Prajna Yoga

The Prajna Yoga training is not only for students who wish to teach yoga but for dedicated students who wish to deepen their practice and further their understanding of yoga. Tias’ approach to the practice is classical, yet multi-dimensional. He invites students to discover new associations and inspires them to practice and teach from a place of creativity, adaptability, and metaphorical imagination. Students are empowered to tap into their greatest potential in order to teach yoga from a place of their own inner strength.

Rather than a prescription for how to teach a given system of yoga, this in-depth study is an invitation to cultivate a language of yoga that articulates the body in asana and pranayama, and explores the poetry, sutra study, myths and chanting.

The program taps into Yoga teachings from a multitude of perspectives in order to provide the student with a rich and vast body of knowledge. The design of the training includes parallel studies of Asana, Yoga Anatomy and Wisdom Training:

	Asana The in-depth study of Yoga postures includes understanding opposing action, sequencing a practice, making hands-on adjustments, using props, and teaching meditation. Each day includes a two hour asana practice that builds off of the anatomical study and the study of correct sequencing. Practice sessions include both vinyasa, or flowing sequences, and slower break down sequences where individual poses are isolated and studied. Ultimately we emphasize precision of alignment combined with flow. We cover sun salutations, standing poses, seated forward bends, backbends, twists and inversions. We introduce pranayama techniques and the practice of yoga nidra. Students learn when it is appropriate to use props to support the poses particularly in the practice of restorative yoga, therapeutic yoga and yoga for people in recovery. A section of the training is devoted to the effects that trauma has on the body and the kinds of holding patterns that show up in the body due to a traumatic episode.
	Anatomy The anatomy portion looks at the body from both the Eastern energetic and the Western anatomical perspectives. From the ancient yogic system we review the chakras, nadis, granthis, bindu and koshas. We study the science of the living anatomy by investigating the muscular-skeletal system, the fascia, the central nervous system, the organs, joints and cranial-sacral system. The anatomical study is directly applied to the study of the way energy flows through the asana. That is the anatomical study does not take a clinical approach based on memorization and listing the body’s structures. Rather it is an experiential guide to learning the structure of each pose in order to enhance the flow of prana through any given posture and to teach and practice the asanas safely. Prior experience in the study of anatomy is recommended but not required. The anatomical study is not limited to structural function, but includes a study of the emotional and psychological forces that impact physical structure.
	Wisdom Training We emphasize the practice of meditation and encourage students to develop techniques to work directly with the mind. Through meditation practice students are encouraged to cultivate deep calm (shamatha) and insight (prajna). Students gain insight into the heart of the yoga teachings by studying the classical texts of the yoga tradition. These include Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, hymns from the Rg Veda, teachings from the Upanishads, verses from the Bhagavad Gita, and myths and stories that pertain to the study of yoga. Emphasis is given to the pith teachings of the Buddha on Impermanence, Wisdom and Compassion. We apply the teachings of the Four Noble Truths, the Eight-fold Path, the story of the life of Siddhartha and the teachings on metta (loving kindness) to the practice of meditation and yoga. We undertake an initial study of the Sanskrit language. Students are encouraged to pronounce the asana names correctly and to be familiar with the powerful resonance and sounding of the Sanskrit language. To that end the practice of chanting is integral to the program. We investigate the meaning of the chant, the pronunciation and the meter or rhythm of each chant