Richard James Allen, Sandra Ferriera, David Life Sharon Gannon, Alanna Kaivalya, Kristina Pao Cheng, and Petros Hoffenrichter Jivamukti Yoga Founders with the Mentors for the 2007 Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Training at Omega, upstate NY Photo: Baerbel Miessner, www.miessner.com
Richard James Allen - Yoga Lineage and Qualifications:
Richard James Allen is Certified Jivamukti Yoga Teacher through the grace of his holy teachers Sharon Gannon and David Life. He was a mentor and teacher for them at the 2007 Jivamukti Yoga Teacher Training at the beautiful Omega Institute in upstate New York, and is currently one of the teachers of the Life Source Teacher Training in Sydney. Richard also holds an Iyengar-based Sydney Yoga Centre Yoga Teaching Certificate 1997 (Eve Grzybowksi, Colin Rivers, Mardi Kendall). He has taught Yoga at numerous Yoga schools and for professional dance companies and tertiary training courses. A growing body of students come to him for individual tuition. Richard's natural flexibility in asana practice is featured in Christina Brown’s bestselling book, The Yoga Bible, now translated into over 10 languages, and in Nina Williams' short film Breathe.
Richard first began practising Yoga as a child with his mother, later took up ice dancing, tai chi and karate before becoming a professional dancer. He returned to Yoga in the later part of his international performing career that took him across the USA, Europe and Australia. Since the early 1990s he has studied with some of the world leaders in contemporary Yoga such as Sharon Gannon and David Life of the Jivamukti Yoga Centre in New York. An advanced Ashtanga practitioner, he has pursued a traditional pathway of learning the Ashtanga Yoga Vinyasa Series through workshops with Shri K. Pattabhi Jois and his grandson Sharat, and classes with many of their leading pupils such as Graeme and Leonie Northfield, Matthew Sweeney, Peter Sanson, Eileen Hall and others. He has also had the privilege of studying for many years with the profound Hatha teacher Rick Birrell. Richard is a keen student of spiritual and Yogic texts, taking occasional workshops Rami Sivan, Sogyal Rinpoche, and others. As well asbeinga dancer, he is also a multi-award-winning filmmaker and poet. His Doctorate of Creative Arts, focusing on Yogic spiritual ideas in relation to art practice, was honoured with the Chancellor's Award for Best PhD across all departments of the University of Technology, Sydney.
Yoga Asana Photos: Jorg Salzbauer
Richard can be contacted for group, corporate or private Yoga classes at: