What is Bhakti Flow Yoga?
Bhakti Flow Yoga is a contemporary hybrid yoga practice that marries the physical rigor of Vinyasa Flow with the devotional elements of Bhakti yoga. The practice is a synthesis of Bhakti yoga (the yoga of devotion) and Vinyasa Flow, emphasizing a seamless connection between the breath and the movements of the body. Unlike traditional Bhakti yoga, which centers on non-physical practices like chanting and prayer, Bhakti Flow Yoga integrates physical postures (asana) with devotional practices such as kirtan (devotional singing), mantra repetition, and the cultivation of a loving, service-oriented mindset.
Origins & Lineage
Bhakti yoga is a spiritual path within Hinduism focused on loving devotion towards any personal deity, and is one of the three classical paths which leads to moksha, alongside Jnana (knowledge) and Karma (action) yoga. Bhakti is mentioned in the Shvetashvatara Upanishad where it simply means participation, devotion and love for any endeavor, and Bhakti yoga as one of three spiritual paths for salvation is discussed in depth by the Bhagavad Gita, a text composed between the third and second century BCE. The practice of Bhakti dates back thousands of years, with its origins rooted in South India during the 6th century CE, though it wasn’t until the medieval period in the 15th century that the Bhakti movement gained prominence.
The modern term “Bhakti Flow Yoga” as a distinct style appears to have emerged in the late 1990s and early 2000s within Western yoga studios. San Francisco yoga teacher Rusty Wells calls his style of yoga “Bhakti Flow,” describing it as a simple way to embrace the Beloved, the Divine, God, or the connection to other sentient beings. Rusty Wells has been a yoga teacher since 1998 and is the founder and primary teacher at Urban Flow in San Francisco, a donation-based studio he founded in January 2010. His teachers were A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who taught him Bhakti Yoga, selfless service, Karma Yoga, and chanting, and he started learning Hatha yoga in 1996 through the teachings of Masters Swami Sivananda and Swami Vishnu Devananda.
How It’s Practiced
Bhakti Flow Yoga includes practicing physical postures with Bhakti elements, such as kirtan (devotional singing) or mantra. A typical class features breath-synchronized vinyasa sequences—flowing transitions between poses—interwoven with periods of chanting, moments of silent dedication, or the setting of a devotional intention. Wells often begins class by encouraging students to offer their effort, compassion, and sense of devotion to someone in their life who is struggling or suffering. The physical practice may be vigorous or gentle, but the distinguishing feature is the infusion of devotional awareness: each movement becomes an offering, each breath a prayer.
Practitioners may chant Sanskrit mantras (such as “Om Namah Shivaya” or “Lokah Samastah Sukhino Bhavantu”), listen to devotional music, or engage in call-and-response kirtan during or after the asana practice. The style draws on traditional Hatha and Vinyasa techniques—standing poses, backbends, twists, inversions—but contextualizes them within a framework of service, love, and surrender.
Bhakti Flow Yoga Today
Bhakti Flow Yoga is encountered primarily in Western yoga studios, workshops, and teacher trainings. These days you’ll find many Bhakti yoga classes combined with other styles of yoga, with Bhakti Flow Yoga including physical postures with Bhakti elements. It is particularly popular in urban centers with eclectic spiritual communities—San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Boulder—and is offered both in studio settings and at festivals like Wanderlust and Bhakti Fest.
Rusty Wells published Bhakti Flow Yoga: A Training Guide for Practice and Life (Shambhala Publications), which serves as the primary reference text for students and teachers seeking to understand the philosophy, sequencing, and lifestyle practices associated with this approach. The book includes detailed pose breakdowns, energetic anatomy (chakras, nadis, koshas), Ayurvedic diet guidelines, and two sample sequences.
Teachers influenced by this approach often incorporate live or recorded music, harmonium, or mantra into their classes. Some studios offer “Hatha & Bhakti” or “Bhakti Vinyasa” classes, signaling a similar fusion. The practice appeals to students seeking both a physical workout and a heart-centered, spiritually meaningful experience.
Common Misconceptions
Bhakti Flow Yoga is not traditional Bhakti yoga. Classical Bhakti yoga, as outlined in texts like the Bhagavad Gita and the Bhagavata Purana, does not emphasize physical postures. Unlike other types of yoga, Bhakti yoga doesn’t use “poses” during practice; instead, Bhakti involves cultivating a spirit of unconditional love. Bhakti Flow is a 20th–21st century Western innovation, a deliberate hybrid designed for practitioners who want devotional depth and physical movement.
It is also not inherently theistic or Hindu-exclusive. While some teachers incorporate Hindu deities, mantras in Sanskrit, and references to Krishna or Shiva, others interpret “devotion” more broadly—as dedication to compassion, to community, to the present moment, or to an abstract sense of the sacred. Practitioners need not adopt Hindu theology to engage meaningfully with Bhakti Flow.
Finally, Bhakti Flow should not be conflated with “ecstatic dance” or purely musical yoga experiences. While kirtan and music are central, the practice retains the discipline of asana alignment, breath control (pranayama), and meditative focus.
How to Begin
Start by locating a Bhakti Flow or Bhakti Vinyasa class at a local studio or online platform. If unavailable, attend a kirtan event or vinyasa class and experiment with setting a personal intention of devotion before practice—dedicating your effort to a loved one, a cause, or simply to the experience of love itself.
Read Rusty Wells’s Bhakti Flow Yoga: A Training Guide for Practice and Life for an accessible, comprehensive introduction to the philosophy and physical practice. Explore kirtan albums by artists like Krishna Das, Jai Uttal, or Wah! to familiarize yourself with devotional chanting. Begin a simple home practice: flow through several rounds of Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutations) while silently or audibly repeating a mantra. Allow the physical practice to become a moving meditation on connection, gratitude, and love.