Yoga Teacher's Companion, #9: How to Incorporate Yoga Philosophy Into Your Classes
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ค. 2024
- In this episode of Yogaland's Yoga Teacher Companion, Jason discusses how to effectively incorporate yoga philosophy and wisdom in your classes. You'll learn how to avoid some of the common pitfalls of including philosophy, where to effectively insert it into your sequence, and the value of being simple, clear and genuine in your approach.
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CHAPTERS
2:00 Teaching yoga philosophy is not mandatory in class
3:42 Different styles of teaching philosophy
7:12 Consider teaching series’ or workshops based on philosophy
10:49 Point #1: Be Brief
13:10 Point #2: Pick the Best Time
15:02 Point #3: Be Genuine
16:48 Point #4: Just do it
ABOUT JASON:
Jason Crandell is a natural teacher and author with more than 20 years of experience. Named “one of the teachers shaping the future of yoga,” by Yoga Journal, Jason has been an in-demand teacher at conferences around the world for more than a decade.
For the past 10 years, Jason has honed his approach by looking to peers outside of the yoga community, in the fields of physical therapy, orthopedics, traumatology, and sports medicine. These collaborative partnerships have enabled Jason to offer the most up-to-date to asana technique, cueing, injury management, and hands-on adjustments. Jason’s goal is to blend the timeless wisdom of yoga philosophy with evidence-based information to create yoga curriculum that helps modern practitioners grow and evolve.
Spot in Jason! "Intimacy and vulnerability" are at the helm of sharing yoga philosophy. It requires a deep awareness of the words we choose to share the philosophy. Rather than sharing as the "end all truth", offering philosophy as an "invitation" to Svadhyaya will allow these seeds of inquiry to be explored through the lens of our student's life experience and beliefs. How the philosophy serves us today in our modern lives, is key when sharing ancient ideas.
Such an important topic, and so beautifully shared here. Thank you!
This is my 2nd time watching this video. In most of my practices, I read a verse from the Radiant Sutras at the beginning - or perhaps the end of Svasana. Generally, this verse has been chosen with care (the erotic verses are not for asana practice :) ), and I go over the verse a number of times. I'll pepper aspects of the verse into the rhetoric used in guiding the practice - usually during a moment of repose, while students have a chance to breathe. This allows me to hint at other aspects of yoga besides asana, but gives the students the physical experience that motivates students to show up on their mates with me.
Lots to think about here. My approach is to study intently, śravanam, question internally and externally , mananam, and meditate upon, niddidhyāsanam, so that the teaching becomes so embedded, so lived, that it leaches out in class and threads consistently and truthfully in our lives. Yes it is dense, and shouldn’t be reduced to sound bites, or to quoting half understood cliches, but once the teaching takes root, personally and systemically we grow in our confidence to communicate economically. Or in silence even. 🙏
I agree with you 100% about putting any philosophical discourse at the end of a practice, and the reason for it. Sometimes after a particularly sedentary day, when I just want to MOVE, dammit, even taking 15 seconds to set an intention at the beginning of class seems onerous. Don't get me wrong. I love me some Yamas.
Agree 100% Most of us are coming in fairly antsy. The last thing we need is a lecture while in seated pose. Not only is it physically uncomfortable, it's mentally straining/draining at the beginning of a practice.
@@SaraPaigeYoga seated, standing, or worse (for me, because of knee issues) child’s pose for minutes on end at the beginning of class is not something I enjoy.
@@MusicfromMarrs I feel that! Child’s pose demands deep knee and hip flexion. It’s a big pose. I have healthy knees but it still doesn’t feel great for me. My feet often cramp in child’s pose.
@@SaraPaigeYoga always great to get confirmation from someone who didn’t blow out their knee on a vaulting horse! 😎
I loved and appreciated this so much. I have only been teaching for a few years, but I had a desire come up to share yoga philosophy with my students. I took a poll first and most students were interested. But I’ve had second thoughts mainly because of imposter syndrome, and knowing that this is a LOT. Most of the students are seniors and religious, so I don’t want to offend anyone. Please send good wishes my way 🥺 thank you!
So helpful and reassuring. Thanks Jason
Thank you, Jason! This was so very helpful. You do such an amazing job clearly articulating your messages and I really appreciate that.
Interesting and helpful. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing your experience, your video is very interesting
Thank you for this helpful lecture.
Good insight
#NAMASTE.
I like when a YOGA INSTRUCTOR shares his/hers personal knowledge or even music taste in yoga practice.
* as an EXTRA SKILL'S COURSE where I got my certification with 100hs as a YOGA INSTRUCTOR, not a teacher, what I PREFER, I studied a YOGA COURSE in 2007 at SANTA MONICA COLLEGE
interesting, I'd like to point out that nobody should try to make philosophy "efficient" the yogic tradition is not a product to sell, and in the Gita or Upanishad, the teacher tells only when asked. Again, Patanjali's view of yoga doesn't represent all that yoga is, and it tends to be portrayed that way. Also, why not be honest about the origins of the teachings you aim to teach ? Is it because Hindu traditions are too much for westerners ? Internal shame here? Lack of knowledge by the teacher ( due to lack of depths during their training) leading to the teacher not feeling confident enough, knowledgeable enough?
Thanks for your thoughts, Blandine. With regards to my usage of "efficiency," I'm discussing the efficiency of communication. There are more efficient ways to communicate complex subjects and there are less efficient ways. I prefer the former. I also don't equate efficiency of communication with the dilution of the content that is being communicated. But, I also think that the depth that we go into a subject depends on the context. There are times for rigorous, detailed, and nuanced conversations about the teachings of the Yoga Tradition. There are also times to simply remember and connect to the simplicity and immediate relevance of some of these teachings. To me, an asana class is the later and that's what I'm discussing here. And, yes, Patanjali does not reflect the totality of the Yoga Tradition. In fact, with his heavy leaning on the Samkhya school which posits a dualist understanding of the cosmos, he's in absolute contrast to the teachings that come out of the Vedas. Plus, his teachings are very different from those of the original schools of Hatha Yoga. Nonetheless, modern students, I think, can glean plenty of wisdom from Patanjali, the Upanishads, the Gita, and, for that matter, other existentialists and modern neuroscientists. The origins of the Yoga Tradition simply isn't settled history. As I'm sure you know, there are strong debates about the earliest origins, especially the linguistics that contributed to the concepts that we now understand as relating to yoga. We do know quite a bit about the early traditions, but the influences on these traditions is still a matter of discussion, debate and inquiry. That's why I don't speak about them in absolutist terms in any context, let alone a drop-in yoga class at 9am on a Saturday.