Iyengar Yoga Certification Assessment

Day 1 RIMYI a Teachers Programme Pune, India

Iyengar Yoga Teachers who mentor students from around the world were invited to this special program December 7-15. It took place at the private club PYC Hindy Gymkhana in Pune. The program will be very full, and we were asked not to schedule appointments during this event, as most days would begin in the morning and end in the evening.

As we were awaiting Prashant, Abhijata asked us if we were jetlagged. We all said yes. She asked if we wanted her to teach a 5 minute class. We laughed. She said, no I’m serious, Parsva Swastikasana, Twist to the right! Open eyes. Open the outer corners of the eyes and look up, roll the right shoulder back!

Uttanasana same Sirsasana head placement. Recover!

Stand up. Padmasana right leg up. As many started to sit down, she said, no, standing! Now you will not be sleepy! Wake up! Eyes at the horizon level.

Paschimottanasana Namaskarasana open the chest!!

Sit down. 

After we greeted Prashantji, Abhijata began her talk reminding us about last years gathering, how Geeta was present. And as sad as that had left us, we begin the program on the auspicious day of her birthday. As she held some papers and a copy of the Basic Guidelines for Teachers, she told us today was the day of our assessment. Prashant would be assessing us. Then she left the room. For 5 minutes.

We all sat waiting looking at each other wondering what was going to happen.

When she returned, she explained that she wanted us to experience what anxiety and fear the assesses endure. Will I pass? Will I fail? She reminded us that some senior teachers never went through the assessment process themselves. She told us how her assessments were having to do a pose in front of Guruji, or teaching in front of Geeta. She too has felt the nerves and anxiety. She described the flaws in the assessment process, including the lost innocence in learning. Women taking pills so that they would not have their period on assessment. Women delaying pregnancies for the sake of assessment. Students practicing only for assessment. The politics, and more. She was brutally honest, and asked us to look inside, and see the truth. 

She shared the history of the assessment, how it started in 1968. The senior teachers that received their certificates from Guruji weren’t asking for it. It was given to them by someone who saw their progress. But that batch of students were not looking to become certified. They came to learn. That’s the difference. When there is a desire, the innocence is lost.

Some teachers who were given certificates by Guruji may have been thinking, how could I be assessed by Prashant? The true measure of the students progress is seen by their own teacher, but if that teacher were to assess their own student, there would be the human factor of duality to be considered, ie, do I like this person? Yes I pass them. Do I not like this person? No, I don’t pass them. So the system was created to help curb problems. But back then, there were less students. Less candidates, now that IY has grown so much, the process also has to evolve. 

The assessment should not be taking one away from life. Guruji was told to go to the Himalayas to continue his Sadhana. He refused. He continued his Sadhana as a family man. This is why he wrote Light on Life! Life is yoga!

The point of the assessment is to have a measure of good teaching, so that we can continue to share this work. We need to assess ourselves. The current system of assessment is flawed. Guruji was willing to see himself with a fresh eye. Why shouldn’t we see the system with a fresh eye too? 

She asked us, what’s your take? What’s our selling point in IY?

A certified Iyengar Yoga Teacher is the hallmark that a student is in safe hands. It is a symbol of learning. Guruji took his system of yoga and made it universal. He took philosophy and art to the level of science. Look at what he did for back pain. He took pavanmuktasana and Supta Padangusthasana and the pain went away. But we cannot just teach asana. If we lose the art and philosophy of yoga, we are missing the point. Yoga is not just asana. And the art and philosophy will not take away your back pain.

The assessment should be a test of our knowledge, and not a system of favoritism. It should be an unbiased system. If Abhijata send s you a student to assess, you will get nervous and feel you must pass them. And what of Prashant sends you a student who is not ready, will you fail them? 

She offered the following suggestions for improvement:

-Friendlier assessment environment

-As close to national as possible

-no fear

-no pressure of hierarchy

-less judgemental 

-more realistic ( she gave the example of Paschimottanasana, students in assessment are usually teachers, so they are flexible, but the reality is our students won’t be that flexible)

She said, We need your help, send your ideas and suggestions to info@rimyi.org

We need to create a better system, better community.

Prashant then spoke about those first days of Iyengar Yoga. People knew very little about the subject. Now people come with all kinds of ideas about what yoga is. It’s like swimming in a swimming tank or swimming in the ocean. 

When Guruji was teaching, he was not interested in propagating yoga. He wanted to draw people to the subject. When the first batch of teachers were sent out, how to teach was not a consideration. Teachers taught what they had learned. He left us with a thought for us to contemplate. 

“Are we teaching what we were taught, or are we teaching what we learned?”- Prashant Iyengar