Why I took the Teacher’s Training at Kashi Atlanta 3x.
The first time I took the Classical Yoga Teacher’s Training at Kashi Atlanta was simply because I love yoga and I adore Swami Jaya Devi. I wanted to deepen my practice and be closer to my mentor. It was very exciting to have a teachers training at Kashi led by Swami Jaya Devi. I never thought twice about participating in it; it was just the thing to do. I was in for sure but had absolutely no idea what I signed up for. It did not even occur to me that we were expected to learn how to teach plus I was pretty new on the path and was not the least bit aware that I was holding on tightly to all my masks of illusion or that I even had any for that matter. My three kids were under 5 at the time and I was simply in survival mode. Prior to that, I spent 13 frenetic years on Wall Street and now was I actually diving deeply into a course on self-study? I probably could have used some prerequisites.
Everyone eventually gets a little more real here.
I remember when toward the end of the first course someone asked if we could take it again. I did not understand why anyone would want to take it again. We would have already received our 200-hour certification, so what would be the point? I asked. But sure enough when it came around again the next year, I couldn’t imagine not being a part of it. Most of my weekends were spent at Kashi by this time and it was completely part of my life. The course and the space are very intimate and allow all walls to come down. I had closer access to my teacher in this space and I felt held and protected in a little cocoon. Everyone eventually gets a little more real here. I loved watching that. No matter how tough someone was on the outside, there always came a point where they magically began to melt. So I took it for the second time and more layers were unveiled to me. It is like peeling an onion, one layer at a time or perhaps taking off the cloaks one at a time. I guess I had a closet of coats that were making me heavy. I wanted to continue to dust away the mirrors of the heart and this course was doing it.
Kashi Atlanta is the perfect setting for unraveling the deeper layers of the heart.
So the following year when it came time to sign up, I did it again. Three times is a charm. The teachings are incredibly rich and deep and infinitely subtle as well so even when they are familiar, there’s room to hear them for where you are in the moment and what is going on in your life presently. Plus you get to practice teaching and get feedback from your piers. It is a group effort and that’s what I love the most. Even though there is no one that can do this work for you, you can’t do it alone. Kashi Atlanta is the perfect setting for unraveling the deeper layers of the heart. People at Kashi “walk the talk” and while that may be intimidating, it could never be any other way. If you are thinking about taking it or taking it again, I absolutely recommend it.
Click here to read about my very first teaching experience.