REFLECTIONS - March 2000

An advertisement for a yoga teacher training course caught my eye recently because a couple of years ago the organisation sponsoring it had asked me to set up such a course under their auspices. I refused because they envisioned a broadly based course whereas my only interest is in training people in the Iyengar tradition. This is what I am qualified to do, and there are prerequisites to be met before receiving this training which would inevitably limit the number of participants. The organisation which approached me has high overheads to meet and casts a wide net to attract participants. It is not in their best interest to be very selective. Although it is politically incorrect to make such a statement these days, I feel yoga teacher training courses should be not only selective but exclusive: excluding those who have not yet laid down a firm foundation of yoga philosophy and practice in their own lives nor made a commitment to the system of Yoga in which training is offered.

Alas, many people are being trained to teach yoga with little or no understanding of the vast and ancient body of teachings on which all yoga practices are based. I get phone calls from people who want to teach yoga who have done no yoga at all. One woman had decided she did not want to pursue her school teaching career and that she might like to teach yoga instead. Another was an aerobics instructor but because of her age she thought her days in this line of work were numbered and she might take up yoga. These people were not enquiring about yoga classes which they could attend as a student but about yoga teacher training.

Those who apply to take our Iyengar Yoga teacher training apprenticeship in Victoria must have completed a minimum of two years as a student with an experienced Iyengar Yoga teacher. Equally important, they must have established a regular personal practice and attend level three or four classes. They are further required
- to be committed to Iyengar Yoga both as a practice and a way of life
- have an awareness of the ethical basis of yoga, the yamas and niyamas.
- show evidence of developing an intelligent and compassionate awareness of their own actions and those of students with whom they practice
- be willing to participate in the development of Iyengar Yoga in the community.

The training takes a minimum of three years including a year of internship, and this is only the beginning to give them what Mr. Iyengar would call a base on which to build. Obviously we have a responsibility to know something about people before we make such a commitment which involves preparing them for certification and assessment at a national level.

In addition to the practical side of their training, student teachers have an extensive reading list which includes ancient texts such as Patanjali's yoga-sutras and the Bhagavad Gita, and they are required to write essays on various topics relating to these texts. These papers are reviewed by their training teachers and further discussions take place at our monthly teachers' meetings where all teachers from the most experienced to the latest graduate will have spent time investigating, reflecting and writing on these texts. Yoga teachers must have a good grasp of the fundamentals of yoga philosophy and be putting them into practice in their own lives.

You can, of course, take the training and go off and do your own thing. Sadly, in a few cases, people have left without completing their training and set themselves up as teachers. Anyone can call themselves a yoga teacher, and there are no licensing authorities. We cannot stop them. However, through worldwide certification under the auspices of national associations and registration of an international trademark, steps are being taken to prevent people calling themselves Iyengar Yoga teachers unless they are trained, certified and teach this method. Moreover, introductory certification does not give you the authority to train others to teach: this has to be under the direction of an experienced teacher holding a higher level of certification. All these steps have been implemented according to Mr. Iyengar's wishes and with his guidance.

For the most part we have found that by the time candidates have successfully completed their three years of training they will have developed sufficient awareness of the vastness and complexity of yoga along with recognition of their own ignorance that they are eager to pursue their learning. Rather than seeing themselves as experts, they see themselves as students of yoga who, having benefited personally from this work, have an inherent responsibility to pass these teachings on to others in as unadulterated a fashion as possible.

Because our teacher training includes involvement in the community, they will also have begun to understand the relevance of karma yoga to their own spiritual development. This is an integral part of what we refer to as "the work".

When I was approached by my first yoga teacher to see if I was interested in teaching, the training offered was much shorter, less organised and less demanding than it is now. Some of the same prerequisites were there, including having a personal practice and service within the local community.

In the late sixties there were only two teachers on the scene in Victoria, both of whom were English and had become interested in yoga while living in India as part of the Raj: Gordon Limbrick who had served there as an army officer, and Jessica Tucker (my first teacher) who grew up there with her family. She was a good teacher, encouraging her students to study all aspects of yoga. It was she who directed me towards Light on Yoga by B.K.S. Iyengar which she described as the best book available on hatha yoga thereby introducing me to the work of the Yoga Master who would later become my teacher. She also introduced me to Swami Radha, another of my mentors.

Shortly after I had taken my first yoga class Swami Radha came to Victoria to give a series of talks on yoga, and Jessica encouraged her students to go to these talks and learn something about yoga philosophy. I went and found myself fascinated by a school of thought which seemed so sane and just.

