a “lost virtue” in modern times.
In this hymn, śraddhā is divinized as a goddess we can speak to, get to know, become intimate with.
This should stir you up.
-
explore and hold space for your own spiritual questions, longings, and resentments while learning about the concept in the texts.
-
receive and practice a set of mantrah.-s that you’ll continue to explore for the rest of your life.
-
dharma talks on the role of śraddhā in yoga philosophy, from Patañjali to neuroscience
-
Yoga is a fire practice. One of the central metaphors is our inner light or fire standing in for our will.
Free will is tricky. We tend to be our own worst enemy. And yet, with things like yoga practice, our free will can be wholly transformed.
-
Working with Agni develops, strengthens, and clarifies our willpower.
Explore what gets in your way, why folks feel ‘unmotivated’ or ‘I don’t have the willpower/self control’, and all the ways we overpower our innate truth.
-
Explore ‘the sacred fire’, tapas, austerities, and surrender in conversation.
-
An aspect of Saraswati, Medhā is the goddess of memory, recall, and resource.
Explore the poetry, experience, and psychology of how memory makes us who we are and how Veda recitation preserves our body-brain, to say nothing of our well-being.
-
the fruit or outcome of practice is grace: it’s not something we do but are given. It has been likened to ‘nectar’, honey, ghee, and heaven.
Learn some of the ‘why does this feel so good’ of this tradition, and more importantly what to do about it.
-
These are all ‘beginner’ level mantraḥ-s, but by the time you get to Medhā the rhythm, flavor, feel of recitation is downright giddy.
Feel it for yourself!
Course FAQ
-
These are beginner friendly mantraḥ-s: you do not need any experience and the course is open to all.
The potency of these practices/teachings is so rich, and often something long-term yoga practitioners have never explored. Time is now!
-
Recordings will be available for the duration of the course, but not after. If at all possible, you are encouraged to attend live.
-
You’ll have live class once a week. We will be discussing, as well as practicing on mic.
Outside of class, you’ll be practicing at least 4x a week, for 20 minutes or so, on your own. Audio and text support provided.
You can send in an audio recording of your self practice for support, feedback, mentorship.
At the end of this course, you will be able to recite all three sūktams with quite a bit of fluency. The experience is impossible to transmit in a blurb.