Anya Foxen, Ph.D.

Anya Foxen is a historian and comparativist scholar of religion. She is currently an Associate Professor of Religious Studies at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, as well as a Visiting Scholar at the Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard University.

Dr. Foxen holds a Ph.D. from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her scholarly research focuses on the intersection of South Asian yogic and tantric traditions with Western esotericism and metaphysical spiritualities. Her special areas of interest include gender and embodiment, as well as the interplay of religion and science. You can check out Google Scholar for a full list of her academic publications.

She is also a teacher and long-time practitioner of stuff that may or may not be yoga.

Foxen was born in the former Soviet Union, grew up in the New York area, but now considers Santa Barbara her home. She lives there with her partner, two small fluffy dogs, and an extensive collection of local wine. Her ever-abiding “Plan B” is to pursue a career as the reincarnation of Helena Petrovna Blavatsky.