beacon yoga centre

Scroll Down to Read More ..... Born in the Netherlands in 1942, my early childhood life was quite challenging. When I was four years old I decided by myself that I did not want to eat animals, and became vegetarian. In 1955 my family immigrated to Perth West Australia. When I was 17 years old, I began my nursing career and that same year I attended some of Billy Graham’s Christian evangelical gatherings which influenced me greatly and caused a Spiritual awakening in me. When I was 25 I came across a copy of Yogananda Paramahamsa’s book: Autobiography of a Yogi . I contacted the SRF in America because I wanted to join their Raja Yoga study Group. They never replied. A couple of years later I read: Seven Years In Tibet and my first book on Yoga by Indira Devi. A nursing friend and myself decided to learn Hatha Yoga at the Perth Yoga school and Our first Yoga teachers were Swami Lakshmi and Vera McCardell. I was then 28 years old. Not long after I started Yoga, Swami Lakshmi asked a few of us to come with her and meet a SWAMI at the airport. That is now 50 years ago and I was 29. Seeing Swami Venkatesananda for the first time literally turned me inside out and upside down.. Swamiji radiated such Love and compassion that I found tears of joy streaming down my face. He then simply hugged me. His Presence burst open my Spiritual Heart space and filled me with immense peace and Love. Swamiji’s 3 lectures He gave at the UWA Hacket Hall to packed audiences. These placed me firmly on the Spiritual Path. It is now 50 years since I first met Swamiji. Thanks to the dedication and hard work of Swami Lakshmi and friends, the Sivananda Ashram in Fremantle was formally opened in 1976 and I was blessed to be amongst a small group of residents who were first offered residency. After two years I left and travelled with Swamiji to His Ashram in Mauritius where I stayed for 6 busy blissful months en route to Cape Town. It was in Mauritius that I had an opportunity to study Homoeopathy and Ayurvedic Medicine. These studies I continued at a later date. The second last year of Swamiji’s life I spent one whole year travelling with Him wherever He went, including a trip to India to Divine Life Society., Rishikesh. Whilst In India I studied Yoga Therapy with Prof. Krishnamamacharya and his son Desikachar. That was in 1981. In 1982, the year Swamiji took Mahasamadhi, Mother Yogeshwari and myself formally Opened Ananda Kutir Ashrama along with a group of wonderfully supportive friends. Swamiji had suggested that I stay in Cape Town which I did. For 10 years I had Swami Venkatesananda’s darshan at regular intervals. Now, after 50 years of Sadhana I feel that I may just be beginning to wake up to Reality. How blessed I am to have had an opportunity in this lifetime to be guided by a foremost disciple of Sri Swami Sivananda, our beloved Swami Venkatesananda, a most wonderful Spiritual Master and Guru. With Prem Swami Parvathiananda