Gratitude

With gratitude to all my past, present and future teachers.

I would like to thank my mother, her mother and all

our animals.

And especially in respect, I humbly bow down to:

Rob Jurka & Johan Jorna

It is because of them that I speak Dutch so fluently.

After nearly twenty years they still correct me.

Speaking Dutch is like singing for me.

I have never joined a language course and my writing still needs some help.

They brought the photographer Robert Mapplethorpe to Europe and showed me the world of art.

I stayed in their house and would have never found a house for myself without their help.

Today they are married, and they guided me to become an educated man living in Amsterdam.

Lino Miele

This funny Italian was my first yoga teacher.

I travelled a lot to learn from him and secretly knew that he must have been my teacher in a previous life.

I have witnessed in the Ashtanga world from the view of adjustments, a roughness towards males and softness towards females, depending on the sexual preference of the teachers.

I always disliked this behaviour.

Lino has always been like an angel to me.

When I was on my first trip to India in Kovalam, I cried my eyes out about rejection in my love-life and Lino said; “just continue to practice Andrea”, and of course he was right.

Angelo, you are always in my heart.

His beloved wife Tina Pizzimenti adjusts like air flowing through water.

And of course I remember gratefully the late Gwendoline Hunt, teaching me to breathe softly.

John Scott taught me to let go of my overstretched knees leftover from a previous career.

Lino is a devoted student of the famous Sri K. Pattabhi Jois from Mysore in India.

I studied there on my second stay in India and struggled with all the egos, especially my own.

Sharath Rangaswamy, the grandson of Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, tested me and had me waiting for a very long time before I was allowed to come into the yoga-shala to practice.

And when I wanted to stop with it all, Guruji (known and called by his devoted students) stood right in front of me and looked so sweetly into my soul.

He did backbending with me and laid on top of me in paschimattanasana.

I remember it like yesterday.

I thought I would never do this for anyone, for the first time I went down on my knees and kissed his feet.

He is the true elephant, the guru, and I am blessed to have surrendered, survived, have felt and seen what Mysore is really about.

Annette van den Berg

Annette is the leading teacher at the Carolina Bont Centre for Effective Intuition.

She is tall, with gorgeous hair, is experienced, connected, grounded, inspiring, intuitive, sensitive, relaxed and a humorous teacher.

With her sharp eye she creates a safe environment to respectfully deepen personal growth.

Gosh I was hanging on her lips, inhaling everything she taught.

She stimulated me to rediscover my own inner qualities, forgotten knowledge and the freedom of choice.

She taught the ability to learn to ground and to energetically expand. How to see, feel and listen to my intuition. How to connect and communicate. How to handle my emotions and dreams. How to protect myself, and so much more. Huge lessons.

I still write e-mails to her in my awareness.

To be honest, at that time I learned to really love.

Whilst I was rich in living this spiritual life, although I was poor after paying for my marathon of courses, who lent me money so I could eat? She did.

Brandon Bays

A day does not go by, that I don’t remember this woman.

I read her bestseller book ‘The Journey’ in just one night, after flirting with it for some time.

I met her the same month at a seminar about her book ‘Freedom Is’.

She irritated me so strongly; mirror, mirror, and determinedly I took all her courses.

The ‘No Ego Retreat’, the heaviest retreat of all, broke me down after the first ‘Hello’, and changed my life radically.

Since then there is no going back for me to hide behind the ego.

Later I found out why I am here.

To top it all I travelled for the third time to sacred India.

This time on a yatra, a satsang pilgrimage, with a group of beloveds and her team.

The fire is still burning within me from that time.

I have been deeply touched by the presence of her husband Kevin Billett, by Gaby Burt, Joanne and the whole Journey family.

It is due to her, by grace, that I have been in the presence of and visited the following: the River Ganges at the ancient pilgrimage town of Rishikesh. At the Sri Neem Karoli Baba Ashram in Brindaban and in Papajis’ house in Lucknow. In the presence of Bharat Mitra. At the holiest city of India Varanasi. At the cradle of Buddhism in Sarnath, and at the famous Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya where Buddha was enlightened. I’ve been in Ramanas’ cage and climbed the mountain Arunachala in Tiruvannamalai, and in Goa.

Papaji

Sri Ramana Maharshi

I am so lucky that I was allowed to be close to her and to swim in the pool of her eyes.

Anyway I am the cutest disciple to carry her handbag!

To open up in this, with this, is such a gift to me.

I’ve learned to surrender to the fire, to listen to consciousness and to bring my awareness to my awareness in order to forgive.

Her way of talking about sexuality blew me away.

I truly can say she is by far the most intense soul I have met.

To soak in freedom and stillness is the greatest achievement for me.

Meditation, chanting, prayer and the highest intention is with me daily.

Truth shall be spoken; she is the one, who showed me the way to finally come home.

She has the tools to save the world.

Her grace is priceless, a radiant diamond, exuding so much love and gratitude.

Thank you Janaki, we meet in love, we both love roses and the drama-queen watches from the balcony.

Mika (1992-2005) & Dita

And most of all my best friends, the joys of my life and the real gurus!

Jala & Mala 2009