An interview with KeiShana Coursey KeiShana is the course director of Contemporary Yoga's Pregnancy Yoga Teacher Training starting in July 2021. This is a 100+ hour teacher training collaboration between Opti-mum and Contemporary Yoga and includes anatomy, physiology, asana, ayurveda and much, much more. KeiShana brings a wealth of experience and expertise to this very special training having worked with many women on their childbirth journeys. In this interview, KeiShana talks about … [Read more...]
Honour thy teacher
by Cara Butler As both a yoga student and teacher, I have practiced and studied with the intention that I am not seeking the ‘fruits’ of my practice. Being a very competitive girl by nature with a strong Pitta constitution this has definately been a challenge at times .... however I do strongly believe the value really is in the journey, not in the destination. I can say more authentically now as I move into my 40s that I practice and also teach yoga, not for any rewards it might offer but as … [Read more...]
The Difference between Practicing Yoga Postures and Having a Yoga Practice
by Kara-Leah Grant There are many people doing yoga poses today, but there are far less people who have a yoga practice. Postures are everywhere - Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, advertising, magazines, yoga classes, yoga retreats, yoga teacher trainings. However, postures do not make a yoga practice. A yoga practice requires at least two other important elements before it can serve it's purpose - that of self-realisation, or of waking the practitioner up from the dream of Maya … [Read more...]
Dude, I May Have Found a Yoga Teacher! Maybe!
by Kara-Leah Grant, Musings from the Mat (Written a few weeks ago, before I left Glenorchy - in case the time frame or location confuses you!) I've just walked out of my second Mysore-style Astanga class with New Zealand's Peter Sanson and I don't know whether I'm coming or going. It's like my brain's in first gear, or submerged in water. If I feel into it, it's like a consciousness shift, where I'm going sideways from one way of being into another way of being but I'm caught in limbo … [Read more...]
Leaving behind window shopping for the soul & committing to a tradition
By guest author Carmen Howell of The Sadhana Studio The title for this article came from a blog, where the writer shared her "tempest of emotions, regarding the question of whether to take and commit to a teacher'? The advice she received was that window shopping for ceremonies, teachers and/or traditions prevents a situation where one can go deeply into any one tradition, and will only result in a shallow experience and knowledge of a topic. In short, window shopping can be delusional … [Read more...]
How teaching yoga can trigger your issues
by regular columnist Elissa Jordan, Adventures in Teaching I’m feeling utterly dejected this morning. Getting out of bed - struggle. Getting to work - struggle. Talking to people - struggle. What’s got me so down? While teaching last night one of my students remarked about what a difference there was between the Wednesday and Monday night classes. Wednesday, my class, on the night was six people. Monday, another teacher’s class, was overflowing. No real judgement was made - good or bad - … [Read more...]
The evolution of lineage: Why what is taught changes over time
by guest author Jenifer Parker, owner of Healium Yoga Studio in Wellington Editors Note: This article originally appeared as a comment in response to Kara-Leah's article 'I don’t know how to teach yoga anymore. Or do I?' Foremost, the role of the teacher is to get the students on their feet in the teachings of the lineage, and then set them on their way. This is no different than sending a child to school, expecting that he will pass each year, gaining knowledge, gathering new teachers, and … [Read more...]