Kyung Pak: From Immigrant Struggle to Yoga, Motherhood, and Inner Strength

Kyung Pak is a dedicated yoga instructor based in San Diego, having embarked on a remarkable journey from her roots in South Korea. Her life story is a testament to resilience and transformation, characterized by her experiences as an immigrant, a single mother of a special needs child, and a journey from a paralegal to a licensed lawyer. 

Discovering yoga as a means of spiritual and physical enlightenment, Kyung trained extensively under renowned teachers like Dharma Mittra and Tim Miller, integrating their teachings into her vibrant San Diego classes. She is also actively involved in organizing retreats that combine spiritual and cultural exploration.

Visit Kyung: https://www.instagram.com/anandadevi_kyung/?hl=en

Key Takeaways:

• Resilience and Transformation: Kyung Pak's inspiring journey from South Korea to U.S. highlights resilience, adaptability, and the pursuit of personal and spiritual growth.
• Yoga and Spirituality: Her life transformation was significantly influenced by her practice and teachings from yoga legends like Dharma Mitra and Tim Miller.
• Challenges of Immigration: Kyung's candid discussion of her immigration journey reminds listeners of the courage and challenges faced by many immigrants.
• Caring Community: The support from community, family, and spiritual mentors has played a key role in her transformative journey.
• Life Lessons: Kyung emphasizes the importance of an abundant mindset and the belief that abundance is our true nature.

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Transcript

Todd McLaughlin: 0:33

Welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast, so happy you are here. My goal with this channel is to bring inspirational speakers to the mic in the field of yoga, massage, body work and beyond. Follow us at @nativeyoga and check us out at Nativeyogacenter.com. All right, let's begin. Hello, welcome to Native Yoga Toddcast, ah, yes, Kyung Pak, that's right, I have Kyung Pak here today to speak to you about her journey, her journey in life, yoga, parenting, professionalism, global travel, passion for life, passion for learning, opening up to the universe. Wow, she is so inspirational. And I know you're going to love this episode. I really enjoyed this so I can't wait for you to listen. Please follow Kyung on her social media handle at Instagram, which is at@AnandaDevi_Kyung and I have that link in the description. You'll also find the link that we talk about her yoga retreat that she's hosting with both Pam and Andrew and her partner, Kashi and Peru in November 22 of 2020 where are we? 2026 All right. So on that note, instead of delaying, why delay when we can just go right to it, let's begin. Oh man, I'm so happy to have Kyung Pak here with me today. Kyung, can you tell me how your day has been going so far?

Kyung Pak: 2:15

Thank you for having me first of all, and it's been so far so good. I came back from a three week trip in Israel about two days ago. Actually, I came back Sunday night, and this is the second day after returning. And yesterday I taught two classes my usual classes, great way to come back and get back to my routine, and this morning, after I send off my son to a program, I actually came to do some workout, and here I am with you after cannot be any better. Amazing.

Todd McLaughlin: 2:59

That sounds so cool. First, let me ask, What is your connection to Israel?

Kyung Pak: 3:06

My partner, Kashi, is from Israel, and this is the first time that we visit together to meet friends and family. Of course, there are lots of holy sites, spiritual sites. So I got to visit those places. Wow, I've been in India once, and I was still that those spiritual places quotes so called to carry certain special energy? And I was actually quite curious. I grew up as a Christian because of my parents in Korea, a lot of them are Christians, and until high school, I really tried to connect with God through Christianism, but it didn't work for me. But I still have a lot of reverence to the teachers, and especially after I met yoga, Jesus became actually closer. Yeah, it's, you can look at him. It's also yogi, yes, enlightened thing, yes, and with love. So I was curious about my own feelings and perception. What would I learn? And it's been very special. I'm still digesting.

Todd McLaughlin: 4:41

Oh, amazing. So I'm wondering, what sites Did you visit while you're in Israel? Did you go to Jerusalem? Did you did you try to visit holy sites within Christianity, Islam and Judaism? Or did you. To stick solely with going to Christian churches. What was your experience and while you were there?

Kyung Pak: 5:06

So I would call myself spiritual, but not religious. Yeah. So with that, I truly believe that. Believe that, like there are many paths, but leading to one truth, yes, and so I didn't have any particular preference as to the religious religious sectors. But my partner, Kashi, he had a big family, and we stayed with one of his brothers, who lives right outside the Jerusalem walls. So first I visited Jerusalem, there are many sites in very small geographical area, like the church where Jesus was crucified, where he was rested, the tomb. And also there's the Western Wall, there's a little market, old market, that had Jewish Quarter, Christian Quarter, and also Muslim quarter. And then there are some other sites, like Galilee, or like a Jordan River where John baptized Jesus. So and then also Judea desert, the Israel is small, relatively. So I felt like, wherever I go, there's some history, even, like, when you see sunset over the desert, oh, this is really like, one of those biblical sceneries. Yeah, yes, and yeah, so and I got to see some other like not only Jewish people. You you meet many, many different people from different, different religions, and then they express in public. So you can tell they are Jewish, they are religious, or they are Orthodox, or they are Arabs, they are Bedouins, they're Druze. There are old Samaritans, and it was quite incredible. Yeah, his few family members live in West West Bank. Gotcha. We see. I learned some of the city Israelis don't actually visit often, all right, but I got to see since a lot of different aspects, religious, not religious, different people from different walks or different religions, working together, or living together, or just it was all just human. Of course, it's not like everybody gets along, or everybody love each other all the time, but it was that human living.

