Pujjis Wellness Retreat

Arvind Pujji embodies the spirit of Pujjis Wellness Retreat. He is a wellness educator and a mystic, who blends the best of his Indian heritage with what he has learned in New Zealand to serve the needs of his guests at Pujjis.

Arvind is a trained and experienced bodywork practitioner and yoga teacher, with years of experience in facilitating private retreats, workshops and trainings in self awareness, yoga therapy, bodywork, massage, detox and fasting.

He appreciates the need for people to be nurtured and supported through transitions, to discover ease in their bodies, to make peace in their lives and to live in grace.

Arvind compares his retreat to the inns of olden times... where people came to pause, take rest, remember and recharge themselves. As an "Innkeeper of modern times", he offers the same opportunities to his guests which often leads to a lasting personal enhancement of their lives.

Pujjis has been recognized as the first Wellness Retreat in New Zealand to be endorsed as a visitor activity by Tourism New Zealand standards authority, as well as receiving 4 star plus for our accommodation. We are dedicated to sustainable tourism and best practice ethics. We are founding members the Nelson-Tasman Sustainable Tourism Charter which is part of a joint venture between Ministrys' of Tourism and for the Environment.

Arvind Pujji

Arvind was born in Punjab, India, and was raised in his family tradition of Devotional Yoga. Here he learned the fundamental principles of life, and the concept of oneness that deep within "all people are the same."

Arvind traveled to New Zealand in 1975 at 22 years of age, in pursuit of love. This relationship lead to the birth of his two beautiful children, Jasmine and Benjamin. When the relationship with his wife ended, it lead to a strong desire within him to search for greater meaning and depth in his life.

This took him back to India in search of a spiritual guide and teacher. After two years on this quest, at a seminar in Delhi, he finally resonated with a spiritual teacher named Anand Baba from Vrindavan, India. Anand Baba taught Arvind with and about love; about being present and being in service to the world. Arvind was privileged to recognize him as his mentor, his guru.

In 1985, Arvind became an initiate of Anand Baba, and for the next two years immersed himself in the learning environment around him. As Arvind excelled in his service, Anand Baba recommended him on scholarship to attend a 9 month Yoga teachers training. He graduated at the top of his class and acquired a Post Graduate Diploma in Yoga Education from Kaivalyadhama Institute in India in 1986. This was the start of an eventual career in wellness.

He continued to train with other teachers, in the various traditions of Yoga. He also became interested in Naturopathy, and began learning about nutrition, hydrotherapy, colonics, fasting and detox. Healthy cooking and healthy relationship to food became another important aspect of Arvind's education.

In late 1987, he left India and returned to New Zealand. Here he discovered Hellerwork, and in 1991 graduated as a Certified Hellerwork Practitioner. In this professional training, he learned deep tissue bodywork to release tension and stress in the body, and movement education, designed to realign the body. This became an important foundation for his future Bodywork practice and teaching.

In 1991 he set up a practice in Nelson and Wellington, offering Hellerwork, as well as teaching occasional Yoga and Bodywork workshops in Nelson and around New Zealand.

In 1994 he enhanced his credentials by studying CranioSacral Therapy with the Upledger Institute in the USA, and was certified as a Level Two Cranial-Sacral Therapy Practitioner.

To continue his education, he further studied Hakoni, a body-centered psychotherapy, Voice Dialog Method of psychology and participated in several Men's Gatherings. This balanced his Eastern mysticism studies with the understanding of current Western clinical practices.

In 1995, he founded the Shivaya Healing Arts Centre in Nelson, incorporating his private practice and workshops. This inspired many of his clients to become practitioners, leading Arvind to offer teacher trainings in Bodywork and Yoga therapy.

In 1997, the Shivaya Healing Centre became the Maitai Retreat, located in the beautiful Maitai Valley in Nelson, to accommodate a greater demand for his teachings.

In 2004, Maitai Retreat was transformed into Pujjis Wellness Retreat, to also include personalised wellness experiences for his guests, where Arvind now offers Bodywork, Yoga Therapy, Postural Awareness, Juice Fasting and Relationship Communication skills. In luxurious accommodation, next to the gently flowing Maitai River, guests enjoy relaxation, rejuvenation and wellness practices in a beautiful natural setting. Enhanced physical and emotional balance, spiritual connection and lasting personal change are often the outcome of staying at Pujjis.