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Was I In A Cult?

The Cult of Ashtanga Yoga: "No Touching, Guruji!"

Was I In A Cult?

PodcastOne

True Crime, Comedy, Talk Radio

4.43.1K Ratings

🗓️ 10 December 2025

⏱️ 70 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week, Liz and Tyler head straight into the sweaty “this-is-definitely-not-a-cult-except-maybe-it-definitely-is” world of Ashtanga yoga. 

Our guest, Magnolia Zuniga, was one of only 20 women in the world to become a Certified Ashtanga teacher. She spent 22 years inside the system — traveling to India, waking up before the crack of dawn, giving up apartments, and building her entire life around the practice and the man who created it. 

Then, on her very first day studying with master Pattabhi Jois — the “grandfather” of modern yoga — she witnessed something that shattered everything she thought she knew. 

What followed was years of confusion, devotion, cognitive dissonance, community pressure, and the slow unraveling of everything she believed Ashtanga Yoga to be.


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Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

The views, information, or opinions expressed by the guest appearing in this episode solely

0:04.4

belong to the guest and do not represent or reflect the views or positions of the hosts,

0:09.4

the show, podcast one, this network, or any of their respective affiliates.

0:14.4

This episode discusses situations of sexual abuse.

0:18.2

Please listen accordingly.

0:20.1

To me, it's mostly about documentation. It's about

0:24.2

people when they look at a schedule and they see a shantanga, it's good for them to know the history,

0:29.7

to have a bit of an idea of what they're going to be getting into. And to them, I say,

0:35.3

if you think you're inheriting the beauty of it, you also inherit the shadow.

0:39.6

You inherit the abuse.

0:41.5

Own that too.

0:51.3

Welcome back to what's not in a cult.

0:53.3

I'm Tyler Meissom.

1:10.0

And I'm Lizzie. And today, we are getting into a world that, well, I don't know much about. Very little. Yoga. It's clear by your physique. You have no idea. No, come on. I'm a spelt 54-year-old dude.

1:15.8

You could be three inches taller, Tyler, if you had incorporated yoga into your life.

1:19.0

I would appreciate three more inches in a couple places.

1:23.7

But yoga, don't know much about it.

1:28.1

My kind of workout is very like get as much done as you can in as short a period as you can while listening to rock music and maybe watching a movie at the same time and then

1:32.4

pull a hamstring at the end of it. I don't like to be in my brain. There is a yoga class

1:37.3

for you. You just got to find your person, Tyler. You know what I'm saying? I mean, the reason

1:41.8

I don't do yoga is probably the reason I should.

1:45.1

Have you ever stepped into a yoga studio, Tyler?

...

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