Podar School Teachers Walk In As Students At The Yoga Institute Camp
Challenged by energetic students, pressured for performance by administrators and coping up with the demands on home front too, teachers these days undergo a lot of stress. Teaching has become a stressful profession and hence attending to the physical and mental health of the teachers is as important as looking after the students and children. The Yoga Institute organized a camp on 7th September 2016 for teachers from Podar School where all the attendees switched their role from being school teachers to yoga students.
While one of the senior teacher of The Yoga Institute, Bhaktiji emphasized on maintaining a balanced state of mind, she also made it very clear that Yoga should become a way of life and not just for few hours. The day started off with interactive games and brief individual counseling sessions. This was followed by few stretches and sets of traditional Asanas. While this took care of the teachers’ physical conditioning, Smt. Hansaji Jayadeva Yogendra, Director of The Yoga Institute, held the court to condition their minds and thoughts too. She mentioned that, “The naughtiest children are the teachers, because even at home we become teachers. We are not able to let go and differentiate our individual roles.” Hansaji also threw light on how to handle anger by stating, “Many a times we believe in anger and revenge –‘he behaved rudely so I will also behave that way’. Yoga says you have to focus on yourself. Since you all are sitting here, we have to make a decision that we don’t suffer because of others, especially family. So instead of suffering be calm. Stop the mind from thinking; instantly do something that calms your mind.” Doling out tips to counter anger, she revealed how renowned actor and singer Ashok Kumar coped up with his temper by singing in the bathroom.
She also threw light on various important yet easily-dismissed habits and patterns. Our attitude and the food intake are directly related. So wrong attitude and unhealthy food increases toxic levels and thus balance of mind suffers. This leads to diseases of joints, knee, heart, diabetes, etc. We can’t blame anybody else for our actions. If we are angry it’s our problem. Also weak and a person with poor knowledge gets angry easily so let us not show ignorance to the world. Do the right action and act in the right manner. We fail to accept things as they are and must learn to accept that every child is unique and each one’s capacity also differs. Hansaji rounded up the talk by sharing about the importance of sleep and the ability to control deficiency of heat/cold in one’s body.
After lunch, the teachers were treated to a session of relaxing techniques like Nishpand Bhavna and Shavasana. While many enjoyed the wonderful experience of relaxation, a few were not comfortable with the practice of being still. Lessons to learn!
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Later, another senior teacher of The Yoga Institute gathered all teachers’ attention with the discussion of Yogic Ahar and how important it is to consume seasonal food. She also gave in-depth knowledge about division of cereals, pulses, non-veg, etc. and shared the benefits of a healthy diet chart. “Quality consciousness with quantity control is the key,” summed up the session.
Though Yoga cannot be learnt in a day, various aspects of this lifestyle were introduced to the teachers in the form of basic Pranayama, simple exercises (specially chalked out to cope up with various health issues faced by the teachers), meditation techniques and Kriyas (netra snan, jal dauthi, aswini mudra, nauli, trataka etc that helps in internal cleansing). While Jalneti was explained in detail, Sheetal ma’am also shared her experience of reaping the technique’s benefits by performing it daily. The session ended with teachers doing Jalneti under the guidance of the volunteers.
As they walked out of the gates, the rejuvenated teachers were empowered with some blissful experiences and awareness.