why do yoga teacher training?

July 13, 2015

Why do Yoga Teacher Training?

People ask me this all the time.

When I decided to pursue teacher training my aim was not actually to become a yoga instructor. It was more that I was looking for something: a means to clarify and better understand myself while I was hoping to develop a more in depth yoga practice.

I had accumulated a wide range of experiences but was sorely lacking the skills to digest and manage them in a constructive manner. I longed for an organization of myself. I felt plagued by past experiences, I was reactive (even to the smallest of things) and as a consequence I was often overwhelmed. My emotional and psychological baggage (samskara) was a huge burden and quite frankly I did not have the ability to deal with stressful situations at all.

Slowly, as I began to study the philosophy of Yoga along with my physical practice, the knots that had been constant in my mind and body began to unravel. I developed a mindfulness practice which has afforded me great understanding of my tendencies and habits. Awareness was the gift that I needed.  Without it, I was not able to move through fear, I could not move through pain and I could not experience true contentment.

My physical practice blossomed as I became more familiar with my own anatomy. I realized that no two bodies are alike and that we all have needs, limitations and asymmetries. This is valuable knowledge as I am now less prone to injuries and can move more safely through my practice with mindfulness and acute awareness.

Yoga has helped me cultivate mental concentration (dhyana) and meditation (dharana). These practices have created a spaciousness in my mind that I never had before; this ‘space’ now allows me not to hurry or to worry about whether I am where I should be but rather gives me certainty that I am exactly where I need to be.

Yoga is a unitive discipline. When I practice I am not isolating any one aspect of myself but rather I am engaging my whole self. It gives me the ability to be full and expansive and has improved my experience of living in more ways than I can count.

So, Why do a Yoga Teacher Training?

It will help you move closer to finding true reality. You will have an improved well-being, a set of skills at-the-ready to guide you through the toughest of times, and, a new found confidence to support you now and for the rest of your life. An investment of time well worth taking :)