30 years of experience teaching yoga, meditation and Eastern philosophy
Gustavo Plaza (Arjuna) is a Yoga teacher and scholar of Eastern thought with more than three decades of experience sharing these teachings in different countries. Throughout his journey he has guided trainings, retreats and spiritual pilgrimages, accompanying hundreds of students on a path of practice, study and personal transformation.
His style combines depth, clarity and closeness. His cheerful character and charismatic personality create a warm environment where yoga practitioners of all levels —from beginners to advanced students— can feel comfortable, learn and progress in their practice with confidence.
Thanks to his broad knowledge of traditional yoga, meditation and the philosophy of India, Gustavo Plaza transmits these teachings in an accessible and living way, connecting tradition with direct experience.
His classes do not only teach techniques: they become spaces of inspiration, presence and inner growth, where each practice is an invitation to deepen on the path of yoga.
Initiation into yoga
Gustavo Plaza was born in 1977 in Guayaquil (Ecuador). From an early age, Gustavo already felt an attraction to the philosophies and mysticism of the East. In particular, he was drawn to the yogis of India, in whom Gustavo saw a call to transcendence, to a reality invisible to human eyes.
He had his first experience with yoga at around 6 years old, when his father gave him the first instructions on meditation. However, it was not until around the age of 15 that Gustavo Plaza met his guru, Father César Dávila. It was then that he began, with dedication, his practice and study of the tradition of yoga.
Gustavo Plaza had the physical guidance of Father Dávila for approximately 8 years, until he left his body in 1999. By then, Gustavo was already giving Hatha Yoga and Meditation classes at his organization, the Asociación Escuela de Auto-Realización.
Spiritual guides and inspiration along the way
Throughout his 30 years of dedication, Gustavo has received inspiration and personal teaching directly from great masters, especially from Sri Swami Veda Bharati of the Himalayas and Sri Sadhu Maharaja.
Swami Veda Bharati was a dear friend and spiritual brother of Father Dávila, as he came from the same tradition of the masters of the Himalayas. Likewise, the saint of Bhakti Yoga, Sadhu Maharaja, also had a special connection to the message of Father Dávila.
These two masters helped Gustavo Plaza on his path to reach the next steps and to update the teachings of Father Dávila in every moment of his life.
At the same time, Gustavo Plaza maintains a spiritual friendship with great mentors, such as Pandit Bhek Pati Sinha, Ramiro Calle, Andrei Ram or Surinder Singh, among others, who have brought great value to his path.
Gustavo travels frequently to India, where he keeps in contact with the great traditions of spirituality and with the study of the different paths of self-knowledge and philosophical processes of India and Asia.
Expansion of the Yoga Rahasya School and Method
Gustavo Plaza has spent more than 10 years bringing the Yoga Rahasya method to the world.
He has taken part as an instructor and speaker in international events such as Bhakti Fest (California, USA), Dakini Festival (Tuzla, Romania) or the Yoga Journal Conference (Moscow, Russia).
He currently offers workshops, classes and courses on meditation and the vast method of Yoga (asana, pranayama, yoga nidra, etc.).
Gustavo is an active part of international yoga teacher trainings in several countries and offers annually the Yoga Rahasya Transformation Training Program course, for everyone who seeks to deepen their experience in the practice of the ancient discipline of yoga.
Commitment to spreading yoga
Gustavo Plaza is co-director of the Sadhana magazine and of the international congress Sadhana Yoga Conference.
In addition, Gustavo is a member of the Asociación Escuela de Auto-Realización founded by his master, Father César Dávila, where he has actively served as a teacher of hatha yoga and Eastern philosophy, and as part of the board of the Guayaquil center in previous years.
