About Me – Meet Hari Śakti

Student

For over two decades, I’ve walked the path of spiritual study. This journey has carried me from the outer world into the subtle landscapes within, guided by the disciplines of Yoga, the devotion of Bhakti, and the reflective lens of psychology. 15 years ago, I travelled to India for the first time and for nearly a decade this sacred land has been my home.

I was born in Finland, where my journey started during a period of deep depression in my twenties; I encountered Buddhism – a turning point that led me toward daily meditation and the eight-limbed path of yoga. Over time, my steps crossed many traditions until I found my home in Bhakti Yoga – a path where the Divine purpose gives meaning to everything we do.

My study has been both formal and lived: years in ashrams, guidance from respected teachers and my beloved Guru, initiation into the Krishna Bhakti lineage that brings foundation to all I do, and extensive training – over 1500 hours through Yoga Alliance – in Hatha, Ashtanga Vinyasa, Yoga Therapy, Iyengar, Restorative, and Yin Yoga, alongside studies in philosophy, Bhakti scriptures, pranayama, Yoga Nidra, anatomy, pranic alignment, and trauma-informed approach.

With a background in sports and wellness, my path now deepens through postgraduate studies in Counselling Psychology – continuing to bridge the ancient and the modern, the inner and the outer, striving to understand what it means to be fully human and what awaits next.

Teacher

Teaching has always been a natural extension of my life as a student. I’ve shared yoga and spirituality for over a decade across Europe and India, but my path as a teacher began much earlier – at sixteen, when I first started instructing in a sports club. Nearly thirty years later, I’ve taught in many settings: as a full-time ski instructor for almost a decade, a personal trainer and wellness coach, and as a teacher for children in rural Indian schools; instructing athletes, elders, kids, men, women’s wellness groups, and people with special needs – all of dozens of nationalities.

Each of these roles has shaped how I hold space today – as a yoga teacher grounded in tradition yet adaptable to the needs of the today. My classes are steady and respectful, with attention to each person’s boundaries, beliefs, and pace. I aim not to impose, but to invite – helping others grow in self-trust, awareness, and authentic expression.

In one-to-one settings, my role is to listen deeply and guide gently, creating space for honest conversation and self-discovery. I work with the tools of yoga, bhakti, and psychology not as abstract concepts, but as living practices that help align body, heart, and mind. My approach is warm, grounded, and firm, supporting each student to grow into their own potential and beyond. My deepest wish is to see each person shine in their own way, and to walk beside as that light unfolds.

Servant

Sevā, the Sanskrit word for selfless service, is a core thread of the path of Bhakti. It is the offering of one’s time, energy, skills, and heart in devotion to something greater: to other beings, to community, to nature, and to the Divine source that sustains all life.

Yoga, in its truest sense, is never only a personal pursuit. It calls us to uplift one another, to listen, to support, and to serve. Through seva, the practice steps off the mat and into the world, becoming part of how we live each day.

For the past five years, I’ve lived as a full-time student of Bhakti Yoga, offering my skills and full dedication in service to the tradition I follow, serving alongside with monks from whom I’ve learned tremendously. Before that, my path of service led me to rural development projects in India, street animal welfare, founding an animal rights group, and various community initiatives wherever I lived. Each act of service has shaped my understanding of what it means to live meaningfully.

To serve is to love. Whether by holding space, offering presence, or extending a helping hand, seva reminds us that we are not separate – we are walking each other home.

Wanderer

From an early age, curiosity drew me beyond borders, both seen and unseen. I began reading at four, disappearing into stories that opened other worlds. When I was old enough to travel, I did so not to escape, but to seek: who are we, why are we here, and are we really so different from each other, even if we follow paths that seem unalike?

Journeys across continents have shaped me more than any classroom. They’ve taught me to meet each day without expectation, to accept what is, and not to grieve for what once was, because nothing teaches impermanence as deeply as travelling and starting over again and again. My journeys have helped me find my authentic expression beyond the definitions of cultural conditioning, and to be unapologetically myself. Through travel I’ve learned that when we listen to paths not our own and honour truths spoken in unfamiliar tongues, not only our appreciation grows, but our perception expands in unimaginable ways. A seeker’s vision does not divide; it indeed unites.

To walk through life’s dualities is to meet life as it is. The sweet and the sharp, the high and the low – all have their purpose in this play of existence. For me, wandering has been a form of my spiritual practice, leading me to the path I love.

Writer

Since childhood, words have been my way of understanding the world. Books were my first portal into realities beyond the known, and language one of my earliest teachers. I would lose myself in stories for hours, until they began to pour out from within me. I wrote of the moments I observed, the meanings I uncovered, and the Divine hidden in everyday life: a season changing before our eyes, a meeting with a stranger that touched depths like never before, or a truth spoken in words I had never heard.

Writing has never been just something I do; it’s part of who I am. It’s how I listen, how I remember, how I keep faith with what is real. For me, writing is an act of bhakti – a devotional offering to the unseen. It is a way of respecting life, witnessing the Divine around us, and giving expression to what might otherwise remain unspoken.

Each reflection or story I share is a form of prayer: to honour our purpose, our connection, and our compassion. Writing becomes a bridge between the internal and the external, and a way to remember both why and how we walk this path.

For me, writing is not only part of my spiritual practice, but also an intimate friend I turn to in times of need.

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