Many moons ago, when I was just starting off on my yoga journey, I would read lovely and informative articles by Richard Rosen in Yoga Journal. I would practice along with the instructions and guidelines alone in my house on my mat. I then started to read his books and found an even deeper well of information as well as laughs (I find his writing about what can be a dry topic in literature, to be rather humorous and engaging). When I moved to the Bay Area, and was considering to train to be a yoga instructor, I looked up his studio in Piedmont and went to a class.
When I met him, I felt like I was meeting someone famous! I had read all his books and articles, and felt like I really spent a lot of time with him on paper. That first class, following his verbal instructions in person, I knew I was in my yoga home. His teachings and his Richard-ness resonate with me on so many levels. He taught me to verbalize what I saw inside the body, to communicate these inner views, in a way that can sharpen and strengthen one's energetic imagination. He is one of the most humble and down to earth people I have ever met. He has carved a beautiful career in teaching and educating the masses in yoga, and yet he will tell you he knows nothing at all. This is how you know he is really on the path.
I owe so much of my growth as a human being, as well as a yoga instructor, to his grace and dedication to passing on the torch of the teachings. He is truly my mentor, as well as many many others mentors. One of a kind. A true gem. A genius, and a friend!!
Mary Paffard
maryyoga.com
I really do not know what I did in my current or past life, to have been so blessed with the opportunity to stumble upon Mary Paffard. Mary was one of the core teachers of my teacher training, along with Richard Rosen, Vickie Russell Bell, Baxter Bell and Ann Dyer. I did not meet her until about a month or so into the curriculum. When she taught us our first class, I swear I was listening to the inner me. I felt what she was speaking about, I saw what she saw. The difference was she was embodying and sharing with true conviction, what she believed, and she had the bravery and bones to stand up in front of a room full of strangers and profess her unique individuality it in the most graceful and benevolent English voice.
She paints pictures with words and poetically sculpts the body from the inside out. She shared her meditation teachings with the class and is the reason I have a strong dedicated meditation practice to this day. I have participated in many workshops and retreats with Mary, along with the group of authentic and inspiring teachers, and practitioners she gathers around her. She is passionate about creating and sustaining new and needed conversation about life, sustainability and environmental consciousness. She cares deeply about our inner and outer ecology and has worked diligently to keep the dialog going and growing.
I am forever grateful for Mary's guidance, support and encouragement that has helped me uncover, recognize, and nourish my authentic voice, and in turn, that motivates me to support others on their journey toward freedom and better self understanding. I truly believe we desire to help others in the same way we have been helped. It is a circle of reciprocity.
Many Others...
There are so many different teachers out there that I have gained tremendous assistance in my practice and my teaching. Some I have met and worked with personally, others have just passed their teachings on to me via publications and audio. Here is a handful: Angela Farmer and Victor Van Kooten, Emilie Conrad, Bonnie Bainbridege Cohen, Liz Koch, Eric Franklin, Judith Hanson Lasater, more will be added here soon......
Local teachers, friends and resources: Patricia Sullivan, Vickie Russel-Bell, Baxter Bell, Lynn Ursic, Traci Joy Burleigh, Ann Dyer.
More will be added here as time goes on......