Maria Karastergiou
Maria Karastergiou, PhD
After studying with the Psychology Department in Canada (1978-1981), Maria continued in Genetics, Psychopathology and Psychopedagogy with the department of Université Paris VIII in Paris, France, and finally delved into studying Ancient Wisdom in Greece and Asia.
She lived many years in Paris and then Athens, teaching Psychology at the university, working as a psychotherapist, and traveling around the world to organising Retreats, seminars, workshops and writing books.
She completed an an Astanga Yoga TT in 2004 with Kristina Karitinou in Athens. Along with Astanga Yoga Asanas, she studied precise alignment principles with Kristina. Applying them to her own internally rooted experience of the forms was so uplifting.
In a group of Ancient Greek Philosophy she met Tereza, who initiated her to Agni Yoga or the Yoga of Living Ethics. Agni Yoga had a profound impact in her life and she felt a 360 degrees shift. She experienced the holistic, profound and transformative impact that a devoted daily practice and a deep connection with a Great Teacher, can have on all aspects of life.
Along with teaching at the university and working as a psychotherapist she started teaching yoga. As an avid student of life she continues to study and practice Agni yoga, (the update of Theosophy), yoga asanas, breath work, silence, and inner and outer travel with great implication, enthusiasm, devotion and inquisitiveness. Conscious how the residue that is produced on the yoga mat guided by the practice of the Agni Yoga teaching informs, inspires and supports all aspects of her everyday life.
Influences & approach
During the last 15 years Maria has been living in Asia, especially in the Himalaya, traveling, searching, studying, teaching, healing, and writing books.
Buddha, Jesus, Confucius, Lao Che, the Hellenic Masters: Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Plotinus, Apollonius are her teachers and such a source of inspiration! Sufism, and Zen, Yoga Philosophy, the Agni Yoga books, Buddha’s Teaching, the Ageless Wisdom Sanskrit texts, like Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Kalachakra Tantra, Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, and more recent Ramakrishna’s, Vivekanada’s, Ilarion’s Teachings, Sri Aurobindo’s Integral Yoga and Carl Jung’s psychoanalysis taught her a more conscious, spiritual, ascetic, practical and humble approach to life.
Drawing from the above, from this variety of contemplative traditions, especially from Agni Yoga, and fascinated by the common foundations between all those teachings, traditions and spiritual practices Maria created Auroyoga, her own approach, an update of Agni Yoga, and a hybrid of ancient yoga traditions, teachings, and philosophies, which converge clearly in the teachings of Purana, of the early Upanishads and Vedas, and blossom later in the teachings of the Hellenic Masters (Yoga was called “Henosis”), in Buddha’s and Jesus’ Teachings, later in the Himalayan Teaching of Kalachakra Tantra, and recently in Ilarion’s and Theosophy teachings.
Maria’s spiritual, strong and at the same time tender, affectionate, intuitive and feminine nature, her adventurous and fearless spirit, her mystical and multicoloured life experiences, and her deep inner work through Psychoanalysis and psychotherapy forged her character. Her heartful, often humorous, teaching style appeals to people of different paths and tribes.
Maria’s books
Maria has written four books, in three different languages (Greek-French-English). “Montessori and Piaget’s Class Inclusion Problem”, “Post Babel”, “Ode to Alterity” and “Yoga Unveiled” under publication). Her books are popular throughout various continents.