CURRICULUM
"To read uplifting books or listen to spiritual discourses is good. But to practice even a little is of the utmost importance. The profound meaning of yoga is understood only by those who study it through regular and systematic practice. The day you start to practice, your true progress will begin. "
~ Swami Kripalu
THREE STAGES OF KRIPALU YOGA
While incorporating Yoga Alliance standards, our training format is inspired by the Three Stages of Kripalu Yoga, which offer an outline and guidance for the development of one’s personal Yoga journey over time. The following stages of our training unfold over the course of the program, with lots of overlap.
STAGE ONE - FOUNDATIONS
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Learn the basics and groundwork for practicing and teaching asana (poses), pranayama (breathwork), relaxation (including Yoga Nidra) and meditation techniques to beginner students
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Investigate foundational anatomy and physiology, particularly as they relate to the practices of yoga asana and pranayama
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Develop confidence and empathy through practice teaching of asanas, pranayama, relaxation and meditation techniques in class and in a home-based practicum
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Explore foundational teachings in the philosophy and roots of Yoga
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Experience mantra and chanting as a form of yogic expression
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Appreciate Ayurveda in practice through diet
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Practice lots of yoga and compassionate self-observation
STAGE TWO - EXPLORATIONS
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Deepen knowledge of how to teach and enhance students’ experience of Yoga practices, including offering assistance in class
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Expand knowledge of anatomy through personal explorations, embodiment and inquiries, as well as through a range of views and approaches to understanding how the human body moves, especially in yoga asana
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Explore Energy Anatomy and the Subtle Body (Chakras, Koshas)
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Expand self-observation and understanding, as well as Yoga philosophy, through an introduction to Ayurveda, Yoga’s sister science of health and well-being
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Deepen personal practice and expand compassionate self-awareness ("Moving from Thinking through Feeling into Being”)
STAGE THREE - DISCOVERIES
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Experience Yoga in daily life and the world (Yoga "off the mat")
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Increase awareness of the inner landscape through additional practices, such as Meditation in Motion, to help us be explorers of our most intimate terrain
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Develop creativity through personal self-expression
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Explore the key pillars of practice through direct experience: Sadhana (spiritual practice), Seva (selfless service), and Sangha (spiritual community)
