Science Meets Spirituality & Community Healing in Conversation with Monika Merriman of Golden Yogi

Some conversations feel less like interviews and more like coming home. Sitting with Monika Merriman, the caretaker and spiritual guide behind Golden Yogi in Takapuna, I felt that rare sense of stillness — the kind that reminds you that science and spirituality were never meant to be separate. They are two languages describing the same truth: that everything is energy, everything is connected, and healing begins when we remember this.

Monika’s story bridges worlds that many believe are opposites. For seventeen years, she taught and researched marine science at a university in Auckland, leading students into the depths of the ocean and the wonder of the natural world. Yet when redundancy brought that chapter to an end, another door quietly opened. With grace and faith, she used her payout to purchase a yoga studio — the very space that would become Golden Yogi’s new home. “It was divinely placed,” she said, describing how she felt a golden light pouring into her chest the moment she decided to take over the studio. “My soul was calling me forward.”

What makes Monika’s journey so powerful is not the career change itself, but how she embodies the bridge between science and spirituality. “I’ve always lived in both worlds,” she explained. “Science taught me how to observe the physical, while spirituality taught me how to listen to the unseen.” She spoke of her childhood experiences with intuition — hearing the wind speak, seeing visions that later came true, and feeling energy long before she had the words to describe it. For years, she kept those gifts hidden, unsure if people would understand. “You can’t always share these things,” she said gently. “You have to feel safe first.”

That sense of safety is exactly what Golden Yogi now offers. It’s more than a yoga studio — it’s a sanctuary for healing, ceremony, and connection. Monika holds sound journeys, women’s circles, breathwork classes, and spiritual workshops, each designed to nurture not just the body but the mind and soul. She calls it “a container where everything is welcome — your strength, your surrender, your silence.”

What struck me most was how Monika speaks about energy with both reverence and clarity. Her understanding of physics and biology blends seamlessly with ancient wisdom. “Energy can’t be created or destroyed — only transformed,” she said. “When you realise that, you start to see that everything — from thought to breath to emotion — is movement, vibration, connection.” She explained that even breathwork, now scientifically proven to calm the nervous system, has roots in practices known by our ancestors for thousands of years. “Science is only just catching up,” she smiled.

Monika’s work is also deeply communal. Golden Yogi’s classes are diverse, inclusive, and affordable, with offerings ranging from prenatal yoga to yin and acupuncture workshops. During winter, she even placed signs around town inviting anyone struggling with their mental health to join a free class. “It’s one small thing I can do,” she said. “If someone walks out feeling lighter, that’s enough.”

Her approach to leadership is intuitive yet practical — a balance of structure and surrender. She knows the importance of professionalism, bringing together highly qualified teachers with distinct styles and voices, while maintaining the warmth and humanity that makes the studio feel alive. “Everyone brings their own essence,” she said. “As a student, you learn something unique from each of them. That diversity is how we grow.”

As our conversation deepened, Monika shared stories of her early teachers — the shaman who taught her to ground and protect her energy, the Reiki master who showed her how to heal through touch, and the countless people who entered her path just when she needed them most. “When the student is ready, the teacher appears,” she said with a knowing smile. “Everything in life is divinely timed.”

Listening to Monika speak, I was reminded that true healing is never one-dimensional. It happens when science and spirit meet, when community replaces isolation, and when we have spaces where it’s safe to be human. “You can’t separate love from healing,” she said. “You can’t separate energy from life.”

For those of us who have carried anxiety, depression, or spiritual sensitivity quietly, places like Golden Yogi become more than studios — they become sanctuaries. As I told Monika, I’ve often found it hard to talk about my own spirituality, the signs and sensations that don’t fit neatly into language. Her response was simple and kind: “Come to circle. You can share whatever comes through. Everything is welcome.”

That is the essence of Monika’s leadership — the ability to hold both science and spirit, light and shadow, logic and intuition — and make them dance in harmony. Golden Yogi is not just a place to stretch or breathe; it’s a space where people can remember who they are.

As we closed, she said softly, “When you follow your intuition, life opens. It takes courage to listen, but once you do, the universe listens back.”

Watch the full conversation: Science Meets Spirituality & Community Healing in Conversation with Monika Merriman of Golden Yogi