From our path to yours

Have you ever looked back on the path that brought you here and realised that the moments you once questioned were silently shaping the life you are living now?

Eight years ago, Atmabhava and I arrived in Golden Bay, Aotearoa New Zealand, carrying a shared longing to slow down, live more simply, and create a life that felt more aligned with what we valued most.

Neither of us arrived here by following a straight path.

For many years, we had both searched for meaning through exploration, study, adventure, and service. We wanted to understand ourselves more deeply, contribute something meaningful, and live in a way that reflected our connection with the world around us. Yet, along the way, life repeatedly showed us that transformation is not found only through striving and achievement. Sometimes it comes through the moments that ask us to stop, listen, and reconsider what we believe wellness truly means.

Through our own experiences, we came to understand that balance is not the absence of difficulty. It is the capacity to meet the fullness of life—the joy and uncertainty, the growth and limitations, the aspirations and realities—with greater awareness and compassion.

For Atmabhava, nature was always a place of challenge, connection, and discovery. Growing up in New Zealand, he spent years exploring wild landscapes through rock climbing, mountain biking, canyoning, and mountaineering. Eventually, this love for adventure led him overseas, where he worked as a white-water rafting guide, sharing his passion for rivers and the outdoors with others.

For many years, the external world was his classroom. The mountains taught him resilience. The rivers taught him adaptability. The wilderness taught him presence.

Until life brought an unexpected interruption.

A sudden illness forced him to step away from the active life he had known. What initially felt like a loss became an invitation to explore a different kind of journey—one that required patience, humility, and a willingness to meet himself in a completely different way.

During his recovery, he immersed himself in yoga, meditation, selfless service, and integrative approaches to health. Slowly, he rebuilt his strength and developed a deeper understanding of the relationship between body, emotions, mind, relationships, nature, and lifestyle.

He discovered that wellness is not something we achieve once and then possess. It is something we participate in through the choices we make each day—the way we relate to ourselves, to others, and to the world around us.

This understanding later influenced his work with diverse communities, including facilitating integral yoga programmes at Rimutaka Prison and within forensic mental health settings during his years in Wellington. In these environments, he witnessed the profound impact of compassionate enquiry, presence, and the possibility of transformation, regardless of a person's circumstances or history.

My own path unfolded differently, although it was guided by many of the same questions. For more than thirty years, I travelled, studied, and explored different cultures, seeking to understand human nature, consciousness, and the ways we create meaning and more sustainable ways of living.

Eventually, my journey led me to India, where I undertook intensive yogic training and spent many years supporting the running of an international yoga ashram that welcomed thousands of visitors, hosted large events, and contributed to local community initiatives.

I entered that environment wholeheartedly because I believed deeply in the possibility of transformation. I wanted to understand the limiting structures within myself—the patterns, beliefs, and conditioning that influence how we see ourselves and the world. I also wanted to contribute towards a more conscious and compassionate society.

Yet life has a way of revealing complexity where we expect certainty.

The ashram was a place dedicated to selfless service, yoga, meditation, and spiritual development, but the lived reality of a large, demanding community and institution also revealed the human challenges that exist within any environment. The ideals we aspire towards and the ways those ideals are embodied are not always the same.

Over time, the relentless intensity of that lifestyle took a toll on my body.

Adrenal burnout and nutrient depletion eventually forced me to stop and acknowledge something I had overlooked: that the body has its own wisdom, and that no vision—however meaningful—can be sustained when we move too far away from our own health.

Those years became an essential part of my own journey. They showed me that wellbeing cannot exist only as a philosophy or a set of practices. It must be lived through the body. It must include our limitations, our relationships, our emotions, our environment, and the realities of being human.

Perhaps one of the greatest lessons of both our journeys has been recognising that the experiences that challenge us the most often become the places where deeper understanding develops and a greater sense of wholeness can emerge.

Eventually, our two paths converged in New Zealand.

Together, we found our home in Parapara, Golden Bay—a place where mountains, forests, rivers, and ocean meet. Here, surrounded by the natural world, we became custodians of an off-grid permaculture property and began imagining how this place could become an offering to others.

Living close to the land has continued to teach us about balance. Nature moves through seasons. Regeneration takes time. Growth cannot be rushed or forced. The land reminds us that we are not separate from the places we live, but are continually shaped by them—by the food we grow, the rhythms we follow, the relationships we nurture, and the way we move through life.

From this understanding, Creating Balance Nature Retreat was born: a place where people can step away from constant stimulation, experience the restorative qualities of nature, and create space for reflection, renewal, and a deeper relationship with themselves.

Yet the retreat is only one expression of what we have been called to create.

The experiences we have walked through continue to influence our wider work, including our therapeutic yoga offerings. They have shaped the way we understand wellness—not as a destination to arrive at, but as an ongoing process of listening, adapting, and cultivating greater awareness of ourselves, our bodies, and the way we relate to life.

This understanding guides the way we work with others: meeting people with curiosity, compassion, and honesty, while honouring the unique experiences, challenges, and circumstances that shape each person's path.

Looking back, we feel deep gratitude for the many people who helped us along the way—for those who offered guidance, shared wisdom, provided support, or simply believed in what we were creating.

The life we have built here has emerged through countless moments of generosity, encouragement, and connection with others.

We honour the path that brought us here, while remaining open to what lies ahead.

Thank you for being part of this journey.

Take a breath.

Slow your rhythm.

And notice what becomes possible when we make space to listen more deeply—to ourselves, to others, and to the life unfolding around us.

With warmth,

Priyadhara