Preferring a life of solitude I tended to rarely enjoy team sports and in turn was constantly drawn to more individual sports and hobbies. From the outset I was blessed with the most amazing teachers that always seem to be at the right place at the right time to tutor me along life's journey. I started horse riding aged 6, archery at 12 and at the age of 17 I had earned my Springbok colours for archery. I also did karate, JKA style, and fencing. Today I still practice archery, non-competitively, and karate kartas in the Shotokan style.

After the 1961 world championship in Norway I travelled around Europe for 2 years. I moved to Israel in my early twenties and continued to compete in archery competitions all over the world. I was very inspired with the Eastern Zen way of archery. At the age 42 I suffered a back injury and was bed ridden for months. I resisted the prescribed surgery and tried every therapy available. Finally, I found Yoga and my healing began. A few months later I could touch my toes and stand on my head, after being told that without surgery I would lose the use of my left leg. I completed a diploma course at the University of Jerusalem studying sport for the disabled and once again was blessed with a wonderful teacher and went on to study Yoga Therapy.

On my return to South Africa in 1995 I was selected to coach the archery team for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. At the same time I opened up my massage practice and began teaching Yoga classes. The Yoga I practiced in Israel was strictly Iyengar, but over the years I have been exposed to many teachings and styles of Yoga and my own Yoga has evolved in its own direction. There is always something more to learn and I read extensively to increase my knowledge. My biggest inspiration, especially in the spiritual side of Yoga and the yogic way of life, has been my beloved wife, Christine. One of our favourite pastimes is researching Yoga and its philosophy. We travel extensively around the world attending classes wherever we go. For the past three years we have traveled to India where we stay in ashrams and study yoga.

My other passion is Chi Kung. I first began Chi Kung under the guidance of Max Weier from Switzerland ten years ago and today when Max is in South Africa we have the privilege of him staying with us, allowing me to further my training.

My Yoga classes contain elements of Chi Kung as do my Chi Kung classes incorporate elements of Yoga - the two disciplines complement each other.

I have always been interested in the philosophy of India but until the age of 34 I was drawn in other directions. At the age of 34 I was sitting at a dinner party wine in one hand and cigarette in the other and announced that I was changing my life. My aim was to stop smoking, drinking and eating meat and to begin meditating and find out what life was really about. It was an inner knowing that my life, as it was, did not serve me. Within the year I had accomplished all of these things and started Transcendental Meditation (TM). I continued TM twice a day for the next 12 years. From the day I decided to change, my life began to transform on the material and emotional planes. I found a group of Brahma Kumaris in Cape Town and studied with them for a while.

In 1990, the company I worked for transferred me to manage their Durban branch and it was then that my spiritual journey really began. I soon became involved in the Sathya Sai Baba organisation where I was exposed to the ancient teachings of Vedanta in a way that was understandable and practical. I spent ten years studying the teachings during which time I studied Ayurveda at a primary health care level, massage and reflexology, whilst diligently carrying out my job. In 1995 I joined a Hatha Yoga class with Monica Fairall, who was an inspiration to all. Two years later I met Howard, who is now my wonderful husband, through the Massage Therapy Association. I started attending his Yoga classes which were strongly influenced by Iyengar. One day Howard was ill and I had no option but to teach his class... I was hooked. Hatha Yoga became my passion. I attended every teacher's workshop I could find; I studied many books and learnt as much as I could from the teachers around me. One of my strengths was the anatomy and physiology I had studied for my massage course.

As a Yoga Alliance E-RYT, I run a Yoga Teacher training course. The emphasis is on alignment at the physical level and transformation at the mental and emotional level. It is important to create a safe environment for the mind and body to help students to move beyond their current boundaries and explore their possibilities. As the body releases tension so does the mind. We soften and become kinder, happier people.

I started practicing yoga in 1999 at the age of 55, after spending 35 years in the IT industry. Like most newcomers I was not sure what to expect but was looking for a way to improve flexibility, mobility and general fitness. Howard and Christine were my early teachers and I could not have wished for better. Their knowledge, commitment and example immediately made me a regular attendee.

By 2005 I realised that yoga had changed my priorities and attitudes in many ways. I began to explore beyond the asanas and paid more attention to breathing and meditation. My health lifestyle had benefited and I wanted to share my experience with others. I attended Christine's instructor training in 2006/7, qualified and joined the Yoga Alliance. I have maintained my technical training and development by attending focused courses with instructors such as David Jacobs, Jonathan Bloomberg and Seane Corn. Inevitably my style has been largely influenced by B.K.S.Iyengar and locally by the YYI.

My classes are supportive of the style taught at the Jivananda Centre for Wellbeing. I enjoy analysing and breaking down asanas, understanding their anatomical focus and alignment and then helping students integrate that with breathing and mindfulness. My classes are not demanding physically but I do encourage students to work right up to their individual limits and capabilities without any negative stress.

Namaste

I was first introduced to Hatha Yoga in 1984, in Dublin, Ireland. Returning to South Africa, I picked up my yoga practice again under the guidance of Monica Farrell. A few years later, after having my first child, I resumed my practice with Thelma Coulson and was taught the YYI style of Hatha Yoga. I also practiced with Howard Lipshitz, who rekindled my passion for yoga.

In 2008, I joined Christine and Howard on one of their trips to India and experienced a whole new perspective of yoga practice; I met Swami Dharmananda and participated in his daily teachings of philosophy; he continues to be a profound mentor to me. I completed my teacher training with Christine Withiel in August 2009 and am affiliated with Yoga Alliance.
I continue to extend my training and expose myself to many yoga workshops, namely David Jacobs (Iyengar), Moritz Steyn (Vinyasa ), Bhindu and Shaun (Tri Yoga) and join Christine and Howard on their yoga retreats at the Buddhist Retreat Centre.

