The Twelve Best Things About Yoga Teachers

Among the questions I already know a lot from people interested in yoga is "I would like to know how I can find a good yoga teacher?" And if your ready to begin practicing yoga and asking that question yourself, your smart to do so.

Having the best teacher is very vital to your growth and progress on your yoga path. There are tons of things that occur on the way, changes linked to physical, energetic, and spiritual growth, and sometimes obstacles emerge. All of these things make a student of yoga curious, sometimes anxious, other times maybe even vulnerable to a false experience of power (ego.) Having a teacher that can answer questions and provide reassurance at crucial moments, as well as the capability to help balance and adjust a student's perspective when necessary, is crucial.

Since I truly believe I have among the very best teachers of Hatha yoga on the planet, the most straightforward way I can think of to help answer the question above is to talk from experience about the qualities I have seen in my teacher, Shashi Pottatil.

Shashi is a man within his 50's (although he could pass for late 30's) who has been a teacher of yoga for more than thirty years. He is from Kerala in the South of India, where he hails from what is known their as a "yoga family." This means for generations upon generations, his direct ancestors, including several of his uncles other current family members, were yoga teachers. In a sense, yoga is "in his blood" perhaps literally.

Currently he is one of the highest ranking certified teachers of the Yoga Alliance, the most prestigious yoga certification organization based here in the states. He regularly volunteers as a teacher at churches, synagogs, retirement homes, and works with cancer patients to enable them to harness the health-giving power of yoga to fight their disease. His studio in Mira Mesa, CA "Yoga and Meditation Center" is a thriving yoga practice that he started several years ago - with no marketing budget. 99% of his student base was built upon word of mouth, and the other 1% came by way of walk-ins or the yellow pages. (Here is a great hint within your search for a teacher - talk to that person's students and find out how enthusiastic they may be about the training and guidance they're receiving.)

Besides his experience and credentials in traditional Hatha yoga, he has degrees in science and business, and was an executive for pharmaceutical company based in India. From this connection to the scientific community, he took part in scientific research studies of the affects of yoga on the body and immune system. This experience gives him a unique perspective, one based upon both the traditional Eastern philosophy of Ayurveda and Yoga, and also the science based Western philosophy of "show us proof and we will believe."

Admittedly, it may be very hard to search out a teacher that happens to have this unique combination of expertise, background, and credentials. And also to begin studying yoga, you don't necessarily need someone as qualified as my teacher.

The significant point is that the yoga teacher has some verifiable training or certification that may vouch for the fact that they know both the theory and application of what they're teaching. Ideally, this may be somebody that has valid certification as a teacher. Whether your teacher attended free classes at the local area center for long sufficient to absorb the best physical fitness foundation, or paid many money to attend every certification program and yoga retreat available, they both are valid paths to teaching. How qualified they may be is determined by the individual's natural talent, the time they spent training, and just how qualified their teachers were.

This might be even more important than point 1 above. With the very best of credentials, in the event the person you are considering as a teacher has "alterior" motives outside of helping people advance both as students of yoga, and also on their journey towards (yes, I am going to say it) enlightenment, then it could possibly be a red flag.

Now, I am not claiming that yoga teachers should only teach from the goodness of their heart with no eye towards creating a viable business and livelihood for themselves with their teaching endeavors. What I am saying is, if their motivation is inappropriately slanted towards personal gain (whether financial, sexual, or else) or if perhaps they're overly obsessive about a "power dynamic" affiliated with being within the role of a teacher, then you could have an issue.

As ironic and unfortunate because it is, although yoga is a spiritual and also physical path towards well being as well as well-being, because of its nature, it is susceptible to "misuse" as well as abuse. We have all heard stories of organizations that seemingly start out with the most effective intentions and after that end up within the news being accused of cult-like practices.

As much as I am not trying to scare anyone with this discussion, I am simply saying, take your time and do your research. Speak to some students, and attend at least one class only to observe (if possible.) What will be the dynamic between the students and teachers? What does your intuition tell you about both the qualifications and character of the teacher or studio you are considering?

Lets return to my model yoga teacher, Shashi. His yoga studio is actually "thriving" - and this includes financially. Ironically, this appears to be the case as a result of how focused he is on helping people, not taking from them. To put it yet another way, it is what he gives away, just about every day and week, that brings him such a successful school of yoga.

What I mean by "gives away" is everything from the time he volunteers to various community organizations (i.e. he teaches for free wherever he can locate a necessity for yoga within the community) to being available to students outside of classes to help them with any challenge they may be facing. He is a natural "therapist", and people talk to him about everything from health concerns to marital problems, crisis in business or professional life, or whatever.

He does this because he truly believes that human beings in our times will be in desperate need of the wisdom contained in yoga, on both spiritual and physical levels. His most prominent motivation, both in his words as well as in his deeds, is to "help people." This quality of his character is very apparent, and I am certain it explains the success of his yoga practice.

Although there's no perfect formula or perhaps "perfect" yoga teacher, I hope that by utilizing my teacher as a model, I have given you a useful frame of reference as you set out to find your yoga teacher. Just do some homework and trust your intuition, and simply, enjoy each moment.