Michael Lee, MA, C-IAYT, is the founder of Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy, an internationally recognized yoga-based approach to psycho-emotional healing and transformation that has trained more than 2,000 practitioners worldwide. A former Kripalu resident and faculty member, Michael has spent more than four decades exploring the intersection of embodied awareness, mindfulness, relational healing, and spiritual growth.

Originally from Australia, Michael came to the United States in 1984 to study and live at Kripalu, where his experience of yoga as a catalyst for emotional and spiritual transformation helped shape the foundations of his life’s work. Drawing from ancient yogic wisdom, contemporary psychology, mindfulness, and body-centered inquiry, he developed Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy in 1986 as an innovative bridge between body, mind, and soul.

A pioneer in the integration of yoga and transformational healing, Michael has helped bring body-based awareness practices into therapeutic, educational, and personal growth settings for over 40 years. His work emphasizes self-presence, compassionate inquiry, authentic relationship, and the innate intelligence of the body as pathways toward healing and awakening.

Michael is the author of Turn Stress Into Bliss and Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy: A Bridge from Body to Soul. His work has also been featured in influential publications including Yoga and Pain Management and Kripalu Yoga, in which he contributed a chapter exploring transformational practice at “the edge” of embodied awareness. He has presented internationally for organizations and conferences focused on yoga therapy, trauma healing, integrative medicine, and transformational practice.

Known for his warmth, grounded presence, humor, and authenticity, Michael’s teaching creates a space where participants can deepen self-awareness, cultivate meaningful connection, and access greater clarity, freedom, and aliveness.