I began my training as a yoga teacher and found that it was slowly pulling the joy out of the practice for me. A great deal of my practice has taken place at home, under the direction of Sri Patabhi Jois, the developer of Ashtanga yoga, via my favorite video. It is free of frills, the same every time so you can focus on breath, alignment, and a single visual point of focus. It’s not for everyone, but I loved it. I’ve practiced with that video thousands of times. This habit protected me from the consumerism of yoga, which I have found to be soul-dampening of late. The ideas of profitability, of leaving certain demographics out of my scope, and the intense focus on the physical practice, which is only mentioned two times in the 196 sutras which codified the practice of yoga, began to subtract the love and fearlessness which I believe are goals of any yoga teacher. The Buddha, Jesus, SN Goenka, Gandhi, King, Tolle, Thoreau; they did not focus on business. The mission and practice spoke for themselves. (Can I just acknowledge the overwhelming maleness of that list, and of the more visible spiritual teachers throughout time?!)
A class which focuses on fitness, power, toning, or anything of the sort doesn’t meet the definition of yoga. The word yoga means union, and to reconnect with our union with the Divine, it is a great help verging on essential to actually know we’re doing it. We need to come to class with that intention, and receive cues which consciously direct us to that goal. I didn’t know there were eight limbs in a yoga practice until I trained as a teacher, I certainly am not alone in this, and I think that is detrimental. When I finally realized the type of practice I want to teach and observe, energy and passion were immediately infused into each action.
I attended my first 10 day silent meditation retreat without paying any money up front. In fact, they won’t allow you to. You sit through the grueling days, wondering if you can make it through, but with the humility that you are living on the kindness of students who have come before you. Your simple room and the most wonderful vegetarian food has been supplied by previous donations, and this allows for a profoundly expectation-free experience which can free the aspirant from the pitfalls of consumerism. Each day is a literal gift from an anonymous beautiful soul out there wishing you well. In terms of a conscious business model, it doesn’t get better than that.
And finally, this model will not yet appeal to everyone. I took space before I began to teach, to allow the ideas to distill, filter, and even fall away before I became embedded in a practice that didn’t resonate, and I choose to teach this way because it is what I wish I had and is in line with the original intention of yoga. The online delivery method allows for reach as well as provides each student the opportunity to practice in community without competition and distraction. Even better, a recording of class is sent to everyone who registers, making each class accessible to all schedules. While screens can be our biggest distractions, they can also bring the world to our fingertips, and in this way connect us profoundly, if we use them well. My mission is to reach as many people as I can with this casual yet disciplined and holistic style of yoga which I hope will proliferate, to be a bridge that so many need to cross over from merely group fitness to a transformative, healing, and enlightening lifestyle practice.
There is a reason yoga made its way to the West, but it got lost in translation. Let’s retranslate.
Heather Ralston 