Before starting yoga classes I invited everyone who was applied for the class; just to get introduced with each other. It was non formal inauguration function. One girl from that group helped me to translate in Russian language because nearly 50 percent of the students were unable to understand English very well. I delivered introductory lecture on yoga and asked all of them to follow some rules for the practice of Yoga. All of them appreciated the lecture, but there was one lady who seems like quite nervous while hearing my talk. But I did not take it seriously; I thought she is not much interested in this activity and will not continue the class.
But surprisingly on the next day she came to me, to ask some thing about yoga. The lady was quite nervous and asked me, to give her promise that I should not tell these things to others. She told me that she read in some Yoga book that if you practice Yoga and get mastery over that then your ‘Soul’ can leave your body and can travel anywhere in the cosmos. I was quite surprised to listen this from her.
Then she asked me that if she joins the class then, "will I let her soul go out of her body?" She told me, “I don’t want to let my soul go out of my body till the end of my life. I don’t want to loose it.” She asked me, “Shall I join the class?”
I was unanswered for a moment. First time in my teaching experience I got such type of (funny?) question. Then I just told her that Yoga is not like hypnotism that I’m going to control your body and mind. Even I can’t do anything to your body; you only have to experience the science of Yoga and get enlighten by the yogic practices. I’m just here to guide you through Yoga.
After that discussion she was like a free bird- happy. It seems me like she has unloaded the tons of anxiety from her mind and now ready to join the Yoga class. I asked her to come and enjoy the Yogic practices.
Now she is one of the most sincere students in my class and not even skipped any session from the beginning of the class.
*****
1 comment:
Greetings, Sandeep- Ji,
That was a nice story about your yoga teaching experience. Keep it up . I am also inspired to continue studying and practicing yoga in all its dimensions, but probably within my own cultural realm. In fact, I plan to take a one-year leave to really sit down, read all literature I have accumulated, away from academic teaching and administrative responsibilities, and some time to meditate and practice hatha yoga asanas too. I also joined an ashtanga yoga class here in Manila for my own "physical" training in asanas.
cheers,
Dante G. Simbulan, jr.
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