Fall 2016 Student Manual Excerpts

Student Manual Excerpts Ashtangasana Yoga Studio Training Curriculum

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The  Origins  of  Yoga  

“The  history  of  yoga  stretches  back  to  the  Vedic  Period,  which  begins  about  1500  BCE.    But  the  term  yoga,  as  a  vast  body  of  spiritual  beliefs,  physical  techniques  and  scholarly  philosophy  was  first  developed  over  5,000  years  ago,  in  India.    

During  the  Veda  period  there  was  a  significant  amount  written  on  the  philosophical  and  spiritual  aspects  of  Hinduism.  The  Vedas  were  the  collected  scriptures  of  the  Vedic  Age/Sciences  and  branched  off  into  four  different  categories:  Samhita,  Brahmanas,  Aranyakas  and  lastly  Upanishads.  The  first  category  was  called  Samhita.  The  Samhita  was  comprised  of  four  hymns,  one  being  the  Rig  Veda,  which  is  considered  to  be  the  oldest  and  most  important  collection  of  hymns.  The  Rig-­Veda  really  represented  the  true  essence  of  Vedic  philosophy  “  (p.  14).  

What  is  a  Yoga  Teacher?  

“As  yoga  is  a  spiritual  tradition,  a  science  and  an  art,  we  are  teaching  a  multidimensional,  complex  system  that  has  it’s  origins  in  the  8  Limbs  of  Yoga.    

We  are  not  just  asana  teachers,  we  are  facilitators  and  may  be  even  the  catalysts  to  our  student’s  deeper  understanding  of  themselves  and  their  place  in  the  continuum  of  life  and  the  universe.    

Unlike  other  professions,  we  cannot  have  a  professional  role  and  personal  role.  We  must  practice  what  we  preach.  How  often  do  you  see  a  smoking,  junk  

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personal  role.  We  must  practice  what  we  preach.  How  often  do  you  see  a  smoking,  junk  food  eating  yoga  teacher?  But  practicing  what  we  teach  comes  rather  easy  because  we  love  the  model,  the  practice  and  want  to  share  our  wisdom  and  love.    

The  beauty  of  the  8  limbs  is  the  more  we  live  and  breath  it,  the  more  our  inner  beauty  shows  thru  and  teaching  becomes  our  passion….you  want  to  share  it”              (p.  48).    

 

Sequencing  Poses  More  Effectively    

“For  a  sequence  to  be  effective  and  to  allow  the  student  to  progress  in  a  way  that  allows  them  to  be  prepared  for  the  more  challenging  poses,  understanding  the  types  of  poses  is  the  first  step  in  the  learning  process.  

 If  a  teacher  understands  the  type  of  pose,  they  will  understand  more  easily,  where  these  poses  are  most  effectively  placed  in  a  sequence.  Poses  have  different  intentions  and  uses  for  the  body.    

The  beginning  of  a  practice  usually  starts  with  poses  that  flow  to  warm  up  the  body  and  proceed  with  standing  poses  to  develop  strength.  Teachers  can  choose  poses  to  facilitate  spinal  mobility  through  twists  and  folds.  Poses  can  encourage  balance,  which  can  lead  to  a  stillness  and  focus  in  the  practice.    

When  we  look  at  a  pose,  we  think  about  the  type  of  pose  it  is  and  where  that  might  be  placed  in  a  sequence”  (p.  119).  

 

Variations  

“There  is  so  much  wonderful  creativity  in  every  pose.  As  a  new  teacher,  there  are  so  many  poses  to  learn  and  become  familiar  with,  but  in  time  they  become  second  nature.    

As  leading  a  class  through  poses  becomes  fluid  and  easy,  you  can  start  to  become  creative  in  adding  variety  to  the  individual  poses.  Not  only  does  your  sequence  reflect  who  you  are,  your  style  as  a  teacher,  but  also  in  the  fun,  playful  ways  we  can  change  a  sequence  and  a  pose.    

Adding  variation  to  an  individual  pose  or  changing  the  predictable  nature  of  sun  salutation  with  a  twisting  down  dog,  or  a  cobra  instead  of  up  dog.  This  can  be  refreshing  to  a  predictable  sequence”  (p.  134).    

 

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       Level  of  Classes  

“This  is  always  a  challenge  for  students  to  master.  This  takes  time  and  experience.  This  is  also  why  writing  out  your  sequences  is  a  wise  process.  Poses  are  used  with  various  intentions:  warming,  grounding,  energizing,  creating  sense  of  lightness,  mobilizing  the  spine,  etc.  When  thinking  about    sequences,  we  must  know  the  level  of  class  we  are  creating.  With  that  we  use  the  actual  pose  choices  and  the  sequence  or  order  at  which  we  place  the  poses  in  the  sequence,  to  determine  the  level  of  our  classes.    

To  properly  prepare  students  for  deeper  and  more  advanced  poses,  the  body  needs  to  be  open  and  prepared  for  this.  The  complexity  of  the  pose  and  how  it  impacts  the  joints  and  how  physically  demanding  the  pose  is  on  the  body,  determine  the  Level  of  the  Pose”  (p.  190).  

 

         Ayurveda  and  Your  Dosha    

“Ayurveda’s  main  principles  are  based  in  wholeness  and  balance.  The  whole  person  is  looked  at  in  regards  to  health  and  well  being.  The  body,  mind  and  spirit  need  to  be  in  balance  and  in  harmony  to  have  true  health.  Contrary  to  the  Western  model  of  medicine,  which  addresses  a  symptom  and  treats  the  symptom  with  medication.  

Ayurvedic  medicine  looks  at  your  diet,  sleep,  lifestyle,  daily  and  seasonal  routines  and  internal  health.    All  these  need  to  be  in  balance.  Things  are  constantly  evolving,  ebbing  and  flowing,  but  one  tries  to  maintain  as  much  balance  in  these  areas  as  possible.  They  look  to  maintain  good  health  versus  just  being  a  fix  what’s  broken  doctor.  When  there  is  illness,  you  look  at  what  may  have  come  out  of  balance”  (p.  241).  

Wellness  Workshop  

“Wellness  is  the  state  of  good  health  and  mental  wellbeing.  The  definition  of  health  is  not  only  to  be  free  of  disease  but  incorporates  a  state  of  well-­being  within  our  physical,  emotional,  spiritual,  social,  financial  lives.  This  concept  is  reflected  in  the  Wellness  Wheel.      The  Wellness  Wheel  has  various  aspects,  branches  or  sections.  Depending  on  whose  model  you  follow,  there  can  be  anywhere  from  4  to  12  sections  of  a  Wellness  Wheel.  A  basic  wheel  will  include  Emotional,  Physical,  Spiritual  and  Social  aspects  of  our  lives.  A  10  point  wheel  will  include  social,  occupational,  spiritual,  physical,  intellectual,  emotional,  environmental,  financial,  mental  and  medical  aspects  of  an  individual’s  life.  Looking  at  all  these  aspects,  we  can  assess  the  various  aspects  of  our  lives  that  might  need  more  attention”  (p.  232)