Nouf Al Marwaai – Saudi Arabia’s first yoga acharya
(Our Bureau, May 24) When you are fighting a battle with your body, it’s not easy to overcome the odds and become an example for others. That’s why Saudi Arabian national Nouf Al Marwaai stands out. Born with an autoimmune disease that eventually started affecting her kidneys and prevented her from leading a normal life, Nouf took to yoga at the age of 19 in 1999. Suffering from excrutiating joint, muscles and body pain, Nouf was unable to do much at that time. Nouf first went to Australia to obtain a diploma in physiology and anatomy, and that’s where she was introduced to Hatha yoga, weight management and stress release therapy. Subsequently, she traveled to India – where yoga originated some 5,000 years ago – and trained under teachers across Kerala, Delhi and the Himalayas. Here she learned not just the asanas, but also the practice of Ayurveda-based healing. Her condition started improving drastically and she became a big proponent of yoga. Giving Back It was then tha...