What Everyone Is Saying About Certified Yoga Instructors Is Dead Wrong And Why
One of the questions I have often heard a great deal from people serious about 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 quite important to your growth and progress on your yoga path. There are many of things that occur along the way, changes associated with 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 feeling 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 necessary.
Since I truly believe I have among the very best teachers of Hatha yoga on the earth, the most clear-cut way I can think of to help answer the question above is to speak 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 30 years. He is from Kerala within the South of India, where he hails from what is known their as a "yoga family." This means that for generations upon generations, his direct ancestors, including several of his uncles other current relations, 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 within 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 a number of years ago - with no marketing budget. 99% of his student base was built upon word of mouth, and also the other 1% came by way of walk-ins or even the yellow pages. (Here is a good physical fitness hint within your look for a teacher - speak to that person's students and find out how enthusiastic they may be about the training and guidance they can be 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 one's body and immune system. This experience gives him a unique perspective, one based on both the traditional Eastern philosophy of Ayurveda and Yoga, and also the science based Western philosophy of "show us proof and we shall believe."
Admittedly, it may be very hard to discover a teacher that happens to have this unique combination of expertise, background, and credentials. And to begin studying yoga, you don't necessarily need someone as qualified as my teacher.
The vital factor is that the yoga teacher has some verifiable training or certification that can vouch for the fact that they know both the theory and application of what they're teaching. Ideally, it will be someone who has valid certification as a teacher. Whether your teacher attended free classes at the local area center for long sufficient to absorb an excellent foundation, or paid lots of money to attend every certification program and yoga retreat available, both of them are valid paths to teaching. How qualified they can be relies on the individual's natural talent, the time they spent training, and how qualified their teachers were.
This could be much more important than point 1 above. With the very best of credentials, should the person you are considering as a teacher has "alterior" motives outside of helping people advance both as students of yoga, as well as on their journey towards (yes, I am going to say it) enlightenment, then it might be a red flag.
Simply, 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 obsessed with a "power dynamic" linked to being within the role of a teacher, then you could have an issue.
As ironic and unfortunate since it is, although yoga is a spiritual and physical path towards health and well-being, because of its demands, it really is susceptible to "misuse" or even abuse. We have all heard stories of organizations that seemingly start out with the most effective intentions and then wind up in the news being accused of cult-like practices.
Around 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 just to observe (if possible.) What is 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 truly "thriving" - which 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, every single day and week, that brings him such a successful school of yoga.
What I mean by "gives away" is anything from the time he volunteers to various community organizations (i.e. he teaches for free wherever he can find a need for yoga within the community) to being available to students outside of classes to help them to with any challenge they could be facing. He is a natural "therapist", and people talk to him about anything from health concerns to marital problems, crisis in business or career, or what ever.
He does this because he truly believes that human beings in our times are in desperate need of the wisdom contained in yoga, on both spiritual and physical levels. His most prominent motivation, both in his words and in his deeds, is to "help people." This quality of his character can be very apparent, and I am certain it explains the success of his yoga practice.
Although there is no perfect formula as well as "perfect" yoga teacher, I hope that by utilizing my teacher as a model, I have given you a useful frame of reference when you set out to discover your yoga teacher. Just do some homework and trust your intuition, and simply, enjoy each moment.
