Teacher Power & Self Inquiry
There has been a lot of media attention on inappropriate physical contact between yoga teachers & students. This does not mean we have to stop adjusting. Touch is fundamental to the human experience. Of course, touch can also hurt. With good reason, we have made moves to protect our students & ourselves. We should always gain consent first & implement strong boundaries. Students need to feel safe. ‘Safe touch’ doesn’t have to mean ‘no touch’.
But, non-sexual abuse of power over students also has an impact. This includes belittling, labeling, ostracising, ignoring, dismissing, excluding, intimidating & any form of public humiliation.
This behavior can disrupt the trust & nurturing necessary to achieve any yoga teaching goal, leaving students feeling shamed, excluded & powerless & can instill long-term self-esteem effects.
As teachers, we too are human; we can often avoid this real & normal humanness in fear of how we may be seen ‘on the Yoga path’, but often the students we attract are mirroring & therefore nurturing our own journey, subsequently offering our potential for personal growth.
Being a yoga teacher means engaging in serious self-inquiry. Self-inquiry is the ability to see our whole Self, not just the bits we may like but all our shadows.