Ananta Ripa Ajmera is a 9-time international award-winning and 2-time best-selling author, spiritual teacher, Ayurveda practitioner, yoga instructor, host of the True to Yourself Podcast, Advisor of Ayurveda at THE WELL, and Co-founder and Director of The Ancient Way.
Ananta’s students, from all walks of life, in yoga and wellness studios, corporations, and government agencies, appreciate how she empowers them to awaken their inner guru and ignite the fire of spiritual transformation to make profound changes in their lives that they never imagined they could make.
Women Fitness President, Ms. Namita Nayyar catches up with Ananta Ripa Ajmera, spiritual teacher, Ayurveda practitioner, and yoga instructor as she shares how Spirituality and the Ayurvedic Way of life can heal.
Namita Nayyar:
“You are a spiritual teacher, author, Ayurveda practitioner, yoga instructor, and Co-founder and Director of The Ancient Way.” Please provide us with an insight into how it all began that motivates you towards yoga and the Ayurveda way of life.
Ananta Ripa Ajmera:
It all began for me with suffering from years of eating disorders, anxiety, poor digestion, insomnia, and nightmares. By the time I turned 19, I was ready to start digging deeper into why I was having so many health issues, all while Western medical doctors would tell me I was in ‘excellent health.’ My search first led me to Yoga classes in New York City, propelling me to return to my Indian roots to learn more about the practice. While taking Yoga teacher training in South India at the Sivananda Yoga Ashram, I discovered Ayurveda by following an Ayurvedic way of life for the duration of the training program. I loved how I felt at the end of the training, and that inspired me to eventually begin a decade-long oral lineage-based study of Ayurveda and its sister sciences of Yoga and Vedanta to dive deeper into it all. The rest, as they say, is now history.
Namita Nayyar:
The Ancient Way is an organization that supports you to embody ancient wisdom in a way that unfolds your true self. What are the key elements of this organization and how can one connect with one’s inner self through it?
Ananta Ripa Ajmera:
The three key elements of The Ancient Way are spiritual community, spiritual practice, and selfless service.
These are ancient values central to many spiritual lineages that emphasize connecting with your inner self through associating with others who are on a spiritual path (this includes spending time reading spiritual books and listening to lectures), doing regular spiritual practices that unfold your inner self, and giving back to the five entities of life that give us so much, including spiritual teachers, ancestors, humanity, nature, and divinity. When we are in relationship with the people, teachings, and practices that connect us to the eternal core of who we are as embodied spiritual beings, this has a way of naturally unveiling our true, divine nature.
