You eventually will become your own best yoga teacher.
As you develop your practice, though, a "good" teacher will make a critical difference in your enthusiasm and advancement.
But "good" is a word which here means "instructs you in what you need and want to know," and which also means "explains everything about yoga practice in terms you easily can understand and apply," and which especially means "satisfies all of your expectations for both substance and style.
" So, if you had to teach your yoga teacher how to teach you, what would you teach her? The split between doing and teaching Everyone knows and frequently repeats the old saw, "Those who cannot do, teach.
" Usually, you hear the expression repeated in its pejorative sense, but it applies in the honorific, too.
Joe Paterno recently became the winningest college football coach in history, and he no more could suit-up and take a position than he could read a playbook without those big glasses on his nose.
You may tend to forget that the converse also applies: "Those who do frequently cannot teach.
" Michael Phelps probably cannot show you how to swim 100 meters butterfly with skill and grace.
Naturally, you want a yoga teacher who knows how to do the poses and can set a good example for your yoga practice, but you cannot learn the poses and transitions simply from imitating her movements.
Especially because yoga practice requires meditation and encourages spirituality, you want a yoga teacher who can explain it as proficiently as she can do it.
In fact, if you are just beginning your yoga practice, you need a teacher who understands at least as much about teaching yoga as she knows about its practice.
What do you want your yoga teacher to teach you? Where do you want to start? Do you suspect the question about where to start may, in fact, be a trick question? Do you want to start with your state of mind, or do you want to start with the physical stuff and incorporate the emotional, psychological, and spiritual elements as they become relevant? Do you want to learn about the wide variety of yoga practices, what they do and how they differ? Or would you prefer just to get down to business? Do you want your yoga teacher to take a little time for learning about you-your needs, wants, and wishes? Or do you prefer just to submit to her instruction, faith-leaping into your yoga practice with confidence she knows her profession? How much explanation do you require? Do you want just the how-to, or would you prefer the how-to plus the why-to plus the symbolism of the how and why? Do you want your teacher to give instructions only as they become absolutely necessary to your successful practice, or do you want her to do all the thinking and all the talking for the duration of your practice? How do you want her to conclude your practice? Do you want your yoga teacher to bring the practice to closure as if it realty started and stopped, or would you prefer she leave you wanting just a little bit more, signifying the process continues until you perfect it?
As you develop your practice, though, a "good" teacher will make a critical difference in your enthusiasm and advancement.
But "good" is a word which here means "instructs you in what you need and want to know," and which also means "explains everything about yoga practice in terms you easily can understand and apply," and which especially means "satisfies all of your expectations for both substance and style.
" So, if you had to teach your yoga teacher how to teach you, what would you teach her? The split between doing and teaching Everyone knows and frequently repeats the old saw, "Those who cannot do, teach.
" Usually, you hear the expression repeated in its pejorative sense, but it applies in the honorific, too.
Joe Paterno recently became the winningest college football coach in history, and he no more could suit-up and take a position than he could read a playbook without those big glasses on his nose.
You may tend to forget that the converse also applies: "Those who do frequently cannot teach.
" Michael Phelps probably cannot show you how to swim 100 meters butterfly with skill and grace.
Naturally, you want a yoga teacher who knows how to do the poses and can set a good example for your yoga practice, but you cannot learn the poses and transitions simply from imitating her movements.
Especially because yoga practice requires meditation and encourages spirituality, you want a yoga teacher who can explain it as proficiently as she can do it.
In fact, if you are just beginning your yoga practice, you need a teacher who understands at least as much about teaching yoga as she knows about its practice.
What do you want your yoga teacher to teach you? Where do you want to start? Do you suspect the question about where to start may, in fact, be a trick question? Do you want to start with your state of mind, or do you want to start with the physical stuff and incorporate the emotional, psychological, and spiritual elements as they become relevant? Do you want to learn about the wide variety of yoga practices, what they do and how they differ? Or would you prefer just to get down to business? Do you want your yoga teacher to take a little time for learning about you-your needs, wants, and wishes? Or do you prefer just to submit to her instruction, faith-leaping into your yoga practice with confidence she knows her profession? How much explanation do you require? Do you want just the how-to, or would you prefer the how-to plus the why-to plus the symbolism of the how and why? Do you want your teacher to give instructions only as they become absolutely necessary to your successful practice, or do you want her to do all the thinking and all the talking for the duration of your practice? How do you want her to conclude your practice? Do you want your yoga teacher to bring the practice to closure as if it realty started and stopped, or would you prefer she leave you wanting just a little bit more, signifying the process continues until you perfect it?
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