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Fall 1996

NAMASTE,

This fall we are expanding the Arlington schedule to include weekend classes and a special Thursday afternoon class for breast cancer survivors. (For more information on these classes see page 3). To do this we are adding three new teachers to the faculty: Colleen McClintock, Helen McVey and Mary Pappas-Sandonas. All three have maintained a devoted and diligent practice for years; they have attended numerous classes and workshops with nationally and internationally recognized senior teachers here at Unity Woods and in other parts of the country; and they have apprenticed, assisted and practice taught under my guidance for several more years.

The process of becoming a yoga teacher varies with each person, each tradition, each teacher’s teacher. I have taught a lot of teachers over the years. The variety of people I have encountered who have expressed a desire to teach and their reasons for doing so are quite amazing. I’ve had calls from people who have read an article about yoga in a magazine and thought it sounded interesting. They’ve never had a yoga class in their lives, haven’t practiced yoga at all, and based on a magazine article have decided they want to teach yoga! (I suggested that perhaps they might want to try a class and see if they liked it before starting training to be a teacher.) Others, like Mary, Helen and Colleen, have practiced for years and have felt a growing urge to share something that has gradually become a valuable and important part of their lives.

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Although anyone can hang out their shingle and call themselves a yoga teacher, to be a skilled instructor takes a lot of consistent effort and dedication. In the Iyengar tradition certification takes a minimum of three years. At Unity Woods, where many of our teachers are certified Iyengar teachers, the process takes even longer and is quite rigorous.

To my mind certain qualities are crucial for being a truly fine teacher. The first and foremost is that one must love one’s practice. Not just do it, which is essential, but love it. It’s the love of practice (which doesn’t necessarily mean it isn’t a struggle sometimes) and the fruits that that love bears that form and guide the teaching. Anyone can repeat what they read in a book or what a teacher tells them. But teachers who teach from their own practice teach with an authority and confidence that only direct experience can produce. They know what they’re talking about and demonstrating, and the students know they know. Furthermore these teachers know what they don’t know, which is also very important. Pretense has no place in teaching yoga. Indeed the essential aim of yoga is to cut through pretense, mistaken concepts and second hand ideas. Through their practice these teachers experience the results of that practice, and it is those results, that fruit, that is the gift they offer their students.

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There are many other qualities and factors that go into being a good teacher. Lack of space limits my going into that now, but it might make an interesting topic for a future newsletter.

In the meantime suffice it to say that I have total confidence in Helen, Mary, and Colleen’s devotion to the practice of yoga and their ability to convey the principles and practices of this art and science to their pupils. I am proud to be associated with them and to welcome them to our family of excellent teachers. And I invite you to attend their free introductory classes, so you can see for yourself the quality of teaching that has made Unity Woods one of the largest and most respected yoga centers in the country.