- Serge, USA - South Asian Religions Scholar, Yoga School Director

I have had the pleasure of a close personal relationship with Uma Inder for over 10 years.  I have a degree in South Asian Religions from the University of California at Santa Barbara, a certificate in Yoga Philosophy from Loyola Marimount University, and a wealth of certifications from other well-known Yoga establishments.  Academically my professors have been the most widely recognized Indologists & South Asianists in the field, including Dr. David Gordon White, Dr. Christopher Chapple, and Dr. Barbara Holdrege.  I have been a practitioner of Yoga and Meditation for 20 years and a teacher of yoga for over 15 years.  I own a Registered Yoga School under the Yoga Alliance in Los Angeles, and conduct certified Yoga Teacher Trainings, retreats and courses annually.

Uma has been very open about teaching traditional tantra (which has very little to do with sexuality). There have been countless times I have heard students ask Uma for some kind of sexual instruction.  And without fail, every time I've heard her asked, she has neglected to offer up anything of the sort.  Her ethics around sexuality are quite sound.  I've hardly met any other teachers outside India who mention the word tantra without some kind of sex scandal involved.  Truly, Uma is a rarity.
​In all the years I have known her, Uma ​Inder has consistently humbled herself.  Even in the face of her students constantly putting her on a pedestal, Uma has never exhibited any behavior typical of a cult leader or fanatic.  She has refrained from giving her students new names, refrained from giving any kind of initiations, she hasn't even attempted to make much of a business for herself.  She has never offered enlightenment in exchange for money, sex, or power.... All Uma is guilty of is being herself, and staying true to the unconventional way she teaches in a world that constantly wants to fit her into a box.  It is this uncompromising nature of Uma's teaching that allows her to be such a great teacher for those that connect with her.  And for those that don't connect, as she constantly repeats, they can find another class/teacher that suits them.  No problem.