Thank you all for allowing me to guide you through your practice, for showing up and sharing space with me and the other students. I have learned so much from our time together, your feedback, and your uniqueness.
I want to acknowledge and thank my first teachers and guides: my parents and my sister, my immediate family and people close to us in my younger years: all my teachers, schoolmates and the rest of my family. I have continued to learn from every single person I have come in contact with in my life at school, sports or any other means.
I appreciate all the knowledge from my students. I learn every time I share this practice with them.
To all my yoga guides, gurus and teachers, I deeply bow in respect and gratitude. Not an all-inclusive list, but somewhat chronological:
Deva Priya
Jenna Arpita
Baba Hari Dass
Divakar Mark Raetzen; BA LLB LLM; YTT 500
Kalpana Andrea Tabachnick; E-RYT 500
Chetna Tracy Boyd; E-RYT 500; C-IAY
Kashi Richardson
Pamela Chandra Rose; B.A.; PDP (education); M.Ed.; YTT 500
Bryan Hill; RMT; YTT 200
Dr. Janice Hamsa Wright, MD; YTT 200
Sharada Filkow; BFA; Teaching Certificate; YTT 500
Alan Shankar Martin; PhD; YTT 200
Lakshmi Voelker
Bruce Binder
Bhagavan Shri Shanmukha Anantha
Shri Ma Kristina Baird
Alexander Gersch
Ian Hanover
Jeana Hickling
Andrew Michalko
Ericardo Baldonado
Tomoko Nakaguchi
Mette Maj Krag
Dr. Arun Rajeev
Amanda McFadyen
Aruna Kathy Humphrys
Marcia Blanc
Slava Goloubov
Devon French
Millissa Greenwood
Stephanie Green
Joe Bartlett
Paul Grilley
Alexandria Crow
and to the many other different teachers who have guided me in my practice and play, in all the different classes I have attended throughout the years.
I was born in Mexico City, in what used to be the city of Tenochtitlan (capital of the Aztec Empire, home to the Mexicas). I understand a huge part of who I am is a mixed product of colonization, and I work to keep connected to my roots.
I practice and share yoga from my home in Ladysmith, British Columbia. I respectfully acknowledge and honour that my home sits in the traditional territory of the Stz’uminus First Nation.
Now I ask you to investigate what are the roots and origins of your hometown or territory. Acknowledge those who came before you, the ones erased and quieted by others who stole and took power from them. Please join me in learning more from where we came from and the mistakes we have made, so we can learn from them and repair.
I acknowledge the colonized land, now known as India, as the birthplace of the yogic tradition. I strive to actively assess my practices and approaches to practice in a way that combats any racism, appropriation, or oppression.
The lineages I have practiced and studied include Hatha and Classical Ashtanga as well as Traditional Tantra Yoga. I have worked in my life to follow the ethical observances of yoga. As I delve deeper, I have continued this process of self-discovery to continually connect with my true self.
I practice yoga on and off the mat. I understand we are all united, and it is my path to help us find union with each other, with ourselves and with our breath.