Todd McLaughlin: 8:19

Yeah, amazing. I want to go so bad. I've heard it's incredible. And I love hearing your stories. It makes me want to go even more. Did you from a spiritual perspective? Could you feel the energy of the place? Do you feel like it enhanced your overall spiritual understanding? How were you able to relate some of the experiences being a non like specific religious person into your own spiritual practice.

Kyung Pak: 8:47

Well, personally, first of all, I come from Korea, and then perhaps we get to talk about a little bit about me, but my background and upbringing, or even being an immigrant and becoming student of dharma. This whole story is quite different from my beloved partner, Kashi, who grew up in Israel, in Kibbutz and lived in India for like 28 years and and traveling. So it was privileged for me to go and see where he grew up. It just helped a lot. Culturally, personally, there was something very special that's cool. But from spiritual perspective, I did have some anticipation, because a couple from my dear friends, one is also Korean who used to live in New York, and I think you know Pam Jones, she's my dear mentor, dear friend. Yes, both of them told me Israel is one of their favorite places. So I had this. Some, I guess, anticipation. But when I ended, and I know it sounds strange, because Israel and Korea are completely different externally, but there was like immediate sense of familiarity, the people, the energy, even like how the city was built. It's not same, the look of it, but there's some familiarity the people, how they interact all the market. So it didn't feel like, I it's completely new place. It felt like, Oh, I feel like I've been here before, so there was no for me. It was very comfortable, nice from the beginning, maybe because I had to catch it too, but,

Todd McLaughlin: 10:55

yeah, I understand what you mean, but that's such a cool way of seeing it. I really, oh, that's amazing. Kyung, you know, I do want to hear about your story. I mean, so you were born in Korea, North or South Korea, South Dakota as whole, yeah. And then so. And how long did you live there? And when did you first start to travel internationally?

Kyung Pak: 11:17

Well, I have a little story. I I grew up in 70s and 80s, and my pair, I was first child, and my parents, they had a lot of difficulties throughout in my childhood, and particularly my mother was emotionally and also physically, I'd say, like going through a lot of hard times and which did not make my childhood easy. And when I was in college, my father who was businessman, then got really sick, so he became deaf and dead, ridden pretty much. But he couldn't cope with difficulties very well, so he turned to alcohol. So in my college period, it was very, very difficult, because when I come home, I would see the broken alcohol bottles, and my father was so frustrated and drunk and sad and desperate, while my Mother didn't know how to make a living or she knew was staying home. So at the time I met my son's biological father was much older than me, who offered to go to the US because he's going and he told me that he would help me to study. At the time I was in the university, I was very young and and that sounded like just amazing plan. So in a way, I escaped by Mary's literally day after day after wedding. I moved to the US with him. First I went to Guam I was at the time 23 and became pregnant right away. I didn't have anyone around. I really didn't know anything about life in general, because my parents, my mother especially, were very strict, and then very like, a lot of pressure. What I want to do matter. It was about what she want me to be. So I didn't really know anything and and then few months later, we moved to San Diego, and then Sean was born shortly after, with Down syndrome, which I actually didn't know during the pregnancy. So that's when I was 24

Todd McLaughlin: 14:18

and say, say that again. Kyung, I miss I don't know if I heard fully you said, Did you what was what happened when your

Kyung Pak: 14:28

son was born? Down syndrome, my son was born in town syndrome. He has one extra chromosome.

Todd McLaughlin: 14:36

How old is he now? He's a 26 now, yes, amazing, amazing. Oh my gosh, wow. So that's like everyone that I know that has Downs is so sweet and so kind. Can you talk a little bit about what your experience has been? And being a mom, I mean, surely you are so in love with him, and he's like, the most amazing kid. I a person, man, how can you tell me about your experience?

Kyung Pak: 15:11

Yeah, thank you for asking. And you know, any mom can talk whatever. For me, I was at the time when I was pregnant. I was 23 and at the time, I didn't have money to go to a doctor, so I didn't know actually he had condition. And thank God for that, because if I knew what would have happened, right? It's your first child, and everybody back then like, Oh, you're fine. You are so young, it's just healthy. And at the time, like four months after I immigrated to Guam, we had to move somewhere. And I still remember I looked at the map, and I was very ignorant with the geography and in the whole us, all I knew was Los Angeles, and on the other side there's a Virginia, and my aunt lived there, and I didn't want to be burdened on her and all the rest I didn't know. So I was looking at Los Angeles. Then I remember people saying, if you go to Los Angeles, there are too many Koreans. You never learn English. As I looked down a little bit, I saw San Diego on the map, and I had a college friend who did the ESL course in San Diego. So I heard of name San Diego. Oh, I've heard of San Diego. I didn't know anything about weather, nothing. Just go to San Diego.

