Gitte Bechsaard Ph.D. is a teacher, researcher, and psychotherapist renowned for her unique expertise on The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Jyotish Upayas, & the study, as well as the clinical integration, of eastern psychology. As a Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher,...
Gitte Bechsaard Ph.D. is a teacher, researcher, and psychotherapist renowned for her unique expertise on The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Jyotish Upayas, & the study, as well as the clinical integration, of eastern psychology.
As a Senior Iyengar Yoga Teacher, she guides students in unveiling the philosophy behind practice.
14 years in private study with her mentor Sri Krishan Mantri established Gitte’s unique foundation in Sanskrit and the Vedic teachings of Yoga philosophy, eastern psychology, Jyotish, ayurveda, and Contemplative practice. Meanwhile, she continued her empirical Yoga research in various Toronto hospitals over the last 18 years, in conjunction with York University.
Her work in yoga & vedic scripture is further complemented by over 14 years of clinical experience as a registered psychotherapist (R.P.) giving Gitte an integrative perspective on the esoteric psychologies of the eastern tradition and their practical implications for the mind.
Today Gitte teachs the integration of Iyengar yoga practice with a wide array of yogic scripture, mantra sadhana, vedic astrology, and other classical yogic sadhanas both internationally and online, as founding director of Vidya Institute and a core member of the faculty.
BIOGRAPHY
Born in Varde, Denmark in 1970, once 21 Gitte moved to pursue Psychology at Copenhagen University. After two kids and a move to Toronto, she taught yoga and meditation for breast cancer patients, Canada's first yoga program hosted in a hospital setting, which sparked her interest in clinical yoga research. As her research grew Gitte established her therapeutic practice while also enrolled in psychotherapy studies. In 2011, Gitte completed her PhD thesis on The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, later published as The Gift of Consciousness.