June 2011 Editorial

Dr.Jayadeva

Look before you leap!  Do some thinking before you take up responsibilities.  If you have hurriedly taken up a job and you come to realize gradually that the task is more than you can manage, be honest enough to confess this and inform the concerned persons about it.

    I will learn yoga, I will practice the techniques like Asanas and Pranayamas etc. and I will look for the results like Siddhis and Samadhi; or I will perform Sirasana for half an hour and expect wonderful reactions in my brain and my nervous system.

    All this is wrong. If I wish to learn yoga I should introduce myself to this deeply interiorised science by being conditioned, by being quiet, by being aware of physical, psychological, and psycho-physical functioning in my body and mind.

    Contrarily when something physical is done like speaking violently with gestures and emotions a wave of agitation sets in and ends in angry behaviour.   The action leads to psychological and sub-conscious impression, numerous attitudes and subsequent behaviour.

    Such apparently simple looking “hurting” has been divided into 81 categories in the Yoga sutra commentaries.  And that is why in an exaggerated way, they say that, “if you master Ahimsa you master yoga”.  Ahimsa Paramo Dharma.    

Published in the June 2011 edition of Yoga & Total Health Magazine.

JET SET YOGINI

Jayashree Patil

Hansa Jayadeva dispels whatever archaic notions one might have about yoga teachers. She is vivacious, confident, articulate and very stylish!

She runs The Yoga Institute, Santacruz, jointly with her husband Dr. Jayadeva, whose father Shri Yogendraji founded it way back in 1918. This makes it one of the oldest international yoga foundations in India.
The Jaradevas are a study in contrast. She is the practical doer; he, the shy retiring thinker. In spite of an age difference of 19 years between them, the Jayadevas present a unique whole.

Dr. Jayadeva with a doctorate in philosophy and psychology, ideally suited to his retrospective self-effacing nature, has had a brilliant academic career. Hansa on the other hand has had more than her share of scholastic ups and downs.  She was forced to give up her cherished career in medicine, due to severe asthma.

Swallowing her disappointment, she enrolled back to college, completed her B.Sc. and studied law as well. She also pursued her interest in classical music by learning classical music by singing as well as the sitar.         

Throughout this period, the asthma was a constant factor in her life. When all remedies had failed, she finally joined The Yoga Institute. Here, her instructor was none other than Dr. Jayadeva.

Seeing her prowess in the most difficult asanas (which she had been practicing since childhood) he encouraged her to join the advanced teachers training course that the Institute had to offer. Here, for the first time Hansa was exposed to the theory behind each asana. She learnt the various elements that went into making yoga such a complete science and in the process of learning, her asthma vanished. Magically or so it seemed. It hasn’t recurred to date!

Her decision to marry Dr. Jayadeva was heavily opposed by her parents. He was so much her senior and did not come from an equally affluent background. And anyway wouldn’t  she be happier married to some green card holder?

But Hansa was adamant and the marriage took place. Now began progressive years for the institute, under the charismatic guidance of Hansa, ably supported by Dr. Jayadeva.

The first thing she did was to streamline the residential course, mostly frequented by foreigners. Till then the Institute had only offered them lodging, while they had to fend for themselves for their daily meals. Hansa changed all that. She installed a hygienic kitchen, where the students were assured of fresh, wholesome food. She also restructured the residential courses so that each day was meticulously organized and given to constructive activity.

She was instrumental in starting a yoga research department as well as setting up a library and a museum in the premises.

Her activity has not been confined to India alone. Since 1974, she, along with Dr.Jayadeva, has conducted Yoga workshops and seminars in various countries of the world, including Australia, Canada, Europe and the U.S.A., gaining support and admiration all the way.

Not being content with international acclaim, Hansa set her sight on popularizing yoga amongst Indians. To gain the vast audience she had in mind, there was only one medium – Doordarshan! Her program, ‘Yoga for Better Living’, was being telecast every Wednesday and Sunday mornings on the national network and had even received an extension due to popular demand.

In spite of the heavy demand on time, she is forever innovating and restructuring the various programs at the Institute as well as introducing  new courses, be it for working women or one specially crafted for cardiac patients. She still finds time to lecture advanced students and play table tennis. Certainly not a stereotype yoga teacher as we said earlier and we’re sure you agree too!

Published in the Oct 2010 edition of Yoga & Total Health Magazine.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF YOGA EDUCATION

Promil Jain Sequeira

Yoga education can supplement school and university education. It can prepare the students physically and mentally for the integration of their physical, mental and spiritual faculties so that the students can become healthier, saner and more integrated members of the society and of the nation.

Yoga education helps in self discipline and sel-control, leading to immense amount of awareness, concentration and higher level of consciousness. Briefly the aims and objectives of Yoga education are:
1)    To enable the student to have good health.
2)    To practice mental hygiene.
3)    To possess emotional stability.
4)    To integrate moral values.    
5)    To attain higher level of consciousness.
. All these objectives could be dealt with in an integrated manner.

Yoga education could help to equip oneself with basic knowledge about one’s personality, to learn to handle oneself well in all life situations, to learn techniques of gaining good health, to develop a discriminative mind capable of knowing the real from the unreal and to face the dualities of life with equanimity.

Yoga education can start from standard II up to standard IX. This would require about 480 sessions. For details of core learning, skill learning and concomitant learning – refer Cyclopedia Vol. II on Yoga education; Vol. I on Asanas.

Yoga education can enhance all the activities of the students, be it academic or sport or social. Yoga techniques provide improved attention in studies, better stamina and co-ordination for sports and a heightened awareness and balanced attitude for social activity.   

Yoga education can be integrated in school education during the time set aside for P.T. but in a calm and quiet place creating the proper atmosphere for its proper study and practice.

Clear concepts are necessary in teaching Yoga. Yoga practices can be built around concepts like conditioning (preparation), synchronization, concentration, relaxation,  self-reliance. (These have been elaborated in “Teaching Yoga” – a publication of The Yoga Institute. Yoga teaching/learning should be experience based, i.e. the student should gain direct experience of the subject taught. Here the skill and knowledge of the teacher come into full play. A dedicated and dynamic teacher can create an atmosphere for learning. The teacher should have a deep experience of the concept he is teaching. Moreover, he can teach only what he knows. The teacher should have good rapport with the students. The teacher should be trained and experienced in knowing the physical and psychological needs of the students in various age groups. As Yoga deals with life and learning, these concepts should be integrated into life situations through various methods available to the teacher.

As the Yoga teacher gains experience, he may have to acquire skills of a counselor for the problems the student faces at the physical, psychological and spiritual levels of his personality. Counseling can be done during the time allotted for recreation.

Teachers and parents should acquaint themselves with Yoga; they could attend a short introductory course on Yoga. This will help them to understand the special needs of a student practicing Yoga.  

The course of Yoga for the student should be well formulated in terms of contents, aptness and graded so that what is learnt earlier works hand in glove with what follows. Practices should be progressive – from easy to difficult; ideology should only be explained students of a later class who are mature to understand it.
An ideal number for a Yoga class is 20 students; if there are more in number, one assistant would be useful. It is difficult to handle large numbers in a Yoga class – the teachers could lose contact with the students and the Yoga class in turn mechanical.  
As Yoga experience is subjective – any mechanical means of evaluation may not provide a good guideline. An experienced teacher can notice the progress of a Yoga student through his behavior and through his life activities. The Yoga Institute has worked on all aspects of Yoga education and through its pioneering efforts, it has provided the finest training for Yoga education teachers.

Published in the November 2010 edition of Yoga & Total Health Magazine.