Podcast Interview with Amy Landry for her 'Living in Alignment' series
Click here to listen to some background & anecdotes about my journey with Yoga, and some of the very special people and places that have influenced me along the way.
Who am I & how did I get here?
Yoga found me at the tender age of 21, leading quite gracefully to a couple of decades of practice and teaching that were, in hindsight, pretty damn luxurious.
I traveled almost constantly through Asia, India, and the Middle East, working with Yoga Arts to deliver Level 1 & 2 teacher trainings. In between, I ran workshops and retreats.
When not ‘working’ I would rest, practice, & follow my curiosity into new paths of learning.
At 41, I became a mother and life changed tack in a most profound way.
Life, and Yoga, became all about Integration - grounding the philosophies in the most practical of ways to bring freedom & lightness to this life right here, with all of the ups and downs of parenting, and relationship, and life in the material world.
These days I'm much less about self-improvement, and all about Self discovery - remembering the wholeness, radiance, and basic goodness at our core, and quietening the mind that would have us believe we are otherwise.
Self-doubt, a harsh inner critic, and a healthy dose of perfectionism have been my longtime companions on the path. I know intimately the pain of getting in my own way.
My dharma therefore, and most heartfelt aspiration, is to help end that same suffering in others.
To remind you, and me, through the propagation of the timeless Yoga teachings, and the careful, curious dialogue and inquiry that is counselling, of who we are at our essence - the joy & peace that always is, whilst tending gently and wisely to our humanness.
Because, paradoxically, when we remember that we're neither alone, nor separate, we also discover what makes us unique, and precious, and necessary.
And that, I believe, is how we find our bliss - our joy, sense of purpose, and belonging.
(It may also be the only way we're going to heal ourselves & this mad, crazy world.)
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I have many wonderful teachers to thank, in particular:
Louisa Sear, for birthing the original Yoga Arts 9-month full-time Teacher Training, and for taking me under her wing once it was done, as her assistant, and later core teacher on the Yoga Arts international Teacher Trainings & Retreats, for more than a decade.
She taught me how to teach, and the depth of the stillness at the heart of all movement.
Rose Baudin, for her wisdom, humour, friendship, and impeccable embodiment of the Tantric teachings in the most light-hearted way.
Clive Sheridan, for being so completely himself whilst enlightening so many to the freedom of the Impersonal Witness. And for serving Devi with such infectious joy and delight.
Alon Geva, for showing up in my valley (literally), and sharing the jewels of Advaita Vedanta with such clarity, precision, and generosity.
Sri Sakthi Amma, for grace and devotion personified, and for reminding me of the happiness of making others happy.
Less directly, through their books and recordings, Buddhist meditation teachers Pema Chodron and Tara Brach, for their teachings on compassion, forgiveness, and boddhicitta, the awakened heart.
And finally, my partner David, 8-yr old daughter Rosie, & dog Buddy, who challenge and inspire me on a daily basis, to be quite simply, a decent human being.
"The seeds of purification are within you. Nurture those, and you will awaken.
The form helps, but it is the awareness that liberates".
Sayadaw U Pandita