Todd McLaughlin: 16:56

Well, you kind of hit the jackpot, because San Diego is one of the nicest places in the United States, and so what an interesting yeah, I mean, that's so fascinating that you didn't really know what you were going to get when you got there. You could have picked Oklahoma, you could have picked South Dakota, but somehow you ended up going right to San Diego. Well, that's amazing. So it's and your English is, your English is so good, well done. I know that'd be so hard, like, if I try to learn Korean, it would take me so I'd have to work so hard to learn all new characters and everything. Were you exposed to English growing up in Korea?

Kyung Pak: 17:36

Yeah, we did grammar mostly, but it's for the purpose of taking exams, not necessarily for actual use of English

Todd McLaughlin: 17:50

conversation. And, yeah, yeah,

Kyung Pak: 17:52

of course, back then also all the English teachers probably couldn't really converse with Native Americans or or, like native speakers. So when I came, I had to learn and going back to Sean look so they're moving to San Diego, for me, was now, I think of it, it was really like God's plan, like blessing. It's just, I cannot make this up, right? Like how and when Sean was born. Actually, the social worker said San Diego is one of the best places to raise a child with a special needs. The community is good. There's good support system. So I think it's everything was meant to be. So when I had a Sean, I still didn't speak English. I couldn't hear I couldn't hear it. You know, your ear has to hear first before you speak, actually. But when I had to show collegeable, I had to go to doctor all the time. I had to learn English so I can help my son.

Todd McLaughlin: 19:13

Yes, yes, amazing. Well, were you with his biological dad through all of this? Or were you single parenting from the time of his birth?

Kyung Pak: 19:27

So when I had shown of course, biotic father, he didn't know it. And shortly after Sean was born, I realized he was not equipped to cope with it, and for me, also, like the first two months, I remember crying every day I knew pretty much immediately doctors. Said, like we believe that Sean, my son's name is Sean. Sean has Down Syndrome and but we still have to take a test. It takes two weeks, and I majored food in nutritional science, so I understood some of the scientific terms. And then when I look at Sean, I was full on denial, but deep inside, I knew it was true like I knew it, but I still was in denial, and I cried like non stop, probably for two months, not because for me, back then, I thought, Sean will not be loved like other children by others because of his condition. And in two months, after two months, four social worker came, and her name was Cindy, I still remember. And then I other than doctors, I never really had anyone like Americans that I was talking or meeting, and social worker comes and first of all, she said, What? How adorable. As soon as she looked at Sean, how adorable. And that first time, actually, I heard someone using word adorable. And it really hit me. I thought a stranger comes and take a one look at Sean, and she says these beautiful words, I'm a mom. Am I crying for? And after that, I never cried, wow, wow. And then, but I looked at my ex and he couldn't cope, and I thought, Okay, I am too young to be with him for my life, just because we have a child together. Yeah, so about what year in I told him, I don't need anything. I raised Sean, we should do part ways. And one day he got really upset, so and then it led into domestic violence, and, oh, yeah. And at the end, sorry. At the end, he just left the country never to be seen, which she actually was, in a way better. So yes, my mom actually also came over to help with childbirth, but she never left. So I started working back that I have some fun stories, actually, for very initial work that I did,

Todd McLaughlin: 22:49

well, tell me, I like fun stories.

Kyung Pak: 22:53

So very the at the time, I didn't have a status at the time, I was able to actually apply for visa for domestic violence victims, but every immigration case takes forever, so I wasn't illegal because I'm in process of changing visa, but I didn't have a working permit, So I had to work under the table, and and I didn't have a whole lot of options, and somehow I got hired by this cafe in government building, and the owners were Koreans. It's like a daily cafe, like where this building has a little floor, little rest, and then people come, the workers come and buy sandwiches and stuff. And it was a federal building in downtown at the time, I think it was, it was basically Immigration Department was there. And because it's a federal building, you had to go through security. Everyone had to wear in this little car, and I was working, but I didn't have any social security. I didn't have anything so they could make me the permit. So some point, I think everyone knew like I was illegal, especially immigration officers who come to the cafe for lunch daily for lunch, they all knew me, and then they realized I couldn't get the permit because I didn't have status. So they actually came to the owner. My boss said, like, I know she's wonderful, but she cannot work here. You gotta let her go. So I worked there for two months in the building legally, where immigration office was I.

Todd McLaughlin: 25:00

It is a good story, especially right now with the climate of immigration in America, I'm just so curious. How are you feeling. Are you feeling like, well, I just should ask you, instead of planting any seeds of how you're feeling, how are you feeling Currently, about the overall vibe for immigrants in us right now.

