Initially, enlightenment is living in the present moment and accepting your situation as it is. That is a pretty heavy task for anyone in any time. It is often said that an enlightened person cannot be angered by small talk or negative energy.
Many people are humble and believe that they will never be enlightened in this life. They also believe: The goal of enlightenment is too vast for the average person to achieve. However, should you just give up?
What can you do to attain enlightenment?
You should meditate daily: This will help you connect to the world around you. This is an awareness of plants, animals, people and many things around you that are often not appreciated or overlooked.
Meditation will enhance awareness of yourself, everything around you, and the connection between the two. This will bring out the ability to see reality as it is - with the ultimate goal of reaching a state of ?pure consciousness.?
Understand the value of prayer, mantras, and singing. Even if you only practice in your mind, this will strengthen positive energy within you. Many people resort to theses practices; to gain comfort in times of need. This is a shame because you can gain the positive benefits of prayer, mantras, and singing, any time.
Remember, enlightenment is not a race: You would be shocked at the number of people who put pressure on themselves to be ?instantly enlightened.?
It is good to have goals in life, so creating a log to track your progress is a beneficial practice. Your log may track your meditation sessions, your ability to deal with, or diffuse, negative situations, your ability to create positive energy and project it to others, and your ability to see reality.
If you continue the process of keeping and maintaining a log, your results will be encouraging. You may also want to join a group with compatible religious beliefs, search for a teacher, or share your practice with a friend on the same path.
Lastly, do not be frustrated by uncertainty and learn to accept what you cannot control. If all humans could maintain enlightenment, we would experience world peace. We could all accept each other, despite differences of culture, nationality, color, sex, religious beliefs, or any other thing humans can find to develop a pre-conceived notion about each other.
My first taste of Yoga was over 40 years ago, at the age of 7, in a martial arts school setting. I have continued to study martial arts until this day and I have four teaching certificates in four different martial arts. Now I teach both Martial Arts and Yoga.
I began to seriously practice Yoga (under Laura Foster) over twenty years ago due to martial arts competition related injuries.
Laura was a skilled & knowledgeable teacher of Restorative Hatha Yoga, Raja Yoga, and Laya Yoga. After training with her for 3 years, she certified me as a teacher in 1987.
I became certified as a Master Teacher (Guru) on September 15, 1995, after teaching over 5,000 hours under her wing. Shortly afterward, Laura retired at age 90.
Since that time, I started organizing Yoga Teacher Training camps. As time went on, we began getting requests from everywhere in the U.S. and Canada for a comprehensive Yoga Teacher Training correspondence course.
http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org
Showing posts with label Average Person. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Average Person. Show all posts
March 1, 2009
February 23, 2009
Five Reasons Why You Should Not be a Yoga Teacher
Truthfully, there are no reasons why any of us cannot be, or do, what we want, as long as you are not hurting anyone. You should always strive to be the best you can be. However, you may find that many people create obstacles, in front of themselves, to avoid success.
This is truly ironic that we hold ourselves back from making achievements, and teaching Yoga is just one of many goals that are not fully realized. Below is a list of common reasons why many good Yoga practitioners do not pursue their goal of becoming a Yoga instructor.
?I am too old to teach Yoga.?
Actually, age is not a factor. There are many styles of Yoga; and the most common, outside of India, is Hatha Yoga and its many sub-styles. Although Hatha Yoga is the Union of physical mastery, it has many gentle and vigorous styles.
There is a need for mature, passionate, safety conscious, and gentle Yoga teachers. The world?s population is aging and Yoga students are living longer. Who would have thought that hospitals and religious centers would seek out Yoga teachers ten or twenty years ago?
Therefore, Yoga is becoming readily accepted by mainstream society and does not have to apply to any one particular religious group. Some of the old barriers that prevented the masses from being exposed to Yoga are gone.
?Dancers, Martial Artists, and Gymnasts perform better Yoga asanas than I can.?
Yoga is not dance, martial arts, or gymnastics. This is not to take away the importance of any of the above-mentioned arts. After all, I am a martial artist, and I was originally introduced to Yoga in a martial arts setting.
Being a little more flexible than the average person is a gift. However, it doesn?t serve as a top priority for teaching Yoga. The best Yoga teachers are those who can communicate, and those teachers usually have to struggle to excel at Yoga.
Yoga teachers who are naturally flexible think that everyone else should be, as well. This is not always the case, as there are skeletal limitations within some Yoga students. This is not to say that they cannot increase, or improve, their flexibility, but each person?s body is unique.
?Teaching Yoga costs too much money.?
This is true in some cases; however, you can shop around for the best course at the most affordable price. Some onsite Yoga training facilities have Seva Programs, where you can work for partial tuition. This is much like a college, where there are scholarships for students who perform tasks around the campus. There are also a variety of Yoga correspondence courses, which allow flexible study hours, little or no travel, and no extra expenses. My wellness center offers such a Yoga course, and we have interns and graduates worldwide.
?I only want to teach Yoga to a few students and I don?t want to go into the Yoga business.?
Many Yoga practitioners feel this way and that?s fine. This is not a problem because if you are teaching a few friends, as a hobby, it is not necessary to go through the certification process.
If your circle of friends starts to expand, it would be wise to get some type of liability coverage. There are a number of liability insurance programs to choose. You could purchase a sports, Yoga, or home liability policy to cover your specific needs.
You should also learn as much as you can about safety, anatomy, physiology, and kinesiology. The reason I mention this is so that you do not hurt your Yoga students. The compassion and knowledge to become a safe Yoga instructor is very important.
?I have a good paying job and teaching Yoga may not support my family.?
