Sharath Jois on Teaching Yoga in Modern Times

By R. Sharath Jois Published on July 22, 2016 

Sonima https://www.sonima.com/yoga/teaching-yoga-modern-times/

Sharath Jois on Teaching Yoga in Modern Times 

 As yoga becomes more mainstream, "yogis" are increasingly paving their own way in practice. Here, Sharath Jois explains the importance of staying within a specific path.

In today’s yoga world, terminology from yogic wisdom is often thrown around without context. In this video, a yoga practitioner asks Paramaguru Sharath Jois if the yamas and niyamas (the central do’s and don’t’s from the yoga sutras) can be taught. Jois’s answer, is complex: These tenets and threads of wisdom can be explained, but in order to really learn them, one must teach herself the yogi path through consistent practice.

Unfortunately, he says, yoga teachers today are seemingly required to offer everything to everyone, when in the past, certain elements of the practice were reserved for highly dedicated students. The methodology has been lost through the proliferation of the practice. Jois advocates for working with a teacher. Modifying by your own standards without proper guidance takes a student away from ancient wisdom. If a student wants to really understand the practice, they must abide by the system; it’s not about picking and choosing, but about understanding the methodology fully. Learn more about this perspective by watching the video above.