Kyung Pak: 26:04

Well, like, of course, I'm an immigrant, and I believe in, you know, the immigrants come for reasons, right? If they could stay where in their own countries, they would do have, like, it's not easy to leave everything behind and decide to start something from the bottom without knowing anything, and back then, looking at myself, I was so young and ignorant. And in Korea, there's a saying something similar to ignorance is bliss. In Korea, they say ignorance is bravery. And I think that if I knew what I had to go through as an immigrant, I don't think I would have had the courage to pack two large luggages and just hop on the airplane.

Todd McLaughlin: 27:00

Wow, yes, yes. So

Kyung Pak: 27:02

and in the perspective of humanity, we have, you know, the mercy is, I think, the most valuable quality that makes a human as human, differentiating from a lot of other perhaps beings, yes, and in any groups, whether that's immigrants or whether that's native residents, there can be good people. Some portion there can be some bad apples. So I think that's the case for anywhere everywhere. So just stereotyping and defining one particular group, it's descended and this and that it's not only dangerous, but also it's not very beneficial for even people who live here already.

Todd McLaughlin: 28:10

Yes, yes. Keong, thank you. Beautifully. Said, wonderful. I love it. Thank you so much. I can't agree I can't agree more. So it's so wonderful to hear it from you. Thank you.

Kyung Pak: 28:27

With that said, I am a very blessed person, because you think of the so called American Dream is actually very real for me. For me, American dream was especially when I didn't have a spirituality. That was the light that I had. I had my direction towards. There was the guidance, right. There was the faith and so I am very, very grateful for the blessings

Todd McLaughlin: 29:11

in the US and Kyong, you're keeping the American spirit alive by telling your story, because you're right, and I love that you are bringing attention to the fact that say, like you just said, Before, I had a spiritual practice. For a lot of people, a spiritual practice is a source of meaning and a source of purpose. And so if there's some type of light, and I love the fact that you're bringing attention to the fact that the American dream, as the concept, is a source of light for, like, every single person that comes here, that came here. I mean, I mean the simple fact that all of us are immigrants, except for Native Americans, it just blows my mind, like the irony of that blows my mind that, like that we all can't see it the way that you're describing it. Too much time has gone by, and we forgot, I guess the people that live here forgot that they came from somewhere else. So thank you for reminding me, and I really appreciate that. I think that's so important. And I so then on that note, when, well before we started, I really wanted to you have a yeah for those of us, for those of you listening and not watching on YouTube, you have a T shirt on that says Broome Street. So straight away, when I see that shirt, I know that Eddie stern made that shirt. So then I can get a glimpse of like, okay, well, you know what Ashtanga Yoga is. But then prior to that, you said that you got a chance to practice with Tim Miller that, and that's. Where my wife and I. My wife's name is Tamara. We used to have a Bikram Yoga Studio in Mira Mesa Boulevard by the 15 in San Diego, and we were there in the years between 2001 and 2005 but so while we were owning, or CO owning the studio in Mira Mesa, we would we lived in Carmel Valley, and we would go practice with Tim Miller on E Street and Encinitas every day until he moved over to the Carlsbad studio. So Tim is our teacher, and we loved him. So when you told me that you practiced with Tim, I kind of wanted to wait to talk about it till we hit record. But I'm just so grateful to meet another person that is in love with yoga and and knows Tim as well, because I really loved him and I missed him so much, and so I'd love to, oh my goodness, I really can't wait to hear about your yoga journey thing. Because, you know, living in San Diego is kind of believed to be one of the yoga meccas of the United States, because of the amount of yoga practitioners, teachers, gurus have traveled and lived throughout that area. So I'm so excited. I love hearing your personal details and hearing about your son, and I want to hear more about that. But I also want to make sure I start asking you a few questions about your yoga journey too. Yeah, just because I want to hear about how then if you I mean, obviously you got your immigration and you have a tax ID number or whatever. It's called a Social Security Thank you. So now you, you know you don't have to worry, but I'm curious. Yeah, tell me. Tell me how your yoga came into the picture.

Kyung Pak: 32:18

So the first 10 years, I say, I worked very, very hard, and my mom thankfully helped with Sean. It's interesting because I had a very, very difficult time with my mom growing up in some way, my mother was very strict, also physically very harsh. So they I was very difficult for me to be with my mom. But, you know, there was different plan, right? Like the God sent my mom to be with me for entire time. Actually, she helping me with Sean?

Todd McLaughlin: 33:06

Amazing, yeah, I can't imagine being a single parent without a parent to help, right? Like, absolutely critical, yeah,

Kyung Pak: 33:15

because I want to. So I couldn't work in the cafe anymore. I started working at a restaurant in the beginning, under the table and gradually, when I got the status. But I worked at a restaurant almost 10 years until I started law school.

Todd McLaughlin: 33:37

And wow, Kyung, amazing. Then you became a lawyer? You got your law degree?

