Yoga and the Pursuit of Happiness

In Yoga and the Pursuit of Happiness, you’ll discover that lasting happiness is already at your fingertips-in the small, everyday moments inherently infused with purpose and meaning. The philosophy of yoga-rather than the poses and postures-boils down to one fundamental process: overcoming suffering by coming to know ourselves and aligning our actions with our own intrinsic sense of spiritual purpose. And yoga gives us the tools to address two basic existential questions: Who am I? What should I do? Meanwhile, positive psychology and neuroscience show us how our actions are constantly rewiring our brain in helpful ways-which points to happiness as something we must practice and carry out each day. Happiness is, simply put, something we do.

In this unique, lighthearted guide, celebrated yoga instructor Sam Chase blends ancient wisdom from the Bhagavad Gita and Yoga Sutras with his own personal journey of enlightenment to show you how to deepen your understanding of yourself and the world around you, end the cycle of materialism and greed that can get in the way of cultivating stillness of mind, and achieve lasting well-being.

As a Kripalu Lead Faculty, Sam designs and delivers curricula for all aspects of the organization, including the School of Yoga, R&R Programming, and RISE-Kripalu's evidence-based resilience training for frontline professionals in fields that serve the public good such as education, healthcare, and community safety.