"Yoga brings stillness, mindfulness and an inner dialogue that reminds us how magnificent we are, it's the perfect vehicle for self exploration."
I currently teach at the Jivananda Centre for Wellbeing in Durban North and will begin expanding my teaching practice, teaching meditation to teenagers and adults alike. My focus is to raise consciousness, bringing unity to mind, body and soul.

I was first drawn to yoga in 2002 when I started attending classes at the Centre; I fell in love with it and have never looked back! I remember being so happy to have found something that was more than just a physical exercise.

I had the wonderful opportunity of joining Christine and Howard on their annual India trip in December 2008, where we stayed in an ashram in beautiful Rishikesh. It truly was a life changing experience and one that further inspired me to progress along my yogic path. Thereafter I completed my 200 hour Yoga Alliance teacher training course with Christine in August 2009, which equipped me with the skills to start teaching, and so much more.

I enjoy attending various different workshops and classes throughout the Durban area, including Bikram and Ashtanga yoga, and have the privilege of teaching at the Jivananda Centre... helping to spread the love of yoga one stretch at a time.

I have always loved yoga, from day one on my mat nine years ago. Yoga is much needed food for my mind and body. It has changed my life and has enabled me to achieve a sense of balance. Yoga is no longer just a form of exercise for me, it has become a way of life, changing the way I view myself and those around me. Becoming a teacher (in 2005) has just become an extension of my practice.

While pregnant in 2006, I continued yoga classes. With this personal experience and interest I started Pregnancy Yoga Classes. With a baby on hand I started Mom's and Baby yoga classes and then my interest expanded to hold separate Children's Yoga Classes.

Practicing yoga is a lifetime journey in which we learn from ourselves, our teachers and students on a daily basis. I am grateful to Christine and Howard for their immense knowledge and experience. As a teacher I hope to instill my love of yoga to my students and in turn use their energy as inspiration for my own personal yoga journey.

I am a Primary School teacher by profession; I majored in Physical Education and love all kinds of sports (except for sky-diving!). When the monotony of gym classes and weight training became too much, a friend suggested that I try Hatha Yoga. I had many years of ballet training under my belt and thought it would be easy to adapt, but it took a while to realise that I was doing the postures 'pigeon-toed'. Yoga was also excellent for my golf swing and for quietening the mind.

I have been practicing Hatha Yoga under Christine for four years now and in 2008 completed the 200 hour Hatha Yoga Teacher Training Course. The Course incorporated anatomy and physiology; asanas; pranayama; meditation; teaching methodology and yoga philosophy. At the end of that year a group of us accompanied Howard and Christine to India and had the amazing experience of staying in an ashram in Rishikesh.

I teach from the Greenbriar Community Centre in Mt Edgecombe - Estate 2 on a Monday and Thursday morning and have also started a teenager's class. I fill in for Howard at the Estate when he is away.

Please contact me on my cell - 082 821 4735 for any enquiries.

I began yoga 12 years ago simply exploring new avenues for fitness, what I gradually came to discover in this ancient science was a complete system to manage and purify mind, body and soul. Yoga brings a deeper understanding of life and an awareness of the supreme reality. The key to unlocking the latent hidden potential in mankind lies in accessing the vast and limitless Self, making that journey inwards to discover the hero residing in the heart, and this is the journey of yoga, the journey that, as an eternal student I take myself and as a teacher I faithfully guide others to embark on.

There are many different types of yoga, yogic philosophies, principals and practices which are the tools practitioners can utilise in order to make that inward journey and know the Self. I endeavour to work with all aspects of yoga, incorporating philosophies into the teachings and bringing together various paths and practices while teaching them in an integrated manner.
I see the various types of yoga as different petals of a beautiful flower. Each petal contains the divine essence of the flower, but when seen alone they fail to convey the full perfection of its form. The formless manifests into the outer form of the flower and from its becoming the divine fragrance emanates.
In order to experience the fragrance in its fullness, yogis should incorporate all aspects of yoga into their practices and daily lives. This is what I aim to bring to yoga, through the grace of my Guru and all teachers past and present in whose footsteps I follow. My own journey has taken me through many different teachings and lessons and it has been my good fortune in this lifetime to have found spiritual teachers who have been instrumental in my personal growth.

3 years ago I was initiated by my Guru and received my spiritual name, Madhavanandarupa, or Madhav for short. The basic meaning of this name is sweetness blossoming into form. With Faith in my heart, I share the teachings of yoga as a roadmap to the Soul, myself another humble pilgrim on the road to self discovery, learning just like everyone else on this path the inner terrain of body, mind and spirit.

Sarva Mangalam
May all be auspicious
Hari Om Tat Sat

Physiotherapy is my main profession but I love the knowledge, warmth, sincerity and diversity of the alternate and complimentary disciplines. My pursuit of aromatherapy, reflexology and yoga was simply because of a genuine love for something holistic that would change my approach to myself, my family and ultimately my patient management. They complement each other beautifully. I have been practicing yoga for the past 6 years and it has transformed me on many levels. It has now simply become a way of life for me. I did my teacher training in 2008 with Christine at the Jivananda Centre and I now have my own class in Chatsworth. I feel that I must humbly state that from everything that I have to offer my patients, yoga has the best holistic, preventative medicine recipe one can hope to find. I am proud to have rediscovered an ancient therapy that works like a charm in today's world. This is a do-it-yourself preventative journey that more people must be encouraged to embark on.