JAMES CHARD

James is a child of the '70s who grew up in England watching TV programs like "Kung Fu" with David Carradine; the humble monk who helped others made a greater impression on this youngster than anyone knew at the time.

Having had a very successful career in IT in the cable and satellite industry, James moved to Thailand in the late '90s, initially teaching scuba diving. He then headed to China, finding exactly what he was looking for in Teacher Wan's Hun Yuen Wu Dao martial arts school. Here he experienced first-hand (and often with bruises!) the energies of the Universe that had enchanted him so all those years before.

A twist of fate (aka SARS) sent James back to Thailand a year later, where, after a couple of strange coincidences, he found himself in an Agama class.

James taught in Thailand during the 2005 and 2006 seasons. Having taken Swami Vivekananda's advice and cared for dying people in India, James returned to England where he founded Agama UK. He has re-started academic studies, and is currently based at the University of East Anglia in Norwich, where he will become a medical doctor (MB/BS) sometime around 2013.

Three things to know about me:

1) I'm a Mac.
2) My iPod has "Memento mori" engraved on her.
3) Not five minutes in a day go by without me remembering one of Swami's teachings.

I'm grateful for all of these.