Learning how to teach yoga was never something I had set out to do as I grew deeper and deeper into my own practice. I was definitely curious about the training and one day I decided to embark on that journey.
The Journey of a yoga teacher is definitely different for all of us, at least that has been my experience. To me it has been a profound learning experience, not only of yoga as a whole, but also about myself. Each day I learn that yoga is so much more than becoming flexible or been able to do this or that pose. I feel that Yoga is a state of being, an awareness.
In 2017 I did my 200 hour teacher training with a great teacher from Costa Rica that trained a group of us in Medellin, Colombia. I learned in depth about the philosophy of yoga, yoga asanas, pranayama breathing, about mantras and mudras , how to assist when teaching and the essentials of the teaching process.
After becoming a 200 hour yoga teacher I was able to teach in a yoga studio in Medellin as a sub during a holiday period. I also got to teach in Fiji while I was doing a long service retreat and was given the opportunity to guide a few of the residents of the Island I was in through a Hatha Yoga routine for a few months. Both of these teaching experiences really helped me to feel the joy of sharing the passion I have for yoga to others and although it was the beginning, it was a great gift.
In September of 2019 I again embarked on this journey by taking on a 300 hour teacher training in the US. The studio where I take yoga classes has been an amazing and fun place to learn and deepen my practice of yoga. When I saw their teaching program I got inspired to sign up and give myself another chance to further my teaching experience. I loved how the trainees would sit on a class and observe the teachers and take notes and how they would have projects and workshops to present. I really felt that was an aspect of my journey that was missing – I needed practice in a circumstance where I felt I could learn to be more confident and demonstrate what I have learned.
Since the start of this 300 hour teacher training I have learned so much more about yoga. Intentions, awareness, compassion, discipline, meditation, pranayama practices, Reiki, Tai massage, assisting others and so much more. With all this knowledge and practice I have gained a lot of confidence and trust in myself.
As of this writing, I feel I have grown a lot in my own understanding of who I am, what I can achieve and how much I have learned. In three more months I will have completed the core of the training and by then I hope to share with others what I have learned through this process with full confidence and joy.
If you have any comments or questions, feel free to reach out to me using the comments section below and stay tuned for a wonderful and fun yoga retreat I am organizing at a beautiful resort in Medellin, Colombia.
Namaste.
In Sanskrit, the word OM is made up of the three syllables A-U-M. The sound “O” is a diphthong written as “AU”. Each letter represents the 3 divisions of time or psychological states, and visually, the symbol OM consists of three curves, one semicircle, and a dot. The large curve at the bottom symbolizes the waking state or A, the middle curve signifies the dreaming state or U, and the curve at the top is the symbol for the deep sleep state or M. The dot is the fourth state which symbolizes the transcendental state of consciousness also known as Turiya. The semi-circle at the top, which separates the dot from the other three curves, represents Maya or the veil of illusion.
Whether I am chanting OM at the beginning or at the end of yoga class, or in a meditative setting, or in the midst of everyday life, I can really feel the impact this mantra has when I deeply feel its meaning. It’s such a primal sound prior to everything and anything that as I begin to tap into its essence, which is nonseparate from the universe, consciousness or myself, I can really just let go and tacitly know that OM is all there is.
We were then taught the steps to prepare ourselves for the headstand. The way you position your elbows and hold your hands on the floor was really useful to understand so that you can support your neck and be relaxed during the pose. Keeping your shoulders back and down because the tendency is for them to relax in the wrong position and so your back is not supported properly. I also appreciated knowing that I could bring in my feet towards the head with my knees bent if I needed to. That allowed me to begin feeling the pose more as I got as close as I had to and then I could get my legs up beginning with the knees.