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As Ananda has travelled through this lifetime, she's thought more than most, about Karma. The reason is curious and relevant. Soon after meeting, her parents, for fun, visited with an astrologer who knew they were infertile. Still the astrologer insisted they would have three children, all girls.
Many years later, having forgotten the prophecy, the parents learned that her mother was pregnant. Quite randomly, Ananda's mother joined a friend at a yoga retreat. It was there that Swami Schadananda blessed her and named her first-born daughter, Shanthti. Later, surprised by yet another pregnancy, a stranger and follower of Muktananda introduced herself to explain that this child was already named Prema. Much later in her life, when age normally prevents this kind of thing, she again was pregnant. This time it was a friend and sheik who insisted this baby's name had to be Ananda. For surely, with Peace and Love, Divine bliss must follow.
Naturally, her parents were incredulous - In the face of all Western knowledge, the prophecy had come true.
It was not until many years later that Ananda began her own journey into Yoga. She was modeling, when the chaos of the business, lead to a yearning for peace. "Coincidently", traveling for modeling jobs, presented opportunities to study with many advanced teachers: Jivamukti in London, Eric Shiffman and Shiva Rae in Los Angeles, Cyndi Lee. These amazing teachers literally opened a portal to a far more meaningful ife. She learned that time spent on the mat was essential to staying strong, calm and peaceful. Maintaining a consistent practice of Pranayama and meditation slowly developed. Defensiveness, inherent in modeling, morphed into feelings of confidence and Love.
A profound shift came while she was living in New York. Elena Brower introduced her to Anusara yoga. The emphasis on alignment, the philosophy of intrinsic goodness, the encouragement to find softness in strength, greatly impacted her life. With this maturation of feeling, Ananda felt the need and developed the strength to leave modeling, to deepen her knowledge of Yoga. This new awareness created opportunities to study under some amazing teachers; Noah Mazé, Tara Judelle, and most importantly with John Friend, the founder of Anusara Yoga. The dedication to practice, desire to share what fills her heart, and align her body and mind, has earned her the title of "Anusara InspiredTeacher".
At Preshana, teaching the ability to overcome the challenges of asana her joy. For those who want more, Ananda invites them to join her, on the path to self-discovery filled with: Shanthi/peace, Prema/love and the ability to rest in one's natural state: Ananda/Divine Bliss.
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