Living In Alignment

Julie Smerdon is a writer, storyteller, international yoga teacher, and perennial student who has been sharing yoga, meditation, and inspiration for two decades. Privileged to have studied under master teachers, Julie offers these practices as a means to empower, connect, and inspire people to cultivate a richer, more conscious experience of life. With her trademark warmth, humour, and enthusiasm, Julie presents these concepts in a masterful style that blends strong technique with perceptive insights that ignite the soul. Julie has led Shri Yoga, in Brisbane, into the forefront of the Australian yoga scene as the ultimate destination for world-class yoga and meditation education and teacher development. A teacher's teacher, Julie's trainings have produced some of Brisbane's best-loved instructors. In addition to her own trainings, Julie is widely known for bringing some of the top teachers in the world to Australia to share their wisdom. Having earned certifications in both Power and Anusara yoga, Julie's extensive knowledge of biomechanics and therapeutics has led to her ongoing work with Cricket Australia. Her work has also been featured in Australian Yoga Journal, Australian Yoga Life, and In Style Magazine. In this episode: •Julie shares her very intimate and challenging health hardships that threw her onto her path •Her experience with and influence of Kashmir Shaivism alongside Christianity •The books and authors that influenced Julie's path •How Julie honour's tradition •Adapting yoga rather than diluting or appropriating •Misconceptions Julie finds new yoga teachers have •Current challenges and confusions around yoga teaching •Studentship in life •Julie's biggest teachers in life and yoga •What you want to know if you consider owning a yoga studio •Cultivating community and the impacts of COVID-19 •Self care and self-perception the past months •Julie's big announcement about the Shri Yoga studio and it's next era •The incredible Shri TV online and continuing more education and training •Plus a bunch more! Connect with Julie: WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK Shri Yoga: WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK

Australian Senior Teacher, Louisa Sear, has dedicated her life to the practice and teaching of Yoga. She is passionate in the inquiry to find ones true nature and freedom. In her teaching, Louisa encourages the understanding and acceptance of life, finding the teacher within, and acknowledging the Divine in all. Louisa has been teaching yoga for well over 35 years and has had a committed Yoga Sadhana practice for over 38 years. She teaches the principles of Tantric Advaita Philosophy and specialises in Self Inquiry, Therapeutic Yoga, Ayurveda Lifestyle, Mindful Vinyasa Asana, Pranayama & Meditation. Based in Ubud, Bali, Louisa is the Lead Teacher on the Yoga Arts teacher trainings, Retreats, and Workshops at The Shala Bali and around the globe. Louisa encourages her students to develop inwardly by diving deeply into oneself to awaken through mindful conscious practice both on and off the mat. In this beautiful dialogue, we: •Delve into Louisa's unique path of finding yoga very young in Southern Sydney •The various systems or lineages that have shaped her practice and teachings •How her infamous 9 month teacher training came about back in 1994 •One of the key misconceptions about being a yoga teacher •Her biggest teacher and guiding principle in life •Louisa's insight into what a good quality teacher training must have •Honouring tradition •How to cultivate ritual in daily life •A couple of books that have been pivotal on the path •And a bunch more gems of wisdom! Connect with Louisa: Yoga Arts Teacher Trainings & Retreats Facebook Instagram The Yoga Shala, Ubud, Bali Facebook Instagram

Brad Hay is a world-class senior Level 3 ParaYoga and Meditation Teacher. One of only 6 in the world and the only ParaYoga Certified Teacher in Australia. With a professional teaching career stretching well over 20 years, he is renowned for his laid back, down to earth attitude as he manages to make yoga's ancient and mystical traditions feel light, accessible and easy to understand in the modern lifestyle. Brad offers a unique blend of both extensive Tantric Hatha Yoga knowledge and Ayurveda to give depth and effective guidance for the modern Yoga practitioner. He is a teacher's teacher and leads trainings and intensives in Australia and Internationally that combine these ancient systems making them accessible and practical without diluting the traditional teachings. Brad began teaching Hatha Yoga in 1999 and in 2003 completed the Yoga Arts world-renowned 9 month full-time training. In 2007 Brad met his current mentor of 14 years, Master Teacher, Yogarupa Rod Stryker, the founder of ParaYoga, and one of the world's leading authorities of the Tantra Yoga Tradition. Rod has officially initiated Brad into the 6000-year-old lineage of Sri Vidya. Additionally, Brad is a Nationally Certified Ayurvedic Practitioner and he leads Tantra Yoga & Ayurveda workshops, intensives, and retreats around the world. After over 18 years in the US, Brad relocated with his family back to his home country, here in Australia. In this episode, you'll learn about: •Brad's path - his childhood and turbulent adult years leading yoga to his lap •The experience of a 9 month full time teacher training •Two timeless books that have been significant and which Brads recommends •A fundamental understanding and discernment of Ayurveda •What we need to know to have a purposeful yoga practice •Brad's teachers and main mentor on the path •The value in tuning our vessel, our vehicle •A few big misconceptions Brad comes across (that we really need to turn around and move on from) •How Hatha Yoga is not a style... and what it actually is •The traditional texts Brad is often picking up •His relationship with Yogarupa, lineage, and honouring tradition •Brad's favourite sound, place, food, and his daily non-negotiable •The incredible variety of trainings Brad is offering over the next few months, including multiple ParaYoga trainings alongside his own Get in touch with Brad via his website, Instagram, and Facebook