Kyung Pak: 33:45

Yeah, so I was working at a restaurant. I knew I couldn't do waitressing for my life. I had to change something more sustainable, but I didn't have money, I didn't have a time. I had to make a living. So one day I use used to work lunch and dinner shift, and there will be, like, a couple of hours break. I had to be just like this, sitting in the car just getting some rest. I was reading some local magazine newspaper, and there was this advertisement for USD paralegal program. And was short, you become certified. You can work at the law office. So I thought, well, this is really cool. You don't have to spend whole lot of time, much less money than going to another degree. I can do this. But even then, I was scared not being able to work, so I waited another year after taking two week exam, and then I finally entered into paralegal program. I was still working. I did a night program, and the first class I saw, I still remember, it was Introduction to Law, and all the professors were lawyers. And by then, I never met a lawyer before in Korea and American all together, and they were speaking such a good English. Obviously, I was so inspired, wow, I want to speak like her, so eloquently, so clearly. And and they started teaching. I was it was so interesting. And after month of this course, the course was done. I'm like, Oh, you just started. Why do you stop? But it was a paralegal program. We didn't have to know any more than what they taught in month. So I wanted no more. I went to local library. I looked at l said, uh. Test book. And I thought, Okay, I think I can do this. And USD gave a little discount for LSAT prep course. So I signed up a month later, and it was two months course. I finished it. It was December, so I took first l set in February, and then I started law school in August. Wow, so it was a pretty kick. And then I still worked under the amount of the table at the restaurant while I was going to the law school, I had actually a lot of job. Actually, during law school, I was doing externship, internship. I was assisting some professors. I think at some point I had like five gigs going on, wow. So I worked very hard. And back then Sean also medically and also development wise, he barely spoke. He had a lot of medical issues, and he didn't sleep very much. So my dream back then was sleeping five more than five hours a day, like my dream was, if I can just sit and watch TV for just two hours. That was my actually dream, yes. And then when I finished the law school, when Sean was 10, and I got licensed right away, but it was a recession, and I couldn't afford not

Todd McLaughlin: 37:15

being is this Oh 809?

Kyung Pak: 37:19

Yeah, I graduated 2009 and I became a lawyer. 2010 I finished the law school little bit quickly, like I finished instead of three years, I finished in two and a half hour. I mean years, because I was already 30 something, I was much older than most students, so I wanted to just move through quickly. I got my patent attorney license after first year, and I graduated and I took the bar right away. I became a lawyer in June, 2010 but still, recession was strong. Loan was getting hired, and I couldn't afford moving to bigger cities because of Sean, or I couldn't just take a break because either I waitress or something else, and I couldn't continue waitressing as a lawyer, in my mind, like, Okay, I'm gonna give time My birthday is like, end of July, I give time until my birthday, and if I cannot find a job, I'll, I'll open my own so that's what I did. I started my own practice, and and when I that was when I was, like a 35 and when I became 40 years old, actually, that's when I started actually doing some yoga because the job was quite stressful. I started going to yoga studio to reduce some stress, but it was just going once or twice a week, and very light, nothing spiritual. It was just movement and then having some nerve system. But when I became four years old, I wanted to give myself something, something learning. And then I thought, Okay, well, then I want to do yoga training at core power yoga, which I was going to at the time, and because I want to know more about yoga. But back then, the core power yoga training wasn't too much of a spirituality. It was more of how to give up Good vinyasa class. It was more of instructions. But for me, it was very useful, because I'm not native English speaker. For me, it was very good practice, and also, I didn't do any sports prior to I did basically, I didn't move my body. Didn't even the push up on push up until so for me, was a good opportunity to get into little more of my body and and then, I think there was 2016 Just a year later, I was visiting New York for the first time, and I thought, I'm gonna at the time, my ex was like, why don't you go to some yoga? You like yoga? So I'm okay. I'm Googled. I. Um, and there was a little article about most influential yoga teachers in the US. I word searched the New York and the SRI Dharma Mitra popped up, and he said he's the only living yoga master who's still teaching. So I was so intrigued. Okay, I go. And that was during the Valentine's week. Super cold. So I visited the Dharma yoga center, like I think it was on Valentine's Day, but Dharma was in Kripalu. Guess who I met then, Andrew. Andrew was a teaching and later I realized he was keeping up this vegan chocolates, homemade vegan chocolates,

Todd McLaughlin: 41:34

of course, Pam, oh my gosh, I know Andrew and Pam did a yoga and donuts class here once, where they Pam made these vegan donuts, and we were trying to lure, oh my gosh, so amazing, right? She's such a good chef. Oh my gosh, that's so cool. So that so without even meeting Dharma, you were already like, Okay, I think I like this Dharma yoga center. I have this really nice guy named Andrew, and I have yummy chocolate treats from Pam.

