by Kara-Leah Grant
This was… an interesting interview.
Cameron Shayne doesn’t like to be pinned down on much. Don’t call him a yoga teacher, don’t put him in any kind of box, forget about labels.
Who is Cameron then, beyond labels and boxes and yoga teaching?
He’s an artist, first and foremost, and man who says he’s looking at the abstract within life and playing the trickster. He’s a button pusher, that’s for sure.
Yoga teachers and students? Two consenting adults wanting to have sex? Let them decide, no rules necessary.
That was the gist of an article he wrote last September, which inflamed the yoga community – or at least those who choose to comment or write a response on their own blog. (Those articles are listed underneath the interview.)
This is a hot topic – power, sex, ethics and the teacher/student relationship. The difficulty lies not in determining what is right or wrong but in our ability to communicate with each other when these buttons are being pushed.
I found Cameron’s original article muddy and difficult to read – he wasn’t clear. As a result, it’s easy to grab one aspect of his rhetoric and riff on that without taking in the entire scope of where he’s coming from.
That was why my intention going into this interview with Cameron was to let him speak, and to listen to what he had to say, with no judgement on whether he was right or wrong.
I wanted to understand where he was coming from, where his blind spots might be, and what might be prompting his thoughts on yoga teachers, students, dating and sex.
Post-interview, and after watching it again, I feel like I do have a solid understanding. However, I’m not going to share it with you – at least, not now. I’d like you to watch the interview and make up your own mind about where Cameron is coming from.
I invite you to watch this interview and listen – truly listen – to what Cameron has to say, and how he says it.
I also invite you to observe your own reactions during the interview.
- Is it possible to watch with an open mind and receive what Cameron is saying without judging it as this or that?
- Is it possible to watch not seeking to decide who is right or wrong, but rather seeking to understand?
- Is it possible to accept the person without accepting what he’s saying?
More on this topic to come, in a follow-up article. For now, a quote from Cameron, and the interview.
“The teacher is as responsible for understanding the dynamic of the potential relationships as the student is. This is not about removing accountability but about the right to choose.” ~ Cameron Shayne
An interview with Cameron Shayne on Yoga, Sex and the Teacher/Student Relationship
About Cameron Shayne
Guru Killer, Primate Provocateur, Literary Warrior & Liberated Thinker
Cameron Shayne is sometimes identified as an artist, writer, innovator, movement pioneer, people liberator, father, virgin saint, voyager of the unknown, and bullshit exorcist. His current identity was founded 1971. He founded the Budokon University in 2001. His students include artists, olympians, movie stars, rock stars, prostitutes and sinners. He travels the world sharing the same message;
“Why take your thoughts so seriously? They’re not even real.”
The Articles from Last September
- Hot Sex for Real Yogis: Can I Have Sex with My Yoga Teacher? by Cameron Shayne
- Yoga, Sex, Ethics and Responsibility: The It’s All Yoga Baby Guide to the Conversation by Roseanne Harvey
- Cameron Shayne is So Totally His Body. And Bodies are Political by Matthew Remski
- Yoga, Sex and the Teacher/Student Relationship by Carol Horton
- Yoga Teacher or Predator? by Chris Courtney
Editor’s Note April 28:
This line has been removed from the article because after going back and re-reading all of Cameron’s responses to the comments on his original article, I only found one response that I would call mean.
“Nor do I think he was particularly skilful in his handling of comments, many of which were judgemental, suggesting that this is as much a trigger situation for him as it is for others.”
I have a low sensitivity for meanness, even when it’s funny, and after reading through all of Cameron’s other thoughtful responses I see how that one response coloured my impression of Cameron’s handling of the comments.
In fact, after reading all Cameron’s responses, I’m bewildered as to how I had such a strong impression from just one comment. It points to the way our minds filter information – glomming on to some aspects and not even seeing others.
Wow, what a great interview. I really enjoyed it – having read some of the articles written it definitely clarifies Cameron’s position, to me one of absolute integrity. I look forward to the day I can catch one of his classes, maybe Wanderlust NZ next year!
Awesome Kara-Leah. Love it xo
Yawn…my first inquiry…looking at his eye movements…..”is he under the influence of a drug?”. I find the topic a bit interesting, but in no way deserving of his 30 min. story. A total contrast to the being I saw in the flesh @ Wandy, that’s my discernment.
He seems like a very thoughtful, rational, and enlightened individual. I agree with almost everything he said.
Hey Michael,
That’s what I’m always trying to figure out… how enlightened is this person? Then again, is it possible to be a “little bit” enlightened? It was certainly illuminating to talk to Cameron 🙂
Hey KL
Thanks for this video. I like this guys style., he is right there is no box.
“how enlightened is this person?”
Many traditions say “Are we not all enlighten if we come into a precious human birth? The challenge Is just realizing it. If it had a moment in time that it started, maybe it is not real. Go deeper, as its timeless and it never had a beginning in time..
We all have multiple intelligence, We might be a genius in one area and a nincompoop in another areas..
This is a good take on Should spiritual teachers sleep with their students? From a developmental perspective.
http://integrallife.com/integral-post/defense-promiscuity Jun Po Roshi
“Should spiritual teachers sleep with their students? It seems this is a question whose time has come. “
Hiya, enjoyed this interview – He has a liberated view point…I don’t know if his view point should be followed religiously, that would be up to the individual. I did like how he spoke about how he practiced yoga, even while riding a bike etc – in that he was keeping it alive in his life, not just physically with postures…the other thing I liked is he said ” why don’t you take away every mistake and see who you would be right now “… His ideas seem to come from living, from winning, failing, through his life journey. I don’t know, it made me think, “who would I be right now, without my own personal bankroll of mistakes…perhaps we are better for having made them, is what he is getting at. Most yoga people I’ve met over a few years now, have a suitcase full of shit they’re trying to let go, I guess I found this interview about much more than teachers and students dating…a deeper message in there…we learn about not being so dam judgmental through doing yoga, so I like this guy’s open views, he shows his cards. respect.
Hey Nick,
Yeah, Cameron is interesting all right. I enjoyed the experience of stepping into his perspective and feeling it out – trying it on as such. There’s a lot to learn there for sure.
Cameron is certainly not my favourite person in the world, but I have to say that he has surprised me on this one and he made some very good points.
And congrats, you have a very nice site. I arrived to this post after reading quite a few that were equally interesting.