The Teachers

 Shahabuddin Less

Shahabbuddin Less has been a senior teacher in the Sufi Order International for over 30 years. Shahabuddin leads workshops and seminars worldwide. He brings a depth of spiritual insight and profound attunement to his teachings. Students benefit from his compassionate nature, broad knowledge and gentle humor. He is founder of Rising Tide International, a center devoted to uniting the heart of all religions.

 Pandit Mukesh Desai

Pandit Mukesh Desai is a disciple of Pandit Jasraj, and is a world renowned classical Hindustani musician. His love and devotion is evident in everything he does, but never more passionately than when he shares his music and himself. Pandit Mukesh's musical talent is eclipsed only by his delightful sense of humor which makes him one of the most beloved teachers of music around the world.

 Saddiq Sampranata & Surapsari Megumi

“Purnama Sari” (essence of full moon) is a Balinese dance company founded by Surapsari Megumi & Saddiq Sampranata.  Megumi & Saddiq, long time residents of Bali, studied traditional Balinese temple dance with internationally acclaimed dancers from Ubud, the arts capital of Bali.  They have been performing and teaching workshops on Balinese dance and spirituality in the U.S. and Bali.  

Megumi is a Balinese dancer, choreographer, published author, and teacher on Balinese dance, culture, and religion.  Her extensive repertoire includes Gambuh (the oldest Balinese theatre), classic court dances, ancient ritual dances, mask dance, modern creations, and her own choreography that incorporates multicultural elements.  Megumi holds a Master’s degree in intercultural relations.

Saddiq holds a Master’s degree in interdisciplinary study from Lesley University.  A great deal of his academic work was conducted in Bali and centered on ethnographic studies, myth, Jungian psychology, and Balinese dance in practice and theory.  Saddiq has been studying and performing ancient temple mask dances and ritual dances under the guidance of Balinese masters.  He has been following the Sufi path over thirty years.

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 Anna Less

Dr. Anna Less has been a senior teacher in the Sufi Order for over 25 years.  She is also a practitioner and professor of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and was the first westerner to be granted a PhD in Traditional Chinese Medicine at the prestigious College of Medicine in Hang Zhou , China, where she did her dissertation on the topic migraine and depression.

 Jamyong Singye

Jamyong Singye is a master painter in the Karma Gardri style of Tibetan art. Formerly a Tibetan Buddhist monk for 27 years, Singye practices the profundly spiritual and meditative art of Tibet with deep understanding of the tradition and with exquisite results. Singye has works in collections worldwide, and his mastery has been recognized by many, includind His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Jamyong Singye has been faithfully carrying on the Karma Gardri lineage by teaching in the San Francisco area and throughout the world since 1983. Singye, master Thangka painter and scholar, shares his great knowledge of Tibetan art by teaching, lecturing and consulting.

 Vajra Barbara Schmitz

Vajra Barbara Schmitz studied with Allen Ginsberg at Naropa Institute and taught writing at Northeast college for thirty years. She has published two full-length poetry collections, from Sandhills Press and Backwaters Press, and she has recently finished a memoir about her inner and outer travels with Shahabuddin.

 Marguerite Barnett

Marguerite Barnett has been a Temple Dancer and teacher her whole life. Her dancing expresses the beauty of the sacred in manifestation. In her other lives, she is a surgeon and owner of a spa, bringing beauty to the body as well as the soul.

 Yves Oberlin

Yves’ understanding of yoga is based on over 20 years of personal practice and study with some of the best yoga instructors in the world including Gabriella Giubilaro and Manouso Manos. He has also studied with the Iyengar family in Poona India as well as with the great yogi and meditation master Swami Sunderanand of Gangotri. He teaches in Austin Texas as well as in Switzerland, Germany, Poland and Canada. Yves is a certified Iyengar teacher.