Kyung Pak: 42:10

Well, when I walked in, it was completely different from anything I knew. And then when Andrew was doing the class, so by back then, like imagine that I knew nothing about spiritually. I never had anyone spiritual. I didn't look into anything. I didn't know much about om chakra, no nothing. And he started doing pizza mantra. You can imagine, what is this like? So I everything came in, and the next day I was going back to San Diego, but I had just about time to visit the center one more time, and I watched to come. So I went, and I saw Dharma walking in. I just remember clearly, and I was, you know, doing yoga in core power. So when Dharma was instructing side the plank, pashi doesn't I'm like, Oh, I know this. I tried to do this. And time out to come, and then he'll just touch my toe and that this should be right here. And then I'll just it. I just broke, like, I couldn't do anything, like everything I knew or I thought I knew wasn't there. And he came to me about three times to adjust, and I just realized, I don't think I know anything. Yeah, and during the shavasana, at the time, he had a long Shabbat Sana, like about 1520 minutes. I lie down and close my eyes. Everything was green the whole time. I surprised. Couldn't lie, just whole time, and I didn't know what it was. I just had the feeling that I have to come back, not necessarily to learn yoga that I was thinking. I wanted to see what the real yogi is like. So I had planted this seed, and it took two years for me to come. There was 500 hour training in 2018 and it was a lot of preparation for me, because the work and time, the commitment, but when I came and I sat, and then I remember, like it was a big group. But first word, he said, everything changed. My life completely changed. He said, Without yamas and Yamas, there's no yoga. Become vegan vegetarian. So that moment, I became vegan. And there were moments where, out of all the people, dharma would say something, but he's answering to my question for her life, something like that. Yeah, yes, yeah. So that's how I met Dharma, and that's it.

Todd McLaughlin: 45:19

Oh my gosh. King, that's so awesome. I love hearing your story.

Kyung Pak: 45:25

Guess who was this? My small group mentor. There was

Todd McLaughlin: 45:29

Pam, yeah, and so, so when you practice now, mm. Hmm, so you practice today, yes,

Kyung Pak: 45:44

yeah, I practice today. Uh

Todd McLaughlin: 45:47

huh, yeah. So I'm curious then what, what was your How are you directing your practice now, because I know there's, like, so many poses we can do, and there's so many breathing exercises, and there's mantras, and there's all these great things, but I can feel your infectious sort of enthusiasm for life, working hard and then opening up and having all these new avenues to explore. So I'm curious, and also you're you're lit up a little bit from coming back from Israel and having all these incredible experiences there. So I'm just kind of curious, like today, when you practice, what sort of insights did you have?

Kyung Pak: 46:31

So I think now I recognize more so is that everything changes. There's progress. There's there are phases that one goes through. And if you allow me just going back to meeting Dharma, and when I took that training, was just life changing. It was so much. I was the first time my heart was just pounding and full. So I had this so much eager. When I came back to San Diego, I was actually quite desperate, because, oh, if I were in New York, I would be progressing so much faster. How come I don't have a teacher, and that's how I actually search teacher. Met Tim Miller, if you know Holly, Holly became my eighth grade teacher and friend. She's like, family, yeah?

Todd McLaughlin: 47:36

Steve, yes, I had a chance to interview Holly here on the on on the podcast. So Holly, yeah, Holly is awesome. I've had a chance to go to Holly's house and practice over there. They're so fun. Actually, not practice, but to it to a gathering. But nonetheless, yes, yes. Sorry, I'll let you. I want you.

Kyung Pak: 47:58

Yeah, it's so connected. We didn't even know well,

Todd McLaughlin: 48:03

point Kyung, I Well, I had a good feeling because Andrew introduced us, and Andrew's been super kind and introducing me to the most amazing people. So I knew, once we started corresponding, I was just so excited to meet you. Well, so, so, okay. So you were like, I want more. I want more. And you start practicing some Yoga with Tim. This is in what year? This is in 2020

Kyung Pak: 48:29

1819, gotcha? 2019 Yeah. And Team cars. Bed was still pretty far at the time. I was living in Rancho pena skidos, and so I would go on the weekend for late class, and that's where actually I met Holly. And you know, Holly, yes, Holly's not only a great teacher, but she's just her sweetness is just so not even comparable, yeah, she's just a wonderful person with big heart, yes, and I wanted to be like her, just that beautiful heart. So she I learned some point she teaches some improv classes or just variation classes in sort of yoga. So that's where I started going. Became good friend, and then when the pandemic came, Team stopped teaching. But Holly took over, and she continued to go to Shasta retreat.

Todd McLaughlin: 49:39

Mount Shasta, I never did that retreat. Did you go with Holly? Did you go?

Kyung Pak: 49:43

Oh, it's been, it's been tradition. I went last year too, actually, or some was during the pandemic. And another thing that time was time I started teaching online. So I had this couple of years of like being feeling desperate, feeling missing out, a lot of formal a lot of frustration for not being able to find the teacher right in front of me, and then all of a sudden Dharma is online. So I literally, I think for at least two years, I never missed this class, like probably missed less than five. So I was just showing up all the time that soon, when actually, my practice really progressed in some way. And you can see my. Mind once it's filled with, you know, the desires become fulfilled like satisfied. To certain extent it's ready to go to the next. So after that, everything comes back to normal and 2024 I got to visit India, actually, with the Gabrielle and some other Yogi's Gabriela.