Lalita Ramona Yagnik is a Kalari Practitioner, Kalaripayattu Instructor, Yoga teacher, Musician, and Naturopath. She began studying Kalari Healing and Martial Arts in 2009 in Australia. Since then she has made several trips to India to study and train with her teacher and Guru, Sat Guru Hanuman Das, the founder of the Kalariyil Dharmikam Ashram in Kerala. She is currently practicing and teaching key Kalaripayattu exercises, forms, open combat sequences, and weapon forms. Developing focus in the mind and body, while building a strong foundation through warm ups and basic practices, is integral to her training. Originally from India, Lalita has lived and studied in various countries such as Brazil, Singapore, India and Japan. She is passionate about health and well-being, employing Kalari in her personal life. Lalita sees Kalari as a multimodal healing system, and is a firm believer that using Kalari methods, one can synergize the body, mind, and spirit. Throughout our conversation, we discuss: •Lalita's multi faceted path weaving many healing modalities and travelled the world •The book that was pivotal on her path •What Lalita is reading and studying right now •What Kalari and Kalaripayattu is (and the main misconception) •Why the art form is so important in our society today •The qualities we cultivate from Kalari and the practices of India •The strong threads of Yoga and Ayurveda woven into the Kalari system •Lalita's biggest teachers in life •Her approach to self-care •Embodying and honouring tradition •How you can learn Kalaripayattu with Lalita Connect with Lalita via her website, Instagram, and Facebook.

Patricia Lohan is the creator of Feng Shui Mastery and Author of The Happy Home: A Guide To Creating A Happy, Healthy, Wealthy Life. Patricia helps women make their home magnetic to money, luck, and blessings. She shows you what they don't teach in school, what lies between the lines, your top secret tool for success. She is a feng shui expert, a healer, and a passionate entrepreneur who has shaped her dream life living in Bali with her husband. Patricia has a gift at making feng shui simple and easy to understand and implement. She has helped thousands of people across the globe embrace feng shui and create lasting changes in their homes, lives, and businesses. Patricia has seen firsthand the power of the mind, surroundings, and inner healing, clearing and aligning everything so it works holistically. In this episode, we dive into:⁣ ⁣ - Patricia's very synchronistic and aligned path, including her life changing trip to India years ago⁣ - The incredible book she is reading right now (I need this one in my life!)⁣ - Her fave self care practice (one we all need to implement daily)⁣ - The biggest misconception about Feng Shui⁣ - Some key Feng Shui foundations⁣ - Her top tips you can implement right now for a more auspicious home and life⁣ - The person who has greatly shaped her path⁣ - A few fun personal facts⁣ - And Patricia's online offerings you can gain access to!⁣ Connect with Patricia via her website, Facebook, and Instagram.

Divya Alter is a certified nutritional consultant and educator in the Shaka Vansiya Ayurveda tradition. Born and raised in Bulgaria, she is the cofounder of Bhagavat Life, the only Ayurvedic culinary school, in New York. Having taught thousands of people how to cook, she and her husband Prentiss launched North America's first Ayurvedic chef certification program and Divya's Kitchen, an Ayurvedic restaurant in Manhattan. Divya is the author of "What to Eat for How You Feel: The New Ayurvedic Kitchen" - the book is now in its 7th print with a German edition recently released also. In this episode, we discuss: •Divya's path, growing up in Bulgaria and finding the hidden Bhakti yoga ashram, travelling to India, finding Ayurveda, and her restaurant in NYC •The book that has profoundly impacted her path •A common misconception about Ayurvedic food •The key principles of Ayurvedic food and cooking •The importance of spices and which Divya loves •Her teachers •Divya's favourite meal •Her favourite must-have cookbooks •Divya's new upcoming offerings, including online cooking classes, and another book on the way! Connect with Divya here: Instagram @divyaalter @divyaskitchennyc @bvtlife Facebook Divya Alter Divya's Kitchen Websites www.divyaskitchen.com www.divyaalter.com www.bvtlife.com

