About Us

Classes in Melbourne are taught by Antonia Pont.

Antonia has been practising yoga for two decades, and studying zen since 1996. She has trained and practised with teachers in Australia, India and Europe, and has taught locally and internationally. She encountered Vijñāna Yoga in late 2004, while she was completing her first teacher training with Paul Wooden in Melbourne. She then trained over three years with the founder of Vijñāna Yoga, Orit Sen-Gupta, in Germany, and received certification as a Vijñāna teacher in 2011. She continues to study with Orit each year, and was the English language editor for Orit’s 2012 publication, Yoga Insights (previously published as The Heart of Practice) (Vijñāna Books). She has convened residential retreats in rural Victoria since 2010. Antonia has a PhD in writing, and is Associate Professor at Deakin University in writing, literature and culture. Her scholarly work addresses practising through philosophy. The book A Philosophy of Practising (2021) is published by Edinburgh University Press.

Her approach to teaching yoga postures, breath and meditation is precise, steady, and sometimes irreverent. She encourages students to trust the strengthening and startling journey that practising can be, and to integrate this intelligence and sensitivity into their lives off the mat. She is a registered Senior Teacher with Yoga Australia and a certified Vijñāna Teacher.

 

 

Jennifer, intermediate student:

“Antonia teaches with words, thoughts and her own beautiful practice. She nurtures your practice with her generous and careful encouragement. She has the knack of attending to you when you need it, and leaving you to work things out safely for yourself when you need to be quiet. I leave her classes and retreats feeling cared for, capable and grateful.”