Todd McLaughlin: 51:11

Yeah. Nice, nice, yeah.

Kyung Pak: 51:16

So that was also very, very impactful for me, that just visit itself. So when I came back, I craved some other connections that different from just looking for in this the world of what I know, I wanted to go see more. And I learned that we have in San Diego. I don't know if you know, there is Anjaneya temple, Hanuman temple.

Todd McLaughlin: 51:50

I have not been to it, but I have heard about it's beautiful.

Kyung Pak: 51:53

Yeah, it's beautiful. And turned out that another ashtangi, Andrew Hillam, wonderful teacher. He from Joyce yoga. He was teaching there, and I knew, but I somehow didn't visit for long time. I never visited, and somehow someone just commented, and some somehow is it just led me to the place right after the India trip, and when I walked into Hanuman temple, once again, it bears my mind, and Andrew was teaching my soul, and he looked at me and mentioned about, yeah, I just came back From India, and she recognized the why I showed up. It's like he mentioned something, like, you left a part of you there. So I'm like, Yes, that's as I started coming. So I got to practice with also Andrew Ashtanga. So whenever I visit Dharma in New York, I would go from street because it's your sashtanga and it's a temple. I didn't actually know Eddie's turn. Actually the temple came first to me. I want to go to temple. And then turned out he's well known teacher. And actually the first time I visited from street Temple was for puja, because I wanted just being in the Spirit. And the Pujari was chanting this all the mantra. And after the puja, the Pujari went in, and then he came out with a super cool modern clothes, very fashionable jeans, and I had some question about I did connection, so I went to the pizzari with now cool clothes. So I have some question. I looked at him and I said, Oh, you are Eddy Stern.

Todd McLaughlin: 54:00

I Yeah, I know is Eddie amazing when he starts, when Eddie starts chanting, it's like, you feel transported because he is so deep in it. It's amazing,

Kyung Pak: 54:12

yeah, so that was how I got to know Broom Street. So whenever I go to New York, there are a few places I visit. Just feel that love, feel that connection,

Todd McLaughlin: 54:29

yes, oh my gosh, I hear you. The birth street Temple is amazing. I had a chance to go to it before he moved, because he was there, had the temple, then moved to Brooklyn, and then ended up moving back into that same building, which is incredible, because that Ganesha Temple is just phenomenal. And, yeah, I first time I saw it, I thought, how did they even install this in here? Like, because it's such a interesting, like, you're so, you know, up high in a building somewhere, it's fascinating that they were able to install that whole temple. So the fact that they took it apart and then went back to the same place and put it back together again is, like incredible. So I agree, anybody listening that's goes to New York City, visit Dharma Mitra and go to the Stearns Broom Street temple. That's like two of the New York meccas for yoga,

Kyung Pak: 55:17

for sure. Yeah. And you get to have some cool t shirt,

Todd McLaughlin: 55:21

and you get to get a cool t shirt like you're a punk rock Ramones listener. That's right. Yeah, you know it, you know it? Oh my gosh. Kyung, well, I don't want to stop talking to you. I know we're almost really close to being here together for an hour, but I don't want to stop maybe, maybe we can do a part two. Maybe we can do it. Lovely, a part two, and then I can ask you more questions, because I wanted, I'm glad that I was able to hear some of your background and story about you know, your journey from Korea to America, being a single mom, raising your son, becoming a lawyer, becoming a yogini, traveling around, doing teacher training now, are you teaching yoga in San Diego? Are you? You're a yoga teacher, practitioner, teacher.

Kyung Pak: 56:09

Yeah, I've, I've been teaching actually, before I met Dharma because, you know, after the teacher training that I gave myself as birthday gift, even if I didn't plan to teach. The opportunity came the company, core power yoga company asked, because they were opening a new studio, and how do I remember I was not skilled teacher, but I have still some of the students who saw me that 10 years ago, when I started teaching, still coming to my class. So I've been teaching a core power. And there was a time where I felt like after I met Dharma, oh, I want to teach Dharma yoga. I want to teach the things that I learned from Dharma more than more than just like vinyasa, more than Asana. But then I realized, you know, if you can teach before Dharma yogis, they are already, like a heart wide open. They are receptive. It's easy. It's like a bubble in the bubble. Everything is so already set up.

Todd McLaughlin: 57:38

Yeah, it's wonderful. Yeah,

Kyung Pak: 57:40

right. But then here in the community, if I can bring what I received from Dharma, it can be something new for my students. It can be something different for the community. And those who are receptive, they'll receive. And if it doesn't work, I don't have to. There's also timing too. So I've been really enjoying sharing a core power yoga we have really beautifully here. And also I teach Dharma yoga wheel in my home, and now I live in Scripps. Rent on like miramesa, fully by another side of the freeway. I know where that is. I know exactly the there's a still that become Yoga Studio in miramesa.

Todd McLaughlin: 58:36

Is it still there? Is it still there?

