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My background is from social services. I always had a strong calling to help fellow humans, to improve equality, and empower people to take care of themselves. I found Yoga or Yoga found me, in 2016, when I traveled to Mumbai, India. I met Kushal on that same trip! During that time I was still working with long term homeless people in Helsinki and was struggling with the notion that there was only so much I could do for them. I wondered how to stop life from slipping that far in the first place; how to encourage people to face their feelings, pains, and traumas in a way that they wouldn’t end up destroying themselves.
The ball started rolling when I moved to Portugal and life made me choose what I wanted to do with it. That’s when Azana Yoga Brand was born. It’s my growth story as well and, most of all, it’s my attempt to encourage as many people as possible to start the journey to take care of themselves.
Why Yoga? I found the practice to be healing for me, and here I refer to traditional Indian Yoga. The combination of studying the Gita and the Yoga Sutras, as well as studying my body through Pranayamas and Asanas, helped me navigate through pain and anxiety, to put my life in perspective. Yoga is something that you learn to do yourself and for yourself. There are no external excuses or demands, only your path to the best version of yourself.
It all started with the products. I wanted to create something tangible and motivating, a place to start from, so I thought that many of us start by selecting a mat that speaks to us. As a sort of an ethical perfectionist, I sought out to create the perfect mats for practice, ones that Yogis and Yoginis would like to spend countless hours on without hurting the earth.
I believe that everyone deserves to be happy in their bodies and live a fulfilling life that looks like them. My mission is to encourage and empower everyone to create their own happiness, it is in our own hands.
I am a young post-graduate in linguistics, and a graduate in English literature, with a diploma in Sanskrit, and a certified Yoga teacher. I grew up with a very dedicated Yoga teacher and practitioner for a mother, who inspired me to investigate and learn Yoga myself. I studied at The Yoga Institute, Mumbai and completed my 7-month teacher training course in 2017. I learned the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, the yogic aspects of Bhagavad Gita, Samkhya, and of course, Asanas, and other Yogic practices.
I have had many pursuits in my life, but Yoga has always been a strong foundation and guide for me. So, when Sophie approached me to work with her at Azana Yoga, to spread the real message of Yoga, I jumped at the chance. I believe that having been raised as I was and having gotten the education in Yoga as I have, it is my duty and my passion to acquaint people with Yoga as a way of life, and as something that guides and uplifts you to live a better life.
All that is not to say that I am perfect in my Yoga practice. I have faltered, slipped, and lost my way much too often, but that is the beauty of Yoga. It allows for these detours, explains why they happen, and offers techniques to come back to the path.
This is the message that I want to spread here at the Azana Yoga Brand. You don’t have to be perfect to do Yoga, you just have to have the will and the determination to keep trying.
