About Us
The Hatha Yoga Method founders and teachers are Robert Becker and Mandy BeckerKnox. The Hatha Yoga Method is based upon their combined 60 years of experience in yoga, particularly the Hatha Yoga of Krishnamacharya, the Raja Yoga of Swami Sivananda and the yoga of the great sages and mystics of the past. They maintain their connection to the source through an enduring relationship with teachers and mentors A.G. Mohan and Indra Mohan, two of the great masters of traditional and contemporary yoga.
Robert Becker
Robert was initiated into yoga in Cape Town, South Africa by his Guru Swami Venkatesananda of the Sivananda lineage at the age of 20. He has dedicated his life to teaching and sharing traditional yoga and built and founded Kookaburra Creek Yoga Centre in 1998. Robert has a Masters degree in Social Work and works professionally in the field. He is known for the depth of his yogic and vedantic knowledge, his astute wisdom, gentle guidance and sense of fun. Robert has been practising and teaching yoga for over 36 years in South Africa, Mauritius, India and Australia.
Robert was initiated into yoga and meditation at the age of 20 by his Diksha Guru HH Sri Swami Venkatesanandaji Maharaj of the Sivananda tradition, Rishikesh and was given the spiritual name Narayan. Robert spent many years practising intensively living in ashrams and travelling in India before settling into family life. In the 1990s Robert built the Kookaburra Creek Yoga Centre in honour of his Guru which he co-directs with Mandy, with whom he shares the spiritual journey.
The centre has been blessed by some great souls (Mahatmas) over the past twenty years. Sri Swami Ramakrishna of the Amritanandamayi Mission has visited a number of times, Sri Somanatha Maharishi of Hyderabad introduced the centre to Mano Yoga. Robert teaches a dynamic style of Integral Hatha Yoga based on the tradition of Patanjali's Raja Yoga. Asanas and Pranayama are used to guide aspirants seeking a deeper experience of meditation. Robert has a Masters degree in Psychiatric Social Work and is a skilful life coach and group facilitator. He worked professionally in the field before integrating his professional expertise with yogic life, and strives to integrate a working life in the world with a love of yoga and meditation and the responsibilities of being a householder, husband and father. This is the challenge many face today, spiritualising day to day life.
Mandy BeckerKnox
Mandy is a Senior Yoga teacher registered with Yoga Australia and the lead trainer. She was initiated into yoga at the age of 20 and has practised and taught since then. She has studied with renowned masters, and spent a lifetime learning, integrating and sharing. She is a natural leader and in her professional life was an Editor, Designer and recently CEO of a healthcare not-for-profit organisation. Mandy is deeply committed to creating safe and sacred spaces for participants to experience the wonders of yoga - both at Kookaburra and on retreats around the world.
Mandy has studied and practised yoga since 1990 when she was twenty years old in both India and Australia. She has taught yoga for over twenty years in Perth, India, and on international retreats.
Over this time she has had the great privilege of travelling to India many times for extended periods studying directly with teachers and masters of yoga. Mandy's primary influences and long-term mentors are A.G. Mohan and Indra Mohan of the Svastha Yoga and Ayurveda, Chennai. Mandy continues to study closely with the Mohans. In addition to this Mandy has studied yoga with:
- Senior teachers of the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram, Chennai
- Swami Maharshi Somanatha of Somanatha Kshetram, Hyderabad
- Swami Krishnananda of the Sivananda tradition, Divine Life Society, Rishikesh
When young, Mandy was a resident in the following ashrams and spiritual centres:
- Ananda Marga, Bihar
- Divine Life Society (Sivananda Yoga), Rishikesh
- Anandamayi Ma Ashram, Haridwar
Mandy is certified (by Svastha Yoga) to teach Hatha Yoga, has also studied Ayurveda at the Australian Institute of Holistic Medicine. Mandy has undertaken additional teacher training in Yin Yoga and is certified (by Jo Phee) to teach Yin.
Mandy considers being still in nature to be the greatest of all spiritual teachers and seeks out inspiration through immersions in the sublime landscapes of this wondrous planet. Mandy’s yoga journey has been an integration of these teachings over time and deep personal experience. Her teaching style is practical, relevant and spiritual - with an emphasis on a safe and meaningful practise which leads students towards health of the body and peace of mind. The breath is fundamental to Hatha Yoga and is emphasised in Mandy's classes for the healing benefit dedicated breathing practices bring.
Mandy has developed comprehensive courses, programs, manuals and teacher trainings for all levels of students and is particularly focussed on nurturing absolute beginners - ensuring those new to yoga receive a comprehensive introduction to the often misrepresented teachings of traditional yoga.
Professionally, Mandy has a BA in English, is a qualified Graphic Designer with a career spanning decades in evolving roles which included working as a writer, editor, graphic designer, publishing and mass communications specialist, communications manager, and most recently as Chief Executive Officer of a health organisation for 5 years. Mandy is an inspiring, highly regarded leader. She brings together her creativity, love of organising, and passion for yoga to create and deliver Kookaburra's yoga, retreat and teacher training programs.
Mandy’s personal practice and the integration of the wisdom teachings of yoga inform every aspect of her life, and have been a guiding influence through the challenges and joys of raising a family and professional life.
Kookaburra Yoga
Kookaburra Yoga's integrated system of Hatha and Raja Yoga ensures the practices are holistic and beneficial on every level of being. The five key areas of holsitic Hatha Yoga which integrate with the 8 ‘limbs’ of Raja Yoga are included in all classes, courses and programs. These include mindful, intelligent movement [asana], supportive breathwork [pranayama], relaxation [pratyahara], meditation [dharana, dhyana], and yogic diet, lifestyle and ethics [yama, niyama] - all of which are linked and made meaningful through mindfulness [bhava].
This powerful and integrated approach to yoga laid the foundation for the Hatha Yoga Method which brings together traditional teachings and this modern integrative approach, ensuring they are relevant, accessible and safe for all levels of practitioners. Hatha Yoga classes are often the starting point for many people who may eventually enquire into the more meaningful and spiritual paths of yoga.
Breakout:
We are seekers
From a young age, on different continents, we discovered yoga and then sought out the great masters of traditional yoga in the ashrams of India. Over the years we immersed ourselves in the powerful, transformative practices and methods of various yoga traditions with the guidance and blessings of our teachers and gurus. It became our path and dharma to find each other, to share this lifetime, raise our family, and bring together our experience, knowledge and commitment to share the beauty, power and grace of traditional yoga to benefit others. It was with this intent we created Kookaburra Yoga and the Hatha Yoga Method.
