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Questions about Sadhana Mala and our training courses. Another question? Email usEmail
  • What style of yoga do you teach?
  • How does your Teacher Training Programme differ from the BWY course?
  • Can I do the Teacher Training Course without the Sadhana Mala Foundation Course?
  • What is aYs and in what way are you linked to it?
  • Will I be a specialist Yoga Therapist after the 2 year Yoga Teacher Training?
  • Two years is a long time; do you have a quicker route to become a Yoga Teacher?
 
FAQ
FAQ

• What style of yoga do you teach?

There are numerous different approaches to yoga, some stronger, some more meditative, some focusing on flow, or alignment or particular ways of practicing. Our approach to yoga was known as "Viniyoga" and is characterised by its versatility and emphasis on matching the yoga to the individual. Thus how and what we teach is very much dependent on who and where we are teaching. The word "Viniyoga" means "intelligent application" - we are in a sense teaching the Viniyoga of yoga.

The approach comes from TKV Desikachar and his studies with his father, TK Krishnamacharya of South India. Krishnamacharya was also the teacher of BKS Iyengar and Pattabhi Jois. In 2002 TKV Desikachar requested his students to stop using the term "Viniyoga" to describe this approach to yoga because he felt people were turning it into a "style of yoga". However, the term is still in fairly common usage to denote the teachings that have evolved out of those transmitted by TKV Desikachar and his father TK Krishnamacharya.

• How does your Teacher Training Programme differ from the BWY course?

Our course is very much in a single tradition and our approach to yoga is informed by our studies with our teachers, all of whom belong to the lineage of TK Krishnamacharya and TKV Desikachar. Consequently we do not teach an eclectic approach, but a single unified and consistent one. However, the course is fully accredited with the BWY and therefore is recognised as being of an equivalent standard to the BWY Diploma course.

The 2 year Yoga Teacher Training course has been entirely designed by ourselves to reflect what we feel is necessary and appropriate for a yoga teacher working within this tradition, teaching group classes. It includes all of the major topics covered by the BWY course, but within the consistent approach and theoretical base from which we work.

The 1-1 aspect of teaching Yoga and the therapeutic application of Yoga is covered by the further 2 year course, the Art of Individual Teaching

• Can I do the Teacher Training Course if I have not done the Sadhana Mala Foundation Course?

The Sadhana Mala Foundation course gives a thorough grounding in this approach to yoga. If you have done a BWY Foundation course with a "Viniyoga" trained teacher, then you will probably be more familiar with much of our way of working. Alternatively, if you have studied with a "Viniyoga" teacher, either taking 1-1 lessons or attending seminars, workshop, or retreats, you will have some idea of the approach.

The Sadhana Mala Foundation course is not a necessary pre-requisite, but it will give you the tools to begin a full teacher training. It may be that you have acquired those tools in other ways. There is a day of assessment and interview to come on to the Yoga Teacher Training course (we will be clear what you need to know when you apply) so your knowledge base should be reasonable.

• What is aYs and in what way are you linked to it?

aYs (www.ays.org.uk) is an organization which has numerous incarnations over the last 2 decades. Paul Harvey set up the Centre for Yoga Studies (cYs) in the early 1980s on his return from an extended period of study in India with TKV Desikachar. In the late eighties this became Viniyoga Britain, and Paul developed a structure that included Introductory Courses, Foundation Courses, Post Graduate Programmes as well as his 4 year Teacher Training Programme.

Following TKV Desikachar's request to stop using the term "Viniyoga", the organization changed its name to aYs (Association for Yoga Studies) in 2003. Ranju was the Director of aYs from 2002- 2006.

The community of practitioners who belong to aYs were nearly all originally trained by Paul Harvey and there is an annual meeting at Harper Adams College in Shropshire. This is a great opportunity to meet with those interested in this approach also to take workshops with senior practitioners.

aYs does not have its own training programmes, but does recognise courses if they comply with certain minimum standards. Currently the Sadhana Mala Teacher Training Programme is the only such course.

• Will I be a specialist Yoga Therapist on completion of the 2 year Yoga Teacher Training course?

There is only so much that we can do in a 2 year period. You will certainly have the tools to be a very competent group yoga teacher, this course being the equivalent of a BWY diploma. However, the completion of the course is the beginning of your career as a yoga teacher - and we do not expect you to be specialists at the beginning!

The follow-on course, The Art Of Individual Teaching specifically addresses working with individuals to design personal practices and the application of Yoga as a therapy. The whole area of yoga therapy is complex and there is much potential to develop specialities and expertise in different areas. The course gives a grounding in the basics of yoga therapy and offers many tools; but becoming a healer is a long process and we expect you to continue to refine your skills as a practitioner after you have completed the course.

• Two years is a long time; do you have a quicker route to become a Yoga Teacher?

Although 2 years may seem like a long time, it goes very quickly and we feel that this is really a minimum time to develop as a Yoga Teacher. You will be encouraged to begin teaching within 6 months to 1 year of beginning the course so you certainly do not have to wait for 2 years before you can begin teaching. In fact the course acts as a support and reference point for your teaching and it is common to actually miss the security of the course when it ends. We would certainly recommend that you are cautious about enrolling for a short training course.

 
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