300 hours TTC: What did I learn?

I came back to Gothenburg two weeks ago, after 6 weeks in South India. It seems unreal that one year after my first 200 hours TTC, I went back to India for a second teaching training. It was an amazing opportunity to be a student again. We are all students, no matter the experience and the knowledge we have. This journey of learning will never stop. We will always have the chance to go deeper into understanding, but this is only possible if we keep an open mind. If we close our mind, no new knowledge can reach us. It’s up to us to choose to be happy!

The main purpose of my travel to Mysore, India this year was to do my 300 hours, Advanced Yoga Teacher Training with Samyak Yoga School. I did not have any expectations whatsoever about what I’m going to learn, besides the fact I was focused on “me – the yoga teacher” who wants to learn more about the art of teaching.

This was the initial thought but what I have found was myself. The 29th years old version of myself that somehow is still the same little girl that she used to be. A happy and grateful woman & wife. A daughter that still misses her father, but is making progress in understanding that he will always be there even though not in the physical shape that she remembers him. A child that is still playful and innocent, despite the harsh and not always fair life situations.  What does fair means by the way? A confident woman. A student. A beginner. A small particle in this world.

I understood once more that what each one of us is teaching is from personal  experience. And in order to teach from experience, you must first be a student. And how can you call yourself a student if you do not explore? You cannot teach from someone else’s experience. Otherwise you are just an instructor and not a teacher.

I was sure it is going to be a challenging experience. From a physical, mental and  emotional point of view, doing an intensive teachers’ training is not easy. It takes a lot from yourself. My muscles were sore and tired from all the asana practice we were doing twice a day, 6 days a week. The heat was extremely challenging for this Romanian that got used to the Swedish weather. I had many thoughts and emotions that were arising due to the experiences and the philosophical discussions we were having. Many memories from the past, good and painful ones. I had the time for self-reflection, a lot of self-reflection. I became more aware and conscious about my actions, my thoughts, my behavior and the reasons behind them.

I would say that going once a year to an unknown place, far from everyone and everything which is familiar to you, it’s the most enriching experience that one can have. To be by yourself and stay with your own thoughts is a proof that you are strong enough to take care of yourself and you are willing to get to know yourself better. It is an experience that expands your awareness and consciousness. It helps you become an independent human being. Independent doesn’t mean alone and lonely, but a responsible human being that is able to take care of himself/herself. If you cannot be with yourself how can you be with other people?

This TTC has taught me many things about myself as a human being, about me the yoga student, as well as me the yoga teacher, but the most important lesson is that I realized I know a lot and in the same time I know nothing.

It is important to keep a beginner’s mindset. It is the only way that allows us to learn and absorb the knowledge others share with us. Everyone we meet is a teacher and knows something that we do not know. The moment we start to know more about a certain subject, we might find it difficult to get back to basics, falling into the trap of thinking we already know it all. Let’s not do that! Let’s keep our mind, heart and ears open! Let’s listen more and talk less!

Lavinia

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