Like all start up small businesses Yoga cannot offer ?instant bundles of cash.? You would want to build your business as an independent contractor first. In our Yoga teacher course, you will find 16 ways to grow your business, with little or no overhead. When you build up enough accounts, the decision, as to whether or not to open your own independent Yoga studio, will be clear.
This has been a radical job change for all of us, who go into teaching Yoga full time, but you do not have to take any sudden or financial risks. Growing your own Yoga business can start on a part time basis and later develop into full time, if you get the right guidance and take the proper steps.
Bear in mind that the business and marketing information in our Yoga course is current and “field tested.” This information is specific to Yoga instructors and contains successful methods used, with regard to return on investment.
Right now, there are a lot of Yoga studios that ?flounder? economically, because the owners have insufficient business or marketing skills. Within this kind of climate, it is not hard to get your market share of Yoga students within your geographic area.
Lastly, there are so many reasons to avoid progress, you could create a book of excuses, but the reason to succeed at anything is your passion. If you are passionate, safe, and knowledgeable about Yoga, this is an excellent starting point for anyone who wants to become a Yoga teacher.
Paul Jerard is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in North Providence, RI. He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. He is a master instructor of martial arts, with multiple Black Belts, four martial arts teaching credentials, and was recently inducted into the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness to children, adults, and seniors in the greater Providence area. Recently he wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students, who may be considering a new career as a Yoga teacher. http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html
This is truly ironic that we hold ourselves back from making achievements, and teaching Yoga is just one of many goals that are not fully realized. Below is a list of common reasons why many good Yoga practitioners do not pursue their goal of becoming a Yoga instructor.
?I am too old to teach Yoga.?
Actually, age is not a factor. There are many styles of Yoga; and the most common, outside of India, is Hatha Yoga and its many sub-styles. Although Hatha Yoga is the Union of physical mastery, it has many gentle and vigorous styles.
There is a need for mature, passionate, safety conscious, and gentle Yoga teachers. The world?s population is aging and Yoga students are living longer. Who would have thought that hospitals and religious centers would seek out Yoga teachers ten or twenty years ago?
Therefore, Yoga is becoming readily accepted by mainstream society and does not have to apply to any one particular religious group. Some of the old barriers that prevented the masses from being exposed to Yoga are gone.
?Dancers, Martial Artists, and Gymnasts perform better Yoga asanas than I can.?
Yoga is not dance, martial arts, or gymnastics. This is not to take away the importance of any of the above-mentioned arts. After all, I am a martial artist, and I was originally introduced to Yoga in a martial arts setting.
Being a little more flexible than the average person is a gift. However, it doesn?t serve as a top priority for teaching Yoga. The best Yoga teachers are those who can communicate, and those teachers usually have to struggle to excel at Yoga.
Yoga teachers who are naturally flexible think that everyone else should be, as well. This is not always the case, as there are skeletal limitations within some Yoga students. This is not to say that they cannot increase, or improve, their flexibility, but each person?s body is unique.
?Teaching Yoga costs too much money.?
This is true in some cases; however, you can shop around for the best course at the most affordable price. Some onsite Yoga training facilities have Seva Programs, where you can work for partial tuition. This is much like a college, where there are scholarships for students who perform tasks around the campus. There are also a variety of Yoga correspondence courses, which allow flexible study hours, little or no travel, and no extra expenses. My wellness center offers such a Yoga course, and we have interns and graduates worldwide.
?I only want to teach Yoga to a few students and I don?t want to go into the Yoga business.?
Many Yoga practitioners feel this way and that?s fine. This is not a problem because if you are teaching a few friends, as a hobby, it is not necessary to go through the certification process.
If your circle of friends starts to expand, it would be wise to get some type of liability coverage. There are a number of liability insurance programs to choose. You could purchase a sports, Yoga, or home liability policy to cover your specific needs.
You should also learn as much as you can about safety, anatomy, physiology, and kinesiology. The reason I mention this is so that you do not hurt your Yoga students. The compassion and knowledge to become a safe Yoga instructor is very important.
?I have a good paying job and teaching Yoga may not support my family.?
Like all start up small businesses Yoga cannot offer ?instant bundles of cash.? You would want to build your business as an independent contractor first. In our Yoga teacher course, you will find 16 ways to grow your business, with little or no overhead. When you build up enough accounts, the decision, as to whether or not to open your own independent Yoga studio, will be clear.
This has been a radical job change for all of us, who go into teaching Yoga full time, but you do not have to take any sudden or financial risks. Growing your own Yoga business can start on a part time basis and later develop into full time, if you get the right guidance and take the proper steps.
Bear in mind that the business and marketing information in our Yoga course is current and “field tested.” This information is specific to Yoga instructors and contains successful methods used, with regard to return on investment.
Right now, there are a lot of Yoga studios that ?flounder? economically, because the owners have insufficient business or marketing skills. Within this kind of climate, it is not hard to get your market share of Yoga students within your geographic area.
Lastly, there are so many reasons to avoid progress, you could create a book of excuses, but the reason to succeed at anything is your passion. If you are passionate, safe, and knowledgeable about Yoga, this is an excellent starting point for anyone who wants to become a Yoga teacher.
Paul Jerard is a co-owner and the director of Yoga teacher training at: Aura Wellness Center, in North Providence, RI. He has been a certified Master Yoga teacher since 1995. He is a master instructor of martial arts, with multiple Black Belts, four martial arts teaching credentials, and was recently inducted into the USA Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He teaches Yoga, martial arts, and fitness to children, adults, and seniors in the greater Providence area. Recently he wrote: Is Running a Yoga Business Right for You? For Yoga students, who may be considering a new career as a Yoga teacher. http://www.yoga-teacher-training.org/index.html
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