Shortly before Swami Radha's second visit, Jessica approached me to see if I were interested in teaching yoga. So many people wanted to take classes and there were so few teachers. I replied that although I had not considered it before, I would give the matter some thought. Jessica then went on to say that Swami Radha would be conducting a special workshop called a Straightwalk for a dozen people and had suggested it would be beneficial for anyone considering becoming a yoga teacher. Svadhaya or self-study is another yogic practice which is fundamental for everyone on the yogic path and especially important for teachers in helping us put our egos aside and focus on transmitting the teachings as clearly as possible.

I had had my first exposure to Eastern philosophy from a man who conducted a series of encounters groups or what he called "sensitivity training". I can see now that his emphasis on taking responsibility for one's own journey through life was very yogic. A former United Church minister, he was well versed in spiritual teachings from many religions and cultures and in my case expanded a mind which had been closed to most art, culture and thought other than that emanating from Europe. Thanks to him when I eventually met Swami Radha I was not completely overwhelmed by the ideas she presented.

At this Straightwalk, Swami Radha asked us to reflect on two questions. What is the purpose of your life? What makes your life worth living? Many of us there were mothers with young children not working outside the home at that time. We were asked to put down our thoughts on paper and, later, to read them aloud to the group. The first person to read her paper was a friend of mine who stated that what made her life worth living was her family, her husband and two children. Swami Radha looked at her for a moment two and then posed another question. If, on returning home tonight you find there has been an accident and your family has perished, what then would make your life worthwhile? There was a collective sucking in of breath as we quickly personalised and processed this question. What kind of note was this to bring into a spiritual workshop? Who wanted to consider this option?

Swami Radha had our full attention now as she went on to expound a philosophy wherein each of our lives had a purpose independent of everyone else on this planet, and to discover and pursue this purpose was the most important thing in our life. At the same time, she also talked about selfless service, how this could make you divine. It was a little difficult for me to make a connection here. Wasn't I being selfless in devoting my life to my family? Well, apparently not.

I was a free agent when I got married. I used birth control to decide on the timing of the births of my three children. I came willingly to Canada when Derek decided that was the course he would like to take. I sacrificed my preferences to live in Paris or Rome or if this was not really feasible to stay in London. I made my choices, and here I was doing my duty, but with a good deal of discontent and very little grace. This, as I was to discover, is not in the spirit of karma yoga.

However, discontent serves a purpose when it encourages you to look at yourself and your life and make changes. Swami Radha sometimes spoke of this as 'divine discontent' and it was this which turned me in the direction of the Yoga.

Swami Radha made it very clear that whether we chose to follow the spiritual path as she did as a celibate living in a spiritual centre or took the path of the householder living with our family in the city, on our spiritual journey we would be faced with constant distraction and interference from the world around us and the world within us. We would be tempted again and again to put other things ahead of our spiritual development. A disciplined body and mind were required to withstand these distractions and the only way to acquire them was through practice - constant practice. In the beginning we need to shop around to find the right practices for us, there are many to choose from, but eventually we have to make a choice and stick with it for a considerable period of time.

We must accept responsibility for the choices we have made. Naturally, those of us who had chosen to have children had a duty to bring them up to maturity with as much grace and good will as possible. At the same time, while nourishing them, we must also take time to nourish ourselves. Search for the Light, stay in touch with the Light. Whatever our duty, however difficult, with the Light to guide and strengthen us we would overcome our resistance and reluctance. Family, friends, profession, talents could all be used to enhance or impede our progress on the spiritual path; it was up to us. Give your best effort to your spiritual growth, and stop making excuses. If you have the will to do so you will find the time and space for your practice. If you are a parent, it will make you a better parent. If you are a physician, it will make you a better physician. If you are a teacher, it will make you a better teacher.

Before becoming a teacher of yoga, its practice and teachings must be integral to your life. Yoga is not, as commonly thought, a few stretching techniques which will help you relax and feel better without effort and without having to change anything fundamental. Yoga is a revolutionary practice which may turn your life upside down and cause a great deal of disturbance before revealing all its benefits. This is its purpose: to encourage you to discard everything which weakens you. The only way to find true and lasting strength is by knowing your self, your true self.

If you have begun this work with sincerity and conviction, if you have followed the practices of a particular tradition of yoga for some time, if you feel drawn to pass on the benefits of your practice through teaching or perhaps your teacher has expressed the opinion that you would make a good teacher - then this may be the time to consider taking a teacher training course following the tradition in which you have gained some experience. There is built-in safety in following in the footsteps of a teacher who has walked this path before. There are risks in practising yoga without the guidance of a qualified teacher. In the words of a Buddhist nun I once heard: the ego is always there ready and waiting to grab the techniques and run off with them. Yoga practices are powerful and when Practiced indiscriminately and out of context they can be harmful and detrimental to your health and well being. This is why Mr. Iyengar asks that those using his name become certified by teachers whose work is accountable to him.

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