3 Words you will never hear me say as a Yoga teacher (and why you shouldn’t either)
Language is a powerful tool in education. How we frame what we are trying to say really impacts how our words are perceived, no matter if you’re in a classroom or a yoga studio. Here are 3 words you’ll never hear me say as an accessible, BIPOC, Trauma-Informed Yoga teacher.
-Advanced/Basic
(ok I know that’s 2 but they’re both related!) Calling any pose more advanced or basic is automatically putting the poses into a hierarchy where one pose is deemed ‘better’ than another. This is simply not true. Instead, I use cues like ‘to feel more/less’ or ‘for more/less sensation’ where the emphasis is on how the pose feels for each individual student and not on how the pose should look.
-Woo-Woo
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve heard this term to describe the more profound aspects of Yoga. The term inherently feels like a sort of dismissal of anything not immediately understood or apparent to the Western mind and that’s just plain disrespectful. It’s also doing a disservice to both the teacher & the student, who are then missing out on the deeper benefits of this sacred beautiful practice. Yoga is not just a stretch class, it is a sacred spiritual movement practice. Instead, I use the actual Sanskrit terms whenever I can and I try to incorporate some philosophy in each of my classes.
- Namaste
This is a big one! Many Yoga teachers like to end class with this because its literal translation means ‘I bow to the divine in you’. Culturally, however, it makes no sense as the word in only really used as a formal way of saying hello. This is the danger in stripping away the culture & philosophy that enrich Yoga and appropriating it for the West by cherry-picking what Sanskrit terms are used to make the practise more palatable. Instead, I usually place my hands in Anjali Mudra, bow in respect and to symbolise my gratitude and simply say thank you in English.
How about you, any words you avoid saying in Yoga class? Or have you heard any words that have stuck with you? Would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!