Ten years ago Peter Sterios, an architect turned yogi, discovered a simple, elegantly designed black mat whose combination of firm grip and complete support revolutionized his yoga practice. In honor of the yoga masters who inspired him, he sought to share this amazing product with others. Peter had always been the beneficiary of great generosity from other yoga teachers. To repay that debt, he sent mats as gifts to many of the teachers he admired including Erich Schiffmann, Rod Stryker, Angela Farmer, Victor Van Kooten, Rodney Yee, and Shiva Rea. The teachers who inspired Peter were his first customers. And in the great yoga tradition, they shared their mats with their students, and a true yoga company was born. Peter chose the name Manduka in homage to his teacher and mentor, Shandor Remete, whose core practice and teaching always included the ancient Hatha Yoga Pradipika pose, Mandukasana or frog. The joy of Manduka is now spoken in more than 35 countries all over the world.