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John Schumacher
(founder of the Unity Woods Yoga Center)
Spring 2000
Letter
"Learning is as much an art as teaching."
--B.K.S. Iyengar
NAMASTE,
Several years ago I wrote a series of newsletters suggesting some of the
requirements I feel are necessary for being a good yoga teacher. In those
essays, I discussed a number of responsibilities that accompany the decision
to be a teacher and emphasized some of the qualities I think it takes to be
a good one.
Students have responsibilities, too, and there are qualities that make a
good student as well. Learning yoga, at least the way we approach it here at
Unity Woods, is not simply purchasing a product. You are, as a student,
entering into an agreement by which you have an opportunity to acquire the
knowledge and skills necessary to develop your practice of yoga. As with any
agreement, both sides have obligations to fulfill if the agreement is to
work. So let's take a look at what some of the students' responsibilities
are.
I suspect that some students come in with the idea that all they have to do
is show up. Of course, that is the first order of business - you do have to
come to class to get what we have to offer. Quite frankly, I learned solely
from books for the first three years of my yoga practice. It is possible to
learn a lot about yoga without going to class. The reason for attending
classes, though, is to accelerate your learning process, help you to avoid
dead-end paths in your practice, and assist you with any problems that may
arise. In attending classes, a good student should observe a few basic
rules. Most of them are simple rules of courtesy.
Be on time. If you are late, your entry is a distraction to the teacher and
to the rest of the class. Beyond the issue of courtesy, you also do yourself
a disservice by coming late, since the class is put together in such a way
that the opening prepares you for what is to come.
Pay attention. The teacher is up there trying her best to convey the beauty
and subtlety of yoga and it is her job to keep the ball rolling; but as in
any interaction, some effort on your part is required. It is just plain rude
to be glancing around the room, yawning, cleaning your fingernails, looking
bored and uninterested, or chatting with your neighbor. If your teacher is
boring, find another teacher. Believe me, there are definitely teachers who
can make the subject come alive for you. Keep looking - it's worth it.
Be respectful. Your teacher is (or should be) a professional who has devoted
years to the study and practice of yoga. You may, either by previous study
or reading or hearsay, have your own ideas about yoga. Leave them at the
door. Be an empty vessel so that you can receive what the teacher has to
offer. I don't mean that the teacher knows everything or is infallible. If
something doesn't make sense or doesn't seem to work for you, you should
feel free to ask about it. And the teacher should be delighted to try to
help clarify, adjust, or correct the situation; after all, that's what he's
there for. But challenging a teacher or insisting on your own opinion in
class is disrespectful and puts significant impediments in the path of your
learning. If you have serious disagreements or problems with your teacher,
talk with him outside of class. If you don't trust your teacher's knowledge
and/or intentions, I would suggest speaking to him, and if that is
unsatisfactory, find another teacher.
Beyond these simple rules of courtesy are a few things that, if observed,
can make you a much better student and make your experience with yoga
significantly more rewarding.
Something to keep in mind that may help you to be a good student is that
we're not really teaching you yoga; we're teaching you how to practice so
that you can discover yoga for yourself. To be a good student, it is
important to practice. I know that this is may be demoralizing, since
establishing a practice is the most difficult part of yoga. Still, no
practice, no yoga. You wouldn't expect to learn to play the piano by playing
just once a week during your lesson. Why would you expect that yoga would be
different? You can have an experience; you might enjoy yourself; you will
learn something - but if you don't practice, you won't really do more than
scratch the surface of yoga.
More than anything else, the issue of practice separates the ordinary
student from the good student. How much you practice; what you practice; how
you practice - all of these things will determine whether you progress and
how rapidly. And a good student is one who makes progress, grows in his/her
practice, brings enthusiasm to the exploration of her/himself through yoga,
and finds joy and illumination in the process.
This will happen more readily if you don't worry about getting it right.
Instead, observe carefully what you are doing and what the results are. Each
person's needs and abilities are different, and you will have to adjust what
you learn in class to your own capacity and requirements. This is another
reason why practice is so important.
Put your full effort into it. Yoga is always in accord with the laws of the
universe, and one of those laws is that you get out what you put in. By
effort, I don't necessarily mean physical straining and forcing. More often
than not the effort of directing your attention and energy is more important
and productive than just working hard physically - and more difficult.
These are a few of the things that will help you to become a good student.
Of course, the entire discussion raises the issue of good and bad - a bit of
a sticky wicket. On one level, of course, there is no good or bad anything -
teacher, student, person. We are just playing our parts in the dance of
Being, and playing those parts perfectly. But we do use those terms - good,
bad - in the course of our lives. Good drivers, bad shots, good taste, bad
time, etc. It is that level that I am addressing, and on that level, some
students are better than others. More importantly, whether or not someone is
a good student is not something that can be measured on an objective scale.
It is a complex question that takes into consideration what the student
brings to the process, what the student wants from yoga, what the teacher
brings to the process, and what the teacher wants from the student. Some
teachers and students want to teach/learn increasingly fancier and more
difficult poses. Other teachers and students want to teach/learn how to feel
comfortable and happy. Some teachers and students want simply to be present,
with all that that implies. The only good reason for being a good student is
that in so doing, you will taste the sweetness of the fruit of yoga more
readily.
Reprinted with permission from
www.unitywoods.com
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