My name is Lynda Miers-Henneveld. I am a yoga teacher, yoga therapist and Vedic chant teacher. I offer group classes and private sessions at my home studio in Island Bay. This welcoming space has been the home of freed-om-yoga since 2012.

I began teaching yoga in 1995, and have explored many different styles of practice, and attended multiple teacher trainings. For the past ten years I have been studying classical yoga in the tradition of Acharya T Krishnamacharya and TKV Desikachar, through the Krishnamacharya Healing & Yoga Foundation.

My KHYF journey began with a four-year teacher training programme in Wellington, New Zealand, under the guidance of Ruth Diggins, who has been my mentor and principal teacher since 2010. After graduating from the teacher training, I completed a three year KHYF Yoga Therapy training in Chennai, India, with Dr. Kausthub Desikachar, and I am currently studying Vedic chanting in Chennai, with Mrs Menaka Desikachar.

The individual guidance I have received from Ruth has helped to adapt my personal practice to accommodate whatever is going on in my life. This in turn has taught me the importance of viniyoga – the process of adapting the practice for each individual and his or her present circumstances – especially in yoga therapy.

I really love teaching this classical approach to yoga. It has given me access to tools which my previous trainings only hinted at. Vedic chanting has been an absolute revelation in terms of the effect it has on the mind and the breath. Combining asana (postures) and pranayama (conscious breathing), with mantra (Vedic chanting) and meditation techniques, allows me to create a balanced and beneficial experience for my students. The sequencing of āsana is relatively simple, so that the focus can be on the breath. Integrating chanting adds a direct link to the philosophy that underpins the practice, and teaches us all to listen more closely to ourselves and to each other.

One of the most wonderful aspects of being a yoga teacher is that it creates endless opportunities for learning and connection. Each teacher training I have attended has shown me a new perspective on the way in which yoga can help us to discover our own path towards wholeness. Each student that attends my classes inspires me to learn more about the ways in which I can support this process in others.

My brother Peter introduced me to the practice of yoga in 1993, and was my first teacher and trainer. Prior to joining the KHYF in 2010, I attended workshops, seminars and teacher trainings with many wonderful teachers, including Donna Farhi, Judith Lasater, Nicky Knoff, Twee Merrigan, and Simon Borg-Olivier. Each of these teachers has enriched my experience of yoga, and deepened my understanding of the purpose of this practice. I am grateful to every one of them for opening their hearts to me, and for offering love, guidance and friendship.

In early 2019 I traveled to South India to learn about the sacred geometry of the planetary yantras from Sarah Tomlinson. The journey involved visiting the Navagraha (nine planets) temples, and learning to draw their associated yantras. I am grateful to Sarah for this eye opening and enriching experience, which has inspired me to learn more about the Vedic understanding of the planets and their influence on us.

I offer my deepest gratitude to my current teachers. Ruth Diggins, Dr. Kausthub Desikachar and Mrs. Menaka Desikachar, who share the teachings of T Krishnamacharya and TKV Desikachar with such generosity and integrity. They inspire me to honour their tradition, by sharing real yoga in a way that nourishes and supports each one of my students on their individual yoga journey.

Sri gurubhyo namah

My name is Andrew (Andy) Miers.

During my life I have been a very keen physical surfer, starting at the age of 9.

I am also a DJ and have produced many club nites and several festivals, as well as hosting a weekly radio show on Radio Active.

My work has been in the Heating Ventilating and Air Conditioning industry, where I own and operate a commercial design and build HVAC service that provides all kinds of clients, solutions to all kinds of scenarios. This kind of work is generally very physical and requires a broad range of skills from building to roofing to plumbing.

I have now been practicing yoga for almost 30 years, and can say that it has enhanced my life in many ways, allowing me to surf better and has put me in good stead to handle the stresses which come from running a business. It has also taught me the skills with which to cope with the sufferings that can catch up with us as we age.

During the last few years I have had to cope with an old injury I suffered when I slipped off my neighbour’s roof. I was installing a skylight for him, when suddenly my feet went from under me and I was in free-fall, landing awkwardly on my right ankle. As a result of this accident, 25 years later, I could no longer go surfing and couldn’t work up ladders any more.

The prognosis for my ankle injury was that to remove the need for incessant painkillers, which my body just could not handle, I would need an ankle fusion. This would stabilise the ankle joint and allow me to eventually put weight on it once again. I would not be able to surf as I once did and realistically my life working up ladders was also at an end.

Fortunately I could still do yoga.

About ten years ago, the style of yoga I was doing changed to ‘Viniyoga’, in the authentic tradition of T Krishnamacharya and TKV Desikachar. This transformative yoga is a practice where the ancient wisdom of the Yoga Sutras are used to adapt the practice to suit the individuals needs. Through this very stressful period, my yoga practice has supported my rehabilitation, reducing the stress and anxiety associated with not knowing what the future will look like, post the ankle fusion operation.

Viniyoga is an evolving process where the tools of yoga are utilised by the practitioner to empower a positive enhancement to the healing process, both physically and psychologically.

Having engaged with Viniyoga and observing first hand the improvements to my well being, I decided to take steps to learn how to teach this type of yoga to my friends and to the wider community. Initially I have been teaching men, whom I believe are in great need of this authentic style of yoga in their lives. I will, in the future open my classes up to both women and men, but feel that right now I am on the right path teaching men in group classes or on a one on one basis.

I do not claim to have all the answers to life’s complex questions, but feel supported by my teacher and mentor, Ruth Diggins and by the support and teachings of my wife, Lynda Miers-Henneveld. The knowledge that the teachings I am offering are as authentic today as they were thousands of years ago, is of great comfort.

Namaste,

Andy Miers