Australian Yoga Journal — January 2018

62

january 2018

yogajournal.com.au

Teachers - begin with a simple and

specific enquiry while your students are

in an ideally passive or even restorative

pose to introduce the focus of the

practice. Let the enquiry land on each

student so that it invites a personal

quest, rather than trying to achieve a set

of poses. As you, the teacher, get more

comfortable with this process, the

physical enquiry reveals a mirror-like

process that invites each yogi to consider

her or his own imbalances, blockages

and movement towards freedom—both

physical and spiritual.

Here’s the basic outline:

• Choose a clear physical exploration


• Gradually move that focus forward,
  stepby step


• Use enquiry to have your students
  invest in their own progression, and


• Invite – via ongoing questions –
  your students’ attention and insight


• Clearly wrap it up, with time and
  space for reflection
  Telling a story, if you will, that
  follows a clear, mostly linear path will
  engage your students and keep them
  mindfully making choices about depth
  and timing and when to take
  breaks that are intuitive and smart.
  The students get deeper, learn
  something specific and have a nugget
  to takeaway.
  Deepening Focus is designed to
  channel your students’ attention into
  ever subtle awareness towards the Self.
  Nonetheless, the mind needs to be
  present on what is actually happening,

which is Asana (the poses). The art of

teaching is keeping your students here

and now whilst penetrating into the

Self. The path inward is illuminated.

Choose a clear intention

Start by choosing something physical to

explore: a great exploration for all levels

is to discern the difference between hip

flexion and spinal flexion. Here’s one

for you to try: Begin with a very simple,

mostly passive investigation to bring

attention to the area of the hips and to

the enquiry: Begin lying on the back in

Savasana simply watching the breath.

Bring attention to the natural curve in

the lumbar spine. On exhalation draw

one knee to the chest (hip flexion), so

deeply that it tucks the tailbone and

rounds the lower back (spinal flexion.)

Ask them to discover how far they need

to move the knee away from their chest

to come back to a natural lumbar curve

(hip flexion and no spinal flexion.) Then

try the second side, asking them how to

observe the subtle difference right to left.

Moving forward and

inviting enquiry

Gradually make it more challenging -

pose by pose, inviting the same inquiry.

For example: can you flex at the hip in

this forward bend (say Downward

dog; then Uttanasana) without flexing

(rounding) your spine? This will set your

students up to try more advanced poses

(perhaps Parsvottansana or Uttitha

Hasta Padagustasana for example) and

discern for themselves what is possible

in their own body. You can invite them

to begin to modify with props or adding

a bend in their knees when they need it.

This avoids competition and greediness

as you move forward with your sequence

of forward bends—without the goal of

a single advanced “peak” pose. You’ll

continue the enquiry as deeply into

advancing poses as your group can

mindfully go. The cooling down phase

can move them into simple backbends

to gently offset the body in the opposite

direction. Add some balancing easy

twists before the Savasana for a

complete and satisfying practice. As

you close the practice in a seated

posture, invite them to reflect on their

experience: how they feel now, their

ability to stay present and make clear

and conscious choices for themselves

throughout the practice, creating a

clearer sense of Self.

Wrapping up

Good sequencing is clearly not about a

perfect list of poses. In fact, our ability

to be responsive to the needs of our

students – in the moment – is key to

good teaching. Creating a focus that

deepens via the poses you choose creates

the condition for your students to have a

truly meaningful and transformational

experience in Asana practice. The

philosophical and spiritual aspects come

with mindfulness in Asana, working

towards a deeper understanding of Self.

After all, that’s the promise of yoga, and

what keeps us all coming back. The end

of the conversation, between the two

students above, goes like this: “See you

in class tomorrow?” and the reply,

“Absolutely, yes!”

Join Annie for her 75 hour teacher training

in Sydney next March at BodyMindLife.

http://www.bodymindlife.com/

Annie Carpenter is a long

time teacher and founder

of the SmartFLOW method.

Having studied anatomy,

kinesiology, and

developmental movement as a dancer,

her classes are informed by the body’s

structure and evolution. With a great passion

for creativity and metaphor, Annie loves

to play with sequencing in order to take

her students into a deeper understanding

of a pose and, ultimately, of themselves.

http://www.anniecarpenter.com

“As you, the teacher, get more comfortable with this

process, the physical enquiry reveals a mirror-like process

that invites each yogi to consider her or his own imbalances,

blockages and movement towards freedom...”