Rev. Michael (Losang) Reid Kreuzer studied the time-honored Asian Healing Arts extensively over six years. In addition to completing a six-year apprenticeship with world-renowned author and Ayurvedic Physician, Dr. Vasant Lad, B.A.M.S., M.A.Sc., for more than 1800 hours since 1996, Michael served on the faculty as Herbology Instructor at Dr. Lad’s Ayurvedic Institute (www.ayurveda.com). During this period Michael studied with numerous other classroom teachers. In total he completed 2980 hours of study in Oriental Medicine and Asian Healing Arts and the ancient languages from which they arose. If this six years of scholarship were in a degree granting college setting (there is currently no seriously accredited college degrees offered in the USA in Ayurvedic Medicine), this would be equal to more than 198 semester units of study.
In addition to his 1800 hours of classroom study with Dr. Lad, he completed an additional 1080 hours of classroom study in Sanskrit, Mandarin Chinese, Ayurvedic Yoga (with Betheyla and Ann Harrison), Western Herbs (with Kevin Spelman), Ayurvedic Acupressure (Donald Van Howten, LMT and Jaisri Lambert, RPP), Chinese Medicine, Tibetan Medicine (Dr. Kelsang Dorjee, B.T.M.S.), Western medical terms, and Anatomy and Physiology. These additional 1080 hours included more advanced Ayurveda seminar study with Dr. Sunil Joshi, M.D. Ayur, Dr. Robert Svoboda, B.A.M.S., Dr. David Frawley, O.M.D., Bri Maya Tiwari, and others.
A 1998 graduate of the
Ayurvedic Institute’s Ayurvedic
Studies Program, since 1999 he continued advanced “Gurukula” clinical study,
where he has observed his Ayurvedic teacher Dr. Lad healing over 1900 clients in the San Francisco Bay
Area, India and New Mexico.
In 1998, Michael completed an intensive 30 hour training course on Pancha Karma therapies with the renowned Doctor of Ayurveda Pancha Karma Specialist, Dr. Sunil Joshi, M.D. Ayur. of the Vinayak Ayurveda Center in Nagpur, India. Over a six year period, Michael has also studied several hundred hours of seminars with world renowned teachers and authors such as Dr. Robert Svoboda, B.A.M.S., Dr. David Frawley, O.M.D., Bri Maya Tiwari, and others.
To see the extensive level of formal classroom Ayurvedic training that Michael received with Dr. Lad in his first year alone, please see the Ayurvedic Institute's Academic Catalog:
- 2001-2002 Ayurvedic Institute Academic Catalog in Adobe Acrobat PDF format. The file size is 475 KB. (needs Adobe Acrobat)
- 2001-2002 Academic Catalog in Microsoft Word .DOC format. The file size is 918 KB.
Ayurvedic Herbalist Mike Dick, MA
Mike Dick is one of the instructors in Dr. Lad’s first quarter Ayurvedic Studies evening class. He also teaches classes on the ancient Ayurvedic texts including the Charaka Samhita and Ashtanga Hridayam. His Ayurvedic training includes completion of a two year training program in advanced Ayur-Veda (Master's of Maharishi Ayur-Veda) at Maharishi's Cambridge, Massachusetts college, 1995 graduate of the Ayurvedic Institute’s Ayurvedic Studies Program, as well as five years in advanced Ayurvedic study (Gurukula) with Dr. Vasant Lad and panchakarma training in Lancaster, MA with MahaRishi Ayur-Ved. Additionally he has studied western herbalism, cranio-sacral therapy, Jyotisha (with Hart deFowe), palmistry, and assessment through the pulse. Mike has been a private Ayurvedic consultant for since 1996. He works to educate others about Ayurveda by lecturing throughout the United States. Michael has been on the Ayurvedic Institute's teaching staff since 1999.
Michael (Losang) Reid Kreuzer both studied with and worked with Mike Dick over the years, but also Michael has co-taught classes with Mike at the Institute.
Ayur-Yoga Therapist (Ayurvedic Yoga) Betheyla
Betheyla
was introduced to Yoga at the age of eight, began serious study and practice
at the age of twenty-one, and has been teaching and consulting privately for
fourteen years. Her love of Ayurveda and Yoga blossomed in the four years
she studied and taught at
Ayurvedic Institute with Dr. Vasant Lad,
whose support and knowledge as a teacher of Ayurveda has rooted her in her
present form of teaching. Betheyla co-developed with
Ann Harrison Dr. Lad's unique AyurYoga
curriculum taught at the Ayurvedic Institute.
