Meaning of the word Puja
In the Sansrikit language, Puja means “Ritual, Ceremony, Prayer or Worship”.
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It was a couple of years back that I realized, if only I lived true to my name, that things would be so much more easeful and effortless. Not in a way that there would be no struggles, but in the sense that even when there seems to be a lot going on, I can still move through life in a manner of less resistance.
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If we only stopped for a while to say a little prayer - for the food we eat, the water we drink, the opportunity of another day. If we did things with intent and presence rather than just mindlessly rushing through the next thing in our never-ending to-do lists, life would have so much more meaning and beauty.
I believe we are all our own healers.
A doctor, therapist, practitioner, teacher can only prescribe you the “medicine", in whatever form that may be, but YOU are the one who has to take (or in most cases, do) the medicine or remedy yourself.
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Which makes YOU your own healer.
Isn’t that liberating!
What I am is a seeker.
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A dedicated student to all the wisdom traditions that show us how precious this life is, and the simple ways we can care for our bodies and minds to bring us back to a state of balance and harmony.
That does not mean it is always a smooth ride.
I still go through many of the same things that most of you do. I still stumble and lose my way at times.
That’s just the beauty of what it means to be human and to be alive.
Everyone has a story - if you want to read more about my story, you can find it here.
“We can stop searching for answers outside of ourselves.
We just need to re-member and re-connect to that part of ourselves that already knows, always.”
Puja's Principles
Acceptance
The part of us that we often want to “fix” or “get rid of” is most often the part of us that needs our love and acceptance the most.
It’s through acceptance that resistance drops, allowing true change to occur.
A line by Carl Rogers that sums it up perfectly: “The curious paradox was that when I accept myself just as I am, that I am free to change“.
Freedom
Living according to “rhythms” and “principles” might seem restrictive to some, but it in fact brings so much freedom in the way that it allows us to be free of the constant mental chatter of “I should or shouldn’t have”, “this is ‘good’, this is ‘bad’”, etc.
What we are left with is the freedom and space to actually live the life we truly want to be living.
Energy
In Ayurveda, it’s called Prana, in Qigong is called Qi.
Essentially, it’s our life force - what animates and enlivens our bodies and spirits.
When we start to look at it from this lens, it’s quite easy really - what are the choices we are making in our lives every day?
Do our choices and actions revitalize and add to our energy, or do they deplete and drain our energy?
Ease
​Right this moment, soften your shoulders, let them move away from the ears, relax the belly and take a long inhale and a long exhale.
How does this moment feel now? And how does the next moment feel?
What if we moved through our lives from this place of ease?
And keep reminding ourselves, when things get “hard” or challenging, to just soften a little bit?
Presence
Most of the time we are not WHOLE-ly here - we are only “half-here”; and if we are only “half here”, then we are also "half not-here”. This is when we start to “slip-up” or act in ways that might take us away from balance.
In Ayurveda the first cause of disease is said to be ‘crime against wisdom’ - we know something will not bring us to a state of health or balance, yet we do it anyway. This happens because of this lack of presence - because we have gone quite far off from our own internal wisdom.
So how would things change if we could just be a little bit more present - with our bodies, with how we eat, with the people around us, with situations and experiences in our lives.
Connection
It’s the biggest paradox in our times right now that we feel like we can connect with someone halfway round the world within a few seconds, yet most of us are feeling a strong sense of disconnection with ourselves and those around us.
We are all trying to fill that void inside of us that can essentially only be filled with when we reconnect back to what it is that truly matters.
Joy
When was the last time you took a day just to do things that made you feel full of joy?
Not because it’s “good” for you, not because you are supposed to, not because you have to - but just for the sake of it bringing a sense of aliveness to each and every cell of your being.
Yes, there are things we need to do, bills we need to pay, kids we need to take care of, deadlines we need to meet, but it can really be as simple as taking the time to savor our food, hugging our friends/kids/partners just a few seconds longer, being in wonderment and gratitude for our bodies who have done so much to keep us alive and breathing to this very day.
In the book “The top 5 Regrets of the Dying” written by an Australian nurse who cared for patients in the last 12 weeks of their lives, 2 of the top 5 regrets are:
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I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me
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I wish that I had let myself be happier
Qualifications
Trainings & Certifications​​
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200 hr Yoga Teacher Training - Ishta Yoga New York - 2013
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Health Coach - Institute for Integrative Nutrition - 2013
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Prenatal Yoga Teacher Training - Ishta Yoga New York - 2014
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Restorative Yoga Teacher Training - Ishta Yoga New York - 2014
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Mindfulness Yoga Teacher Training - Tina Nance School of Yoga - 2015
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Yoga Therapy Teacher Training - Tina Nance School of Yoga - 2018
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Kids Yoga Teacher Training - The Practice Bali - 2019
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Fundamentals of Ayurveda - Boston School of Ayurveda - 2020
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Ayurvedic Health Counselor - Boston School of Ayurveda - 2022
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YOQI Qigong Flow - YOQI Yoga & Qigong - current
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Courses & Workshops
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Ayurvedic Nutrition - True Ayurveda
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Breathing and the Fascial Body - Leila Stewart
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Myofascial Release Training - Power Living Australia
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Ayurveda & Yoga for Women's Health - JAI Yoga & Ayurveda
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Ayurveda & Yoga for Prenatal & Postnatal Health - JAI Yoga & Ayurveda
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The Ayurvedic Kitchen Course - True Ayurveda
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Ayurveda Nutrition & Cooking - JAI Yoga & Ayurveda
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Ayurveda & the Microbiome - Dr Robert Svoboda
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Six Steps to Health - International Macrobiotic School
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Plant Based Cooking - International Macrobiotic School
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Arvigo Belly Care Training - Arvigo Institute
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The Deeper Body - Art of Touch & Sensing - fluidUs Academy
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Studies in Prana - Dr Scott Blossom
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The Art of Accupressure - Meridian Flow
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Integrative Ayurveda for Brain Health - Dr Scott Blossom
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Ayurvedic Counseling & Psychology - Boston School of Ayurveda
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Pure Cooks Training Macrobiotics - Wholefood Harmony
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Studies in Agni - Dr Scott Blossom
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Marma, Mind, Mahagunas - Amadea Morningstar
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Mood & Food - Amadea Morningstar
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My formal studies were in the lines of Business Administration and Marketing. Upon completing my Bachelor's degree, I was in the field of Market Research for a couple of few years, and then went on as a Business Analyst for one of the largest telecommunications company in Indonesia. My last formal post was as a Market Analyst for the Trade & Investment Section at the British Embassy Jakarta.
