Why Everything You Know About Certified Yoga Instructors Is A Lie

One of the questions I already know a great deal from people considering yoga is "I would like to know how I can locate a good yoga teacher?" And if your ready to begin practicing yoga and asking that question yourself, your smart to do so.

Having a great teacher is extremely essential to your growth and progress on your yoga path. There are plenty of issues which occur on 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, in other cases maybe even vulnerable to a false feeling of power (ego.) Having a teacher that will answer questions and provide reassurance at crucial moments, and also the ability to help balance and adjust a student's perspective when necessary, is vital.

Since I truly believe I have one of the very best yoga trainer teachers of Hatha yoga on the earth, the most clear-cut 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) that 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." It means that for generations upon generations, his direct ancestors, including several of his uncles other current close family, 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 help them 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 perhaps the yellow pages. (Here is a great hint in your look for a teacher - talk to that person's students and find out how enthusiastic they can 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 participated 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 quite hard to seek out a teacher that happens to have this unique combination of experience, background, and credentials. And also to begin studying yoga, you do not necessarily need someone as qualified as my teacher.

The important thing is the fact 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 are teaching. Ideally, it will be someone that has valid certification as a teacher. Whether your teacher attended free classes at the local community center for long sufficient to absorb a great foundation, or paid plenty of money to attend every certification program and yoga retreat available, they both are valid paths to teaching. How qualified they're is determined by the person's natural talent, the time they spent training, and how qualified their teachers were.

This may very well be even 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 could be a red flag.

Essentially, 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 they may be overly obsessed with a "power dynamic" linked to being in the role of a teacher, in which case you might have an issue.

As ironic and unfortunate since it is, although yoga is a spiritual and physical path towards health and well-being, by its very nature, it's susceptible to "misuse" or perhaps abuse. We have all heard stories of organizations that seemingly start out with the most effective intentions and then find yourself in the news being accused of cult-like practices.

Just as much as I am not trying to scare anyone with this discussion, I am simply saying, take your time and do your investigation. Speak to some students, and attend at least one class just 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 truly "thriving" - and this includes financially. Ironically, this appears to be the case due to how focused he is on helping people, not taking from them. To put it one other way, it's what he gives away, almost every 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 requirement for yoga in the community) to being available to students outside of classes to help them to with any challenge they can be facing. He is a natural "therapist", and people talk to him about anything from medical problems to marital problems, crisis in business or career, 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 within his words as well as in his deeds, is to "help people." This quality of his character is quite apparent, and I am certain it explains the success of his yoga practice.

Although there isn't any perfect formula or even "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 as always, enjoy each moment.