Practicing yoga since childhood, she has taught professionally for 18 years. She is 1994 graduate of Dr. Lad's Ayurvedic Institute Ayurvedic Studies Program, where she was also on the Ayur-Yoga teaching staff for five years. Betheyla has also been a professional astrologer for 25 years and is now a student of Dr. David Frawley, O.M.D. She resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico and teaches workshops nationwide. Betheyla has moved on to a new life. May Amitabha Buddha bless Betheyla in her new life.
Ayur-Yoga Therapist (Ayurvedic Yoga) Ann Harrison, LMT
Ann Harrison, is the director of the AyurYoga Department at The Ayurvedic Institute. She began studying Hatha Yoga in 1971 and her dedication to and love of yoga has brought her to study various styles of yoga, including Integral, Iyengar, Kripalu, Siddha, Kriya and Kundalini. She is 1992 graduate of Dr. Lad's Ayurvedic Institute Ayurvedic Studies Program, and is a continuing student of Ayurveda. Ann was instrumental in co-developing the Ayur-Yoga Course Classes and Teacher’s Training programs of Dr. Lad's with Betheyla. These classes are a unique integration between Yoga and Ayurveda.
"Yoga and Ayurveda go together. Yoga and Ayurveda are the ancient life disciplines that have been practiced in India for centuries. They are mentioned in the Vedas and the Upanishads. Yoga is the science of Union with the Divine, with Truth, and Ayurveda is the science of life. Yoga helps with enlightenment and Ayurveda helps with perfect health. So a yogi who does not know Ayurveda is half-yogi and an Ayurvedic Physician who does not know Yoga is half physician. The aim of yoga is union with higher self, but you can unite with your higher self only when you have a healthy body, healthy mind and healthy consciousness. So Ayurveda and Yoga are the foundations of life. They are two sides on the same coin, They are one. Asana, pranayama, relaxation, mantra and meditation are some of the best prescriptions in Ayurveda."
Excerpted from an interview with Dr. Vasant Lad, from the September 1995 issue of Yoga Vedanta
The purpose of the AyurYoga classes that Rev. Michael (Losang) Reid Kreuzer and Jenny Dinh learned from Dr. Lad and Betheyla is to enrich the understanding of Ayurveda through the practice of Hatha Yoga, and to understand the effects that yoga has upon doshic imbalance. The course was designed by Dr. Lad and Betheyla with the intent to assist and inspire those wishing to develop a clinical Yoga practice, and enhance and deepen the understanding of those who are already accomplished yogis and yoginis.
The course completed by Michael (taken in 1998 - 1998) and Jenny (taken in 2001) covered Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutation) and Chandra Namaskar (Moon Salutation), approximately thirty basic asanas (postures), various levels of pranayama (breathing practices), restorative postures and dhyana (meditation). Special in-depth "Course Classes" for learning about Vata, Pitta and Kapha pespectives on all major Yogasana poses were taught as well as other aspects of Ayurveda as they relate to and are found in yoga. Introduction to the mudras (symbols) and bandhas (locks) was also taught. Also the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali was studied. These Yoga Sutras were also taught in the original Devangari Sanskrit in the Ayurvedic Institute's Sanskrit classes that are part of the Ayurvedic Studies Program.
Yoga is the process of becoming free from limited definitions of the field of consciousness. Then the abiding of the seer (I), in my own true nature.
Yoga Sutras of Patanjali I. 2,3
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali...
"Though there are many schools of Yoga, the most significant is the Patanjali Yoga."
- Sathya Sai BabaThe Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
Paraphrased by Djwhal Khul
with commentary by Alice Bailey
File: pata0298.zip (488 kb) containing HTML-files.
These classes which blend Yoga with Ayurveda were designed for the beginner as well as all who wish to improve their practice and develop a stronger foundation in Yoga.
AyurYoga refreshes the body, relaxes the nerves, calms the mind, and increases vitality and inner strength. AyurYoga integrates Ayurveda and Yoga for the purpose of returning each person to their balanced state. This is accomplished with specific physical postures, breathing techniques and meditation, which are all part of the spiritual and vital practice of AyurYoga.