Kyung Pak: 58:39

It has a different name. Now, like some because they have to change the name, yeah, but I've been there once, oh, that's so cool. A couple of times. Yeah, that's awesome. So it's yeah, we have a lot of common ground.

Todd McLaughlin: 58:57

I agree. I know that's what I find is so fascinating to me. Like to have this opportunity to interact and meet you and and you know everything you're talking about, and in relation to those big changes in life, like when you when you explained how, when Dharma came over and just kind of touched your toe and said your toe should be right here, and your feeling of like, I don't know anything like and almost like a big shakedown of this sort of perception of the way you're seeing things, and to have that come into question and then reorient. And I love the fact that you also, when you said, I wanted to know more, and so whatever like that curiosity that you have that's pushing you to to keep growing and learning and stay open to trying new things and different things is just so refreshing. Kyung and I everything that you spoke about in relation to how important it is to care for those that have a dream of living a better life and sharing that, those of us that have been able to achieve that, to be able to share that with others and keep that doorway open, that pathway open, I think, is like, really at the heart of what we're all about here, you know, not just in America, but globally. So I think, like, it's really important that we connect and we share our stories, because this is how the world is going to continue to be an absolutely amazing place to live and grow and share. So yeah, I'm just really grateful to have this opportunity to connect with you, and I hope we can continue, and I know I. Have just so that I can do my get my housekeeping. Everybody can find you on Instagram at Ananda Devi underscore Kyung, and that link is in the description, so everyone listening that wants to follow you can just click and find you, and then I also on your bio on your Instagram page has the link to a retreat that you're going to be holding with Pam and Andrew. So those of you that practice here, that know Andrew and Pam, they teach a Dharma yoga class every Wednesday here at six o'clock, can go to the link, and it's a really long name called sacred. Underscore heart, underscore yoga, underscore, retreat, dot dash MailChimp sites. Calm, but don't worry. You don't need to know any of that. Just go to your Instagram page, your bio, and they can find it. And then they can go to the link that I'm providing, and they can find it too. And that would be amazing. It'd be so fun. You guys are doing a Sacred Heart yoga retreat in Peru with Kyung, Pam, Kashi and Andrew. I'm in the process of organizing to interview Kashi, so we're working on that. He's in Israel still, so we're trying to figure out a date, but I'll have I can't wait to speak with him after meeting you, and that's going to happen on November 22 and 30th in the Sacred Valley of Peru. Oh gosh, I just got to keep reading. It says what lies ahead of you is amazing. Well, I like that. And then it says, when you were doing things together, you're inside the collective mind and share psychic knowledge with each other. That is how you become one. A quote by Sri Dharma Mitra that looks incredible, those little huts that you guys are. I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't get sidetracked here, but I really want to go to Peru. I want to go there. I want to go. I wish I could meet you guys.

Kyung Pak: 1:02:26

So hopefully it is such a honor to have you.

Todd McLaughlin: 1:02:28

Oh, that would be incredible. That's, um, that's that gives me time to plan. So maybe I can figure out a way for my wife and I come join you guys. That would be incredible.

Kyung Pak: 1:02:38

We are planting a seed, yes, and join the forces.

Todd McLaughlin: 1:02:44

Thank you, Kyung, this has been so fun. I really appreciate it. Thank you so much. Do you have any final words you like to share? Any anything to close with that you'd like to leave us on, and what kind of note you want to leave

Kyung Pak: 1:02:57

us on? I would like to just share one thing that I really cherish, that I learned from yoga is that, you know the Puna mantra, so there once I think it was a Kashi we fear, like, whether it's immigration, Whether any other issues, I think we fear because it's some form of mechanism of self protection. We are afraid that something is going to harm us. And in some sense, let's say we have this idea that if I don't keep this pie. So if someone takes this portion of pie, then there won't be enough for me. But yoga teaches that the abundance is our own nature, and when there's abundance. If something's taken out of the abundance, the abundance remains. It doesn't shrink. And for we all can just remember that maybe they'll help when the fear arises, which is natural and we can support each other to remember.

Todd McLaughlin: 1:04:24

Yes, beautiful. Kyung, thank you so much. You're amazing.

Kyung Pak: 1:04:29

Thank you appreciate it. Thank you, yeah, and I sorry about not sharing so much. I think I kind of skipped your question about Sean. Maybe I'll have opportunity to share more about Sean next time.

Todd McLaughlin: 1:04:41

All right, that sounds amazing. Kyung, thank you so much.

Kyung Pak: 1:04:45

Thank you. Thank you for having me.

Todd McLaughlin: 1:04:48

Native yoga. Todd cast is produced by myself. The theme music is dreamed up by Bryce Allen. If you like this show, let me know if there's room for improvement. I want to hear that too. We are curious to know what you think and what you want more of what I can improve. And if you have ideas for future guests or topics, please send us your thoughts to info at Native yoga center. You can find us at Native yoga center.com, and hey, if you did like this episode, share it with your friends, rate it and review and join us next time you.

Unknown: 1:05:45

Well, yeah.