Dharma Yoga Abroad

Q & A with Dharma Yoga teachers around the world...

We’re starting a new blog series to catch up with countrywide and global Dharma Yoga teachers. Find out what they’re up to – teaching in exotic locations, inspiring students all over the globe, and living the teachings of Sri Dharma Mittra every day!

This week:

Gerson Frau (Brazil and Mexico)

By Nicole Sopko

Gerson Frau is an inspiring Dharma Yoga teacher who shares his time between Brazil and Mexico. Gerson’s presence (and his accent!) is, in many ways, very much like Sri Dharma Mittra’s. He’s a wonderful teacher who inspires his students, and his attitude is perfectly summed up in his statement: “I just keep learning every day and seeking Reality.”

What books are you currently reading or studying?

GF: The Bhagavad Gita (Swami Nikhilananda), Yoga Sutras of Patanjali (Swami Satchidananda - I love him!) and Self Knowledge by Swami Nikhilananda.

What is the one practice you do every day?
GF: Pranayama and meditation, at least 5 times a week.

Which teacher trainings have you completed?
GF: The Dharma Yoga Life of a Yogi 200- and 500-hour trainings.

What would you say about the people who you met during your trainings? How have they inspired you?
GF: There are so many amazing people are under Sri Dharma Mittra's umbrella. We all inspire one another, support one another and shared an amazing experience during our training.

What are you currently working on?
GF: Regular Dharma Yoga classes and workshops in Brazil and also several workshops in Mexico, as well as Maha Sadhanas all over both countries. We’re doing a Dharma Yoga event in Puerto Escondido, Mexico, and this year’s will be the sixth time! 40 students attended last year. (Dharma Yoga in Puerto Escondido at the Santa Fe Hotel, June 27 -30, 2013)

 

Why are these projects a priority?
GF: I am following my dharma by practicing and sharing the teachings of Yoga.  It is my commitment for this lifetime.

How has your experience in the Dharma Yoga LOAY teacher training program affected your life outside of training?
GF: Finding Sri Dharma Mittra (or Sri Dharma having found me…) shifted my life completely. The LOAY teacher training program is an immersion to Self Realization. It's hard to explain in words, but it's hard to keep living the way you used to after the training.

Any final thoughts to share with us?
GF: Since I first started studying with Sri Dharma Mittra, I teach every day. It doesn't matter how many students attend class. Students from Mexico have been inspired and many have gone to New York to take the LOAY Teacher Training themselves. Yoga is not so popular in Brazil but I feel students spontaneously start going beyond the physical practice even if they came to class only for a physical yoga practice. They end up going beyond or feeling the curiosity of getting to experience more than the physical.

Gerson will be one of the DYLOAY mentors for the upcoming June 2013 200-Hour Teacher Training Program in New York City. To learn more about Gerson, visit his website: www.yogifrau.com.

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Nicole Sopko (Gopi Om) is a Dharma Yoga teacher living in Chicago, IL where she teaches Dharma Yoga and operates a nationwide vegan natural food company alongside her (life) partner. She takes great care to be always aware of the ways in which these two responsibilities intersect and spends her time promoting compassion in all forms. She is a dedicated and loving student of Sri Dharma’s and visits New York as frequently as possible to absorb the benefits of his holy teachings in person.