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Bhakti Mathur

The annual Evolution Asia Yoga Conference returns to Hong Kong this week, attracting yogis and gurus of all levels.
This twelfth edition will feature more than 165 lectures, workshops and training sessions by more than 45 yoga masters from around the world.
The conference will be at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai.
Highlights include sessions led by these three renowned gurus and scholars.

Sri Dharma Mittra
Legendary Sri Dharma Mittra, aged 80, has been teaching yoga for the past 50 years. The founder of Dharma yoga based his practice on classical Ashtanga yoga, which literally means the “eight limbs of yoga”. It draws inspiration from the ancient text Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.


Dharma yoga emphasises the first two limbs – yamas (restraints such as non-violence and truthfulness) and niyamas (observances such purity of body and mind, contentment and self-discipline). It is a system of Hatha yoga, mastery of the physical body, and Raja yoga, control of the mind focused on good health, clearmindedness and a kind heart. A typical class begins with a flowing sequence of poses, then stationary poses like inversions, twists and forward bends, ending with meditation and breath work.
“Success in yoga means self-realisation, the ability with yoga techniques to settle the mind into silence. This mind, free from all doubts, comes into a state of bliss. Following the yamas and niyamas, you have no cravings and no attachments. That’s the goal, the success,” explains Mittra.
Born and raised in a small village in Brazil, he first encountered yoga as a teenager when he picked up his younger brother’s book on yoga and mind control. Enthralled, he decided to learn yoga. As there were then no yoga classes in Brazil, he learned from books. Soon after, Mittra went on to serve in the Brazilian National Air Force and practised body building, wrestling and jiu-jitsu.
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Mittra moved to New York in 1964 to learn yoga under renowned Swami Kailashananda and immersed himself in intense study and practice. Mittra was initiated as a sanyasi (one who renounces the world and material desires) and in 1975, with his guru’s blessings, founded the Dharma Yoga New York Centre.
Mittra has initiated thousands of yogis. “The ultimate goal of yoga is to realise that we are not our bodies. We are consciousness, the eternal witness of body and mind,” says Mittra. He continues to disseminate his knowledge of yoga through daily classes, workshops and his teacher training programmes. He is the creator of the “Master Yoga Chart of 908 Postures” and still practises daily.
“My goal is to see my students established in compassion and love for all beings. Compassion that embraces all living beings and extends to all facets like the food we eat. In my view, yogis should eat food that shares no connection with the pain or discomfort of others, food that is not animal-based. Every being is looking for happiness, and every being fears violence, even animals,” Mittra says.

Mittra will be conducting sessions to guide practitioners through yoga poses (asanas), breathing techniques (pranayama), meditation, deep healing relaxation (yoga nidra) and chanting of mantras.
There will also be a session for intermediate and advanced yogis to explore the core practices of Dharma yoga and to take their practice to the next level. Click here for more information on Mittra’s sessions.


Noah Mazé
Recognised around the world as a “teacher of yoga teachers” for his clear, methodical style and knowledge, he co-founded the Mazé Method with his wife, Tracy. Based in Los Angeles, California, it offers training in an intimate, community oriented environment through a curriculum that combines detailed alignment and intelligent posture sequencing.
“My parents were interested in the philosophy and practice of yoga and I grew up with the teachings of yoga. Some of my earliest memories are sitting for meditation with my parents. Richard Freeman was my first yoga teacher and I started going to his classes with my mother when I was 13 in my hometown of Boulder, Colorado,” says 43-year old Mazé.
He has also studied with celebrated teachers including K Pattabhi Jois. His unique style blends all the traditions he has studied: Hatha, Iyengar, Ashtanga, Vinyasa and Anusara.

“Teaching was a natural evolution of my practice and studies. It keeps me in a continual journey of learning, discovery and creativity. The best teachers are the best students,” Mazé says. “Teaching has taught me how to come out of myself and connect with others.”
Mazé loves to bring the stories of the myths in the yoga tradition into the practice. “I love to explore the teachings of the great Indian epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, and see how these stories can inspire our lives today. The teachings and practices of yoga are a constant companion and a treasure chest of jewels.”
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Mazé will be conducting sessions on opening the hips and lower back, on inversions such as headstands and handstands, teaching proper alignment in asanas among others. Click here for more information on Maze’s sessions.

Christopher Wallis
Aged 46, Wallis is a yogic meditation scholar practitioner with 30 years of experience. His first exposure to meditation was as a seven-year-old who became enraptured listening to the chant of ‘Om Namah Shivaya’ (meaning salutations to Lord Shiva) on his father’s meditation tape. The Indian spiritual master Swami Muktananda gave Wallis the name he is popularly known as, “Hareesh”, a Hindi word meaning “remover of sorrows”.
Wallis teaches Tantric philosophy, meditation and mantra science. “Tantra refers to the spiritual practices revealed in the ancient texts or scriptures,” he says. They teach yogic practices and spiritual philosophy.
He will be conducting a session on the original teachings and practices of Tantric philosophy.


“This tradition possesses some of the most effective teachings for human transformation, which are particularly relevant for our time. These practices can create shifts and openings in us, illuminate the sources of our suffering and bliss, and lead us to insights that connect us with our true nature,” says Wallis.
One workshop on the teachings of the Vigyana Bhairava Tantra, a seminal text of Tantric yoga, is particularly compelling. It shows five- to 10-minute awareness cultivation techniques that can be done any time, anywhere.
“These micro-meditations create a depth of experience and enhancement of meaning that is impossible to imagine until you experience it yourself,” Wallis says.
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Wallis holds a masters and a PhD in Sanskrit from the University of California at Berkeley and a masters in classical Indian religions from Oxford. He received traditional education at yoga ashrams in New York and India, training in meditation and kirtan.
Wallis will also be conducting lectures on yoga as integration, befriending death, and awakened relationships. Click here for information on Wallis’ sessions.


The annual Evolution Asia Yoga Conference takes place from June 13 to 16 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai. Register at asiayogaconference.com.


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Sri Dharma Mittra, Noah Mazé and Christopher Wallis have a combined 110 years of yoga experience and will be leading sessions at the conference
The annual Evolution Asia Yoga Conference features more than 165 lectures and workshops


Sri Dharma Mittra, Noah Mazé and Christopher Wallis have a combined 110 years of yoga experience and will be leading sessions at the conference. The annual Evolution Asia Yoga Conference features more than 165 lectures and workshops.


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