Yoga practice ideas based on the Panchamaya Model
My teacher Gary Kraftsow often says: “You can’t teach what you don’t have.” This means that to be effective yoga teachers, we need to practice our own yoga. If you have an interesting, rich, and multidimensional personal practice, this will inevitably come across in your teaching. But if the well of your own yoga practice runs dry, this will leave your students thirsty as well.
As we mentioned before, the most effective approach to teaching yoga is to “Study it – practice it – teach it.” And being human, you will only be able to keep your studies going for a long time if you are personally interested in what you are studying. So, what interests you right now? Do you want to experiment with some specific postures? Are you dealing with hip tension? Are you challenged by some other personal struggles that you want to address? Your yoga practice has room for all of it. You can investigate it all in your practice and then pass the lessons you learn to your students (and give them room to investigate, as well).
Each one of us is a multidimensional human being who has all sorts of needs beyond strictly physical. So today I will show you how you can use the Panchamaya Model to envision different kinds of practices for your students. This is in no way an exhaustive list of what’s possible, but a comprehensive overview that is meant to spark your creativity and encourage your own exploration.
ANNAMAYA (THE PHYSICAL BODY)
PRANAMAYA (THE VITAL BODY)
MANOMAYA (THE INTELLECTUAL MIND)
VIJNANAMAYA (THE PERSONALITY)
ANANDAMAYA (THE HEART CENTER)
Sequence Wiz members get access to PDF handouts of brief educational articles on how to design yoga practices and use yoga to work with the body, energy, and mind.
Thank you Olga for a very comprehensive insight into the Panchamaya model and how to apply in our practice. Really enjoyed reading it and will be more aware now of including each element in my practice and teaching.
Thank you Helen! So happy to hear that this was useful 🙂
As if by magic…. I have been giving a lot of time to consideration of who I am as a yoga teacher, what I strive to give those who come along…. I’ve been a little overwhelmed with the wealth of directions I could go in, and I’ve felt a little boxed in by all the advice telling me to ‘find my niche’. Then I read this and it provides clarity, choice, an acceptance that there is real value in what I am trying to work towards. Thank you
That is wonderful to hear Dan! I love to use the Panchamaya model to organize my thoughts and teaching strategies. Pretty much everything we learn in yoga fits somewhere within the Panchamaya Model because it is meant to address some aspect of our human experience. Once you get a more clear picture of where everything fits, it makes it much easier to make specific choices and stay on track. And I am so excited to hear that are giving thought to what you plan to offer to your students – it goes back to that fundamental idea of having a clear intention, super important!
This is such a cool post…..at first I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to follow (my fault) and then I read through the entire post. It’s so full of information to use with my students. My class today was centered on balance…life, nutrition, breath, asana. I wish I had seen this first! Thank you!
Olga: Today the practice for a Bipolar state student was base mainly in this Yoga practice ideas. The student was so satisfied she connect with her self, knew what she requires and was aware the change of mood is in her hands
Thanks a lot¡
What an excellent resource! I think this is exactly what I needed. Thank you!