Tulsi Bagnoli: Spiritual Teacher + Astrologer
Native of nowhere, Tulsi Bagnoli seems to arrive at every destination cloaked in the light of her authentic self. At first glance, she’s obviously beautiful, but what’s most attractive about the woman seated across from me, sipping chai beside a fountain resembling a koi pond, isn’t found in any aspect of her strong and graceful physique or her easy and natural bohemian style of dress. The setting offers the appropriate vibe for this meeting and it’s apparent that the most beautiful thing about Tulsi lies beyond her physical attributes. It’s much deeper than that. Upon meeting her, she appears exactly as she is, and you find that her best feature is her spirit.
Born to a mother who practiced yoga daily through her pregnancy and father figures who live and travel around the globe working as astrologists and motivational speakers, Tulsi Bagnoli was born into a world of consciousness seekers and personal development enthusiasts. A world traveler herself, she currently resides in a beach town along the coast of Central California and knows that home is where the heart is. Ever present, she seems to be always at home in herself. Hers is a spirit homegrown and deeply rooted in yoga, Transcendental Meditation (T.M.), and Vedic astrology.
She grew up in an uncommon way, learning to live from a point of wholeness and practicing yoga and meditation twice daily by the age of 4. The more she tasted of what life was offering to her, the more she wanted and as she grew so too did the love and connection she found with her higher power. Her passion developed into life purpose.
Tulsi’s mastery of self, coupled with her desire and ability to be a teacher to others lead her to seek out opportunities for education and further enlightenment. In her early 20’s, she suddenly she found herself right where she was meant to be, in the T.M. community of Fairfield, Iowa. With all the odds against her, she applied for a spot in a prestigious educational program and was accepted at the Maharishi University, where she earned her M.A. in Vedic Science in 2009. She also spent time in the Himalayas and six months studying and teaching yoga in India. She’s knowledgeable and she’s got a heart to share.
Giving by nature, she’s also someone who believes that in order to grow, one has an obligation to share their gifts, and she tells me that her sharing is a form of service to others. When you give what you’ve got, she says, you get a lot back.
“As we offer what has helped us, not only are we deepening our [own] practice, but we’re helping to be a light for others. I think we all need inspiration; we all need reminders; we all need relation[ships] to deepen our practice of love and harmony and alignment. Being able to offer that is a practice in itself.”
"IF YOU WANT TO LEARN SOMETHING, PRACTICE IT. IF YOU WANT TO MASTER SOMETHING, TEACH IT."
They say religion is one of those things people shouldn’t talk about in polite company, but Tulsi is never even a half-step removed from her personal philosophy. She says that rather than compartmentalizing the parts of herself- business woman here, seeker of the Divine there- she uses her practices of yoga, meditation, and astrology to guide her walk through daily life and career. She accesses these tools in order to build a life that’s rich and balanced.
The thing that’s continually drawn her to her practices of yoga, astrology, and T.M., and the high degree to which they impact the way she chooses to exist in this world and function in business, is the experience. She likens being 100% on track and attuned to the divine to that moment when your radio dial is in perfect alignment with the station you want to hear. She explains that we’re all equipped with what we need to live abundantly- the knowledge, the instinct, and the power. All we have to do is continually make contact with the place inside of ourselves. "Astrology is never telling us something we don't know. It's all inherent."
"THE STARS ARE LIKE A TREASURE MAP THAT GUIDES US BACK TO THE SELF...A GUIDING LIGHT; THAT REMINDER."
She finds clarity through her practice and tuning into her own needs allows her to cater to the students and clients who welcome her to show up at her best.
“[I] keep my practice to maintain feeling rested and clear and to have that feeling of abundance so I can offer my gifts...[It’s] always a place where I can take a step back, rest, and drop into that reservoir of stillness.” She says the more often she makes contact with that reservoir, the more she finds her actions to be dynamic and creative.
Her creativity has lent itself well since she arrived on the coast. She’s recently moved to her new work location at Build Your Nest Coaching in Avila Beach, where she teaches yoga and meditation to others and offers astrology readings and workshops to her students and clients. This is where she celebrated the 10th anniversary of her becoming a teacher of T.M. in September.
A regular attendant of the Beloved Sacred Music Festival, a gathering hosted in Tidewater, a riverfront town off the coast of Oregon, Tulsi was also invited to teach there alongside a list of other well-known and respected instructors this summer. The event drew its largest crowd in history and after four days of music, tai chi, yoga, and live art and entertainment, they saved the best for last. Tulsi took the stage and had the honor of closing the show. She realized one of her top 5 professional dreams that week.
In 2015, she also began penning a regular column for holistic health and lifestyle magazine Caribbean Body & Soul.
Business is blooming for Tulsi Bagnoli, and as we wrap up I ask her what it takes to handle the pressure of being her own boss, and how she manages when competition is fierce. She recommends that you always be true to yourself.
“Just show up!” She says not wait until you feel ready to take on a challenge, wait until you’re 60% ready and then give it a shot. The worst that could happen is that it doesn’t work out. “But you showed up,” she says. “I think that most of life is about showing up."