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John Friend
John Friend is one of the most charismatic and respected hatha yoga teachers in the country. John's teaching style is so effective because he blends a deep knowledge of biomechanics and yoga philosophy with a hilarious sense of humor. Above all, John respects and honors his students, and with a great deal of loving-kindness, inspires them to see their own unique beauty and divine power. In 1997 John founded Anusara yoga to promote this innovative vision. Today, Anusara yoga is one of the most popular and one of the fastest growing schools of hatha yoga in America.
Friend began studying yoga philosophy in 1973 at age 13 with Juan Mascaro's translations of the Bhagavad Gita and the principal Upanishads. At that time, he also started the practice of hatha yoga using Swami Satchidananda's book Integral Hatha Yoga and Jess Stern's Yoga, Youth and Reincarnation. Since then, he has pursued a diverse study of yoga, traveling the country and to India, where he has studied with B.K.S. Iyengar and Gurumayi Chidvilasananda, who introduced him to the practice of Siddha yoga.
His other relevant studies include such philosophies and religions as Buddhism, Taoism, Sufism, Jewish Mysticism, Theosophy, Wicca, and Freemasonry. On a more physical side, Friend is well-versed in anatomy, kinesiology, and physiology, and in 1994 he earned national certification for therapeutic massage and bodywork.
Friend has been teaching workshops nationally since 1991, and now teaches as many as 30 weekend or weeklong seminars each year. He has also taught workshops in Canada, Mexico, Australia, Italy, and Holland and at large national yoga conferences in the United States. |
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