Ram Smith is pictured with Alice Walker (in the red shawl) along with other Summit participants.

News on the International Association of Black Yoga Teachers Summit in Santa Cruz, at Mt. Madonna Retreat Center.
August 1 - 3, 2003

The IBYTA Summit weekend in Santa Cruz was a great success.

Over a hundred people attended the program from around the US, Canada, and England.

The Bay Area Chapter of the IBYTA hosted the event at the beautiful Mt. Madonna Conference Center in the Santa Cruz mountains. With views of the Monterrey Bay from the redwood-forested hillside, participants enjoyed the sunny weather and everyone reflected an inner radiance that lifted each heart. Everyone felt blessed sharing in the spirit of yoga.

Krishna Kaur, president and founder of the IABYT, greets a Summit guest.

Keynote speaker, Alice Walker, author of the Pulitzer-prize winning book, The Color Purple, gave a very moving discourse on Friday evening.

She spoke about the need to embrace yoga and meditation on a daily basis, in order to overcome the hardships that people of color face in this world today.

She spoke about the many injustices plaguing minority people including, the millions of black men being enslaved in the US prison system, the brutality of women circumcision in Africa, the history of genocide among Native Americans and the incessant child abuse within the Roman Catholic Church. Alice touched everyone deeply with her eloquence of the present realities in this world.

Ram is singing "Mother of Us All" on the tamboura to the group.

She concluded by saying that yoga and meditation were essential to overcome the suffering that humankind endures and perpetrates on each other.

On Saturday morning, there was a group discussion organized in the main conference room to explore what she had spoke about. This discussion was heart to heart sharing with all the participants.

Ram Smith, from Ananda Sangha, shared in the circle about the need to discover the Divine Mother within each of us. That Mother which is pure love, compassion and forgiveness.

He sang a song, with his tamboura accompaniment, entitled, Mother of Us All, written by S. Kriyananda, the founder of Ananda. The group felt the power of the Divine Mother's presence in the room, moving very tangibly. Just a 30 minutes previous to Ram's singing to the group, he also sang the same song to Alice Walker as she was preparing to depart The Summit and return home.

The words to the entire song are as follows:

All Your Children Mother Call You
By S. Kriyananda.

All your children Mother call you,
Knowing not it's you they call.
Some through mists of their unknowing,
Bruised and hurting when they fall.
Turn away, but who can leave you,
You the Mother of us all?

If the child forsake its mother,
Will she coldly turn away?
Wise or foolish, we're your children.
Guide us Mother if we stray.
Those whose hearts are torn with sadness,
Lack the power your name to call.
Heal their wounds Ma,
Soothe their sorrows,
You, the mother of us all.


There were many presenters and speakers during the weekend Summit. Many styles of yoga and meditation were represented with clarity and integrity. Everyone who presented was outstanding. It was thrilling to see.

Some of those who presented are listed here:

Angel Kyodo Williams, an ordained Zen Buddhist Priest (author of Being Black).

Krishna Kaur (president & founder of the IABYT and Kundalini Yoga teacher.

Dinndayal Morgan, director of the IABYT Bay area chapter and founder of Pathways Institute.

Ram Smith, an Ananda Yoga and meditation instructor and devotee of Paramhansa Yogananda, and many others presented as well.

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