Melanie McLaughlin has been practicing, teaching, and experiencing all that yoga has to offer since her lengthy sojourn in India over 20 yrs ago. She has trained with some of the worlds most respected teachers of yoga, energetics, and bodywork, and her real passion is Yin Yoga which, fused together with her studies in TCM and Qi Gong, Mel found a platform to create her own unique teaching style, which is a blend of Western/Traditional Indian and Taoist approaches. Born in the UK and one of the original leading teachers to bring YIN YOGA into the public eye in Australia, building a yin community from the ground up, Melanie is now the director of her very own "The Yin Space" online and is based in Sydney, Australia teaching in person at Body Mind Life. In this dialogue, we dig into: •her intuitive call to India and the unexpected spiritual sojourn •her stay at the Sivananda ashram, her first teacher training •Mel's experience in starting out teaching yoga in Sydney, Australia •the integration of traditional yoga with modern power yoga •studentship under Paul Grilley and Mel's greatest influences •her experience of the Bhagavad Gita and what is on Mel's bookshelf •a love of energy medicine and body work •why Yin Yoga is so important •why Mel was nicknamed the Velvet Hammer •what we are doing in Yin Yoga •why yin is not the "easy yoga" •unraveling trauma •progression on the spiritual quest •the seasonal application of yin yoga •what life looks like, living in alignment Mel is deeply curious about the energetic and esoteric, and includes this in her teachings with the belief we cannot address one body without the other. As an avid student of Paul Grilley, she is a registered senior teacher, blending the physical, mental, and energetic bodies together within the context of yin yoga and teaching in general. Connect with Mel on her website, Instagram, and Facebook.

Jude Blereau has been living a wholefood life long before 'wholefood' was a buzzword for healthy living, and has been actively involved in the wholefood movement for over 25 years. Jude has a deep interest in effecting change in how we as a society grow, produce, relate to, and eat food. She is a passionate advocate for sustainable and ethical farming practices, artisanal skills and knowledge, and supporting our local farmers. Born in the 1950's to a mother of Italian decent, food has always been a major part of her life. Jude is a whole and natural foods chef, award winning author of 5 books, speaker, and cooking teacher. All her books are a discussion on and guide to nourishing wisdoms, and then how we translate that into delicious meals as a part of everyday life, with less stress even on the busiest days. In this chat, we dig into: •the value to taking a hard look at how we're living in our society •the loss of food culture, what it is, and why we need it •how wholefood is real food •seasonal eating, awareness, growing, living •why local is essential •the relationship between food and family •the book that fell at Jude's feet and directed her work •creating memories through food •raising children and coming together with food •Ayurvedic value in our world and kitchen •how disconnection creates segregation •the risks of fractionalised diets and fads •extremes from soil destruction to dietary labelling •how to honour our local farmers and food security •understanding organic food •Jude's favourite meal and dessert •the danger of the denial of joy •plus a bunch more (& a few giggles along the way!) Connect with Jude on her website, Instagram, or take a look at her incredible online classes.

Lucy Roberts is a mama, Yoga teacher, life coach, & eternal student, with a dedicated Yoga & meditation practice of more than 20 years. Her style is fluid, feminine, intuitive, & creative, whilst respectful of tradition and the ultimate purpose of the practice. Lucy trained & apprenticed with Australian senior teacher, Louisa Sear, later spending more than a decade on the road as part of the Yoga Arts faculty delivering Teacher Trainings internationally. She now lives in Byron Bay with her partner & daughter, teaching classes, retreats, trainings, and online courses, alongside coaching. Informed by the devotional arts & attitudes of Bhakti Yoga, the non-dual teachings of Advaita & Self Inquiry, and the beautiful Buddhist teachings of Radical Compassion, Lucy's work is an invitation into greater awareness, and a loving curiosity of body, mind and heart. In this episode we chat about: •The evolution of yoga teacher training •The beauty and magic of India •Her evolution along the path of yoga •Her greatest teachers and the gift of grace •Her path as a student •Motherhood and it's influence on the yoga journey •Her time in the holy place of Sripuram, Southern India •Lucy's new exploration into coaching •Tradition, teaching, and to be a travelling yogi •Where she is currently teaching •And a ton more... Connect with Lucy at her website, on Instagram, and on Facebook.

Denise Duffield-Thomas is the money mindset mentor for the new wave of entrepreneurs and those who want to change the world. Her books give a fresh and funny road-map to creating an outrageously successful life and business. Denise helps women create wealth through her mindset courses and practical wisdom on releasing money blocks. She's a lazy introvert, a Hay House author, and an "unbusy" mother of 3 exhausting and adorable kids. She owns a rose farm and lives by the beach in sunny Australia. In this conversation we talk about: •Denise's manifestation practices •Her love of books, those which have been pivotal on her path, and what she is reading now •Redefining your version of wealth •Creating your life around what's important to you •Sustainability •"Richness" in life •What we can learn from celebrity stories •Money archetypes •The permission to be both abundant and kind, generous, grounded. •Self Sabotaging behaviours and beliefs •Finding your sub-conscious limiting beliefs •Burn out in the wellness and spiritual communities •The monetary value of time & boundaries •Denise's biggest influence and mentor •How we put a cap on how many people we serve •The importance of charging what we are worth and circulating money •Money language Connect with Denise on her website, Instagram, and Facebook.