AyurYoga's gentle approach, and Dr. Lad's extensive experience of Ayurveda helped Michael to develop a new-found awareness of posture, breathing and daily movement. Michael and Jenny continue to study and experience the simple yet subtlety powerful age old benefits of Yoga. These techniques are much more than physical exercises, they came from saints and sages (Rishis) who discovered them while in deep meditation.
Ayurvedic Practitioner Jaisri M. Lambert, RPP
Jaisri M. Lambert, Registered Polarity Practitioner (RPP), was one of the instructors in Dr. Vasant Lad's first quarter Ayurvedic Studies Program evening class along with Mike Dick. She has practiced and taught natural healing modalities since 1983. She met Dr. Lad in 1989 at Mount Madonna Center and developed Turiya Therapy (a unique form of Ayurvedic Acupressure) under his loving guidance. She is 1993 graduate of Dr. Lad's Ayurvedic Institute Ayurvedic Studies Program. She is also capable in panchakarma, pulse assessment and Ayurvedic herbology. With special emphasis in Ayurvedic medicine, she combines nutrition, counseling, teaching, meditation, and Polarity into the practice of Turiya Therapy.
Michael (Losang) Reid Kreuzer has the privilege of sitting next to JaiSri for three years of Mount Madonna seminars (1996-1998) as she acted as Dr. Lad's client intake assistant in over 275 client herbal consultations that Michael had the honor of participating in with Dr. Lad. In 1999, Michael had the distinction of being one of 16 senior students invited by Dr. Lad to his very first India Pune Clinical Program along with Jaisri and other long time students. Jaisri's website is: www.ayurveda-seminars.com. She is based in Vancouver area at 604-290-8201 (Canada) or 408-378-2880 (U.S.A)
Ayurvedic Massage Therapist Donald Van
Howten, PIT, VMT, LFT, LMT
Donald Van Howten has been a
practitioner and teacher in the field of bodywork and personal development
for more than 22 years. Associated with
Dr. Vasant
Lad's Ayurvedic Institute
Ayurvedic Studies Program since its founding in 1984, Van is a graduate
of the Rocky Mountain Healing Arts Institute and the Postural Integration
Institute where he completed the trainer program. Van has developed a unique
form of bodywork called “Life Impressions,” influenced by various therapies,
including Hakomi body-centered psychotherapy, Ayurveda, cranio-sacral work
and Feldenkrais. Van is the founder and current director of Life Impressions
Bodywork Institute in Santa Fe, NM. Van teaches that we all have
holding patterns that are habitual, so that they leave a historical imprint
on the membranes of the body. These membranes store our actions,
experiences, emotions, and beliefs. They in turn represent our impressions
of life in a "hard copy" of flesh. His book, Ayurveda and Life
Impressions Bodywork takes the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda and combines
it with a version of the Western medical model to create a powerful new
recipe for healing the mind, the emotions and the body.
Michael (Losang) Reid Kreuzer attended three different Indian massage and Ayurvedic acupressure seminars of Donald's over the four years that Michael spent at Dr. Lad's Ayurvedic Instiute.
Ayurvedic Sanskrit Teacher Barbara Cook
Barbara Cook teaches the Sanskrit portion of the second and third quarter Ayurvedic Studies and Gurukula Programs. A 1997 graduate of the Ayurvedic Studies Program and current Gurukula student, Barbara has worked as the Programs Administrator in the Educational Department at the Institute. She also taught at a preparatory school in Santa Fe. Barbara has studied Sanskrit at the Ananda Ashram as well as at the Institute and in Santa Fe. She has done both Sanskrit tutoring and independent study, motivated by her deep love for this ancient language.
Michael (Losang) Reid Kreuzer has audited Sanskrit classes of Barbara's and has attended Dr. Lad's 2001 India Pune Clinical Program along with Barbara and other senior third or fourth year Ayurvedic students.
Ayurvedic Sanskrit Teacher Dr. Will Foster, D.O.M.
A Doctor of Oriental Medicine, Dr. Foster taught the Sanskrit portion of the fist, second and third quarter of the Ayurvedic Studies and Gurukula Programs at the Ayurvedic Institute that Michael (Losang) Reid Kreuzer attended from 1998 to 2002. A 1991 graduate of the Ayurvedic Studies Program and a fellow student of Jenny Dinh 1991 class year, Dr. Foster has been an inspiration for Michael since 1997 when they first met. Over the years, Will Foster and Mike Dick have been valued friends and "mentors" to Michael.