Hello & namasté!
How wonderful it is to be able to introduce myself to you. My name is Petri and I'm the owner of Yoga Hathi: a lovely, bright yoga studio in the center of Eindhoven.
I'm a visual artist, I love art, literature, film, music, and philosophy, and I enjoy teaching yoga, meditation courses, and giving massages at Yoga Hathi.
From a young age, I've been involved with the body. I completed preparatory classical ballet training for the conservatory and was part of a dance expression collective with which we performed internationally.
At art school, the body was a frequent theme in my work. On Blogspot under 'histories', you can see what I was working on back then.
Yoga has played a major role in my life for over 20 years. In June 2010, I completed Ron van der Post's hatha yoga teacher training in Nijmegen, affiliated with the Yoga Training College Chandigarh, India. I was trained in the tradition of Brahmrishi Vishvatma Bawraji. I didn't actually want to become a yoga teacher; I enrolled purely for my own personal development. At Ron's urging, I started teaching during my final year. Yoga has given me so much, and I now share it with great love.
For my development, I always try to go back to the source: for example, I learned yoga in Pipalkoti, Uttarakhand (Himalayas) in India, and massage at the Thai Massage School of Chiang Mai, Thailand. I supplement this authentic knowledge and skills with various workshops and retreats at home and abroad. This way, I'm constantly learning and keeping my teaching content up to date. I enjoy sharing my yoga knowledge with my students. In my classes, we actively explore the meaning, background, and content of the asanas (yoga poses) and yoga in general.
As a teacher, I create a pleasant, warm and open atmosphere where we practice yoga together without judgment. I believe it's important to give everyone in class personal attention. I do this with patience, humor, and openness. I also help make asanas physically feasible for every body type and level, or I can challenge you to explore your limits—whatever is needed. I don't think in terms of limitations, but rather create space for everyone's individuality. In addition to classes at Yoga Hathi, I give yoga and meditation workshops and massages at companies, and I collaborate on special projects where I combine music and yoga. I also regularly lead yoga workshops at secondary schools and have collaborated with WIJ Eindhoven on a project for people distanced from the labor market.
Among my teachers I can count:
- Swami Yogananda (Brahmrishi Mission India)
- Krshna Prya Didi (Brahmrishi Mission India)
- Ron van der Post (Yogastudie.nl / Brahmrishi Mission India)
- Petros Haffenrichter (Jivamukti Yoga München Deutschland)
- Sarah Powers (Insight Yoga USA)
- Suryans Thakur (Om Yoga Rishikesh India)
- Stewart Gilchrist (East London School of Yoga)
On Instagram I'm giving you a glimpse into my life.
Looking forward to meeting you!