The Paradoxical Body: Yoga, Dating, and Motherhood Reimagined with RACHEL SCOTT
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In this rich and wide-ranging conversation, Ali sits down with yoga teacher, author, and anatomy educator Rachel Scott to explore what it truly means to live as a body – not just to have one.
Beginning with a candid inquiry into modern yoga culture, Rachel gently peels back the layers of Western commodification to reveal yoga’s deeper purpose: presence, self-regulation, and intimacy with the living intelligence beneath our habits and conditioning. From there, the dialogue opens into a profound exploration of embodiment as a spiritual practice – one that includes sensation, relationship, desire, stillness, and paradox.
Drawing on decades of practice, Rachel shares how yoga, anatomy study, and contemplative stillness have shaped her understanding of consciousness, love, and human connection. Together, Ali and Rachel reflect on mindfulness versus “body-fulness,” nervous-system awareness in dating and relationships, and the wisdom of listening to the body’s cues around safety, timing, and consent.
The conversation also moves tenderly into themes rarely spoken aloud: fertility, choice, grief, freedom, and the many ways maternal love can be expressed beyond childbirth. Rachel speaks openly about her journey through wanting children, confronting ambivalence, and ultimately trusting the larger intelligence of life – an experience that reshaped her relationships, her work, and her sense of self.
Weaving together yoga philosophy, Tantra, anatomy lab awe, and everyday relational practice, this episode is an invitation to slow down, feel more, and honor the mystery of being embodied. A heartfelt exploration of love, presence, and the courage it takes to listen deeply to the body’s quiet truths.
ALI BIO: Ali Mezey is a Body Therapist, Family Constellation Work Facilitator, Sexologist and Media Maker with over 40 years of experience. Ali has worked in renowned rehab centers in Los Angeles for sex, drug, and alcohol addiction. She developed her groundbreaking body-based method Personal Geometry® to address the challenges of working with sexual trauma, compulsivity, dysfunctions and discontents. She works internationally with individuals, couples, and groups. Ali is also a public speaker on the intelligence of the body, a teacher of Personal Geometry® and the creator and host of The Brilliant Body Podcast.
RACHEL BIO: Rachel combines thousands of hours of teacher training experience with her academic expertise (MSc Online Education) to help yoga teachers and studios create transformational educational experiences. She supports students, teachers, and trainers to share their passion, find their voice, and inspire others. In addition to authoring five books, she has written for Yoga International, YogaUOnline, and the Huffington Post, and exuberantly shares her knowledge through her coaching, YouTube channel, online courses, and free online classes. Find her at rachelyoga.com or on social media at rachelscottyoga.
Dualism: It basically says that there are two things, or substances, and they are completely separate. For example, substance dualists believe that the mind is part of the soul and the soul resides completely outside of the body.
Non-dualism: Non-dualism refers to the idea that all things are interconnected and not separate. Distinctions like self and other, or good and bad, are illusions created by the mind. Essentially, it's about recognizing the unity and interdependence of all phenomena.
Proprioception: also referred to as kinesthesia, is the sense of body position, movement, and force. It is the unconscious awareness without visual input and is sometimes referred to as the sixth sense.There are three primary types of proprioceptors: muscle spindles, Golgi tendon organs (GTOs), and joint receptors. Each distinct type provides different information that together shape the sensory profile of the body's positioning and motion.
Interoception: Interoception is awareness of your body's internal senses or signals. It identifies how you feel. You can consciously or unconsciously respond to these signals. For example, if your stomach rumbles, you know you're hungry.
YOGA DEFINITIONS:
Shiva: He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hinduism. Shiva. God of Destruction. God of Time, Yoga, Meditation and Arts. Lord of Yogis and Physicians.
Vedas: There are four Indo-Aryan Vedas: the Rig Veda contains hymns about their mythology; the Sama Veda consists mainly of hymns about religious rituals; the Yajur Veda contains instructions for religious rituals; and the Atharva Veda consists of spells against enemies, sorcerers, and diseases.
Perusha: Purusha is the highest Self, spirit, pure consciousness, the eternal witness of all phenomena. Its counterpart is prakriti, matter that is devoid of consciousness. In Sankhya philosophy and in Patanjali's Yoga, Purusha, consciousness, is one of two eternal realities, the other being prakriti (matter).
Yoga sutras: In a nutshell, the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is a collection of 196 short verses that serve as a guide to attain wisdom and self-realization through yoga. The text is estimated to have been written in roughly 400 C.E., and is regarded by many as the basis of yoga philosophy.
Bhagavad Gita: The Bhagavad Gita is a 700-verse spiritual scripture that is part of the Mahabharat. It is a dialogue between Lord Krishna and Arjun on the battlefield of Kurukshetra, addressing the moral, philosophical, and spiritual dilemmas of life. It was likely composed between the third century B.C.E. and the third century C.E.
Bhakti yoga: Bhakti yoga is a devotee's loving devotion to a personal god as the path for spirituality. The other two paths are jnana yoga and karma yoga.
Kaliyuga: Kaliyuga, known as the “Age of Darkness” in Hindu cosmology, is described in the Mahabharata and Shrimad Bhagavatam as a time of moral decline, spiritual confusion, and social disorder. The scriptures list 57 key signs from corruption and deceit to the erosion of dharma that define this final phase of the Yuga cycle. The Kaliyuga is the fourth, shortest, and worst of the four yugas (world ages) in a Yuga cycle, preceded by Dvapara Yuga and followed by the next cycle's Krita (Satya) Yuga. It is believed to be the present age, which is full of conflict and sin.
Shaiva Tantra: Kashmir Shaivism is an umbrella-term for several non-dualist Shaiva-Shakta tantric religious traditions that flourished in Kashmir after 850 CE. Trika Shaivism is one of these traditions, named after the use of several triades in its philosophy.
Hatha yoga: Hatha Yoga is one of the oldest and most widely practised forms of yoga in India, known for its gentle yet profound approach. It harmonises the body, breath, and mind through physical postures (asanas), controlled breathing (pranayama), and mindful awareness. Hatha Yoga is more focused on creating balance and ease in the body and mind, with a slower pace and longer holds in postures. It emphasizes finding permanent truth, purity of mind and body, and moral and ethical righteousness. Ashtanga and Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga are more dynamic, structured, and physically demanding, promoting strength and stamina. Modern yoga primarily focuses on physical fitness. Traditional yoga may not always start with asanas, focusing on purifying the mind first. Modern yoga begins with physical fitness through asanas.
