When The Teacher is Ready, The Student Appears

I think it is more likely that a student will appear when a teacher is ready than the other way around. Here I am deliberately turning the common saying around maintaining that either the students or the opportunity, or the desire to teach appears when a certain level of practice (observed with a humble attitude that keeps things real) is reached.

Case in point, think of Krishnamacharya walking for thousands of miles to an undisclosed location somewhere at the foot of the Himalayan Mountains where he would, after much searching, find his guru Bramacharya with whom he would spend 7 years.  Not that I am comparing myself with them at all.. of course.

James tells me he always knew in his heart that 8 years of dedicated research/study in any field makes you 'profesional'.  Having done his time to become a chest master he knows his thing.  Then Malcom Gladwell in his book Outliers made the bench-mark famous and put it at 10,000 hours.

Sounds about right that it would take that much. And counting. Because nobody really becomes a teacher who is not in turn and will forever be a student.

Now of course, not everyone feels the pull to teach.  Some people may have put in the time but feel that their destiny brings them in a different direction.  But for some of us that breathe and live yoga constantly in every minute of the day, the desire to share becomes strong.

Such an opportunity is presenting itself to me and I am grateful.  I am honored too.  I know that maybe I am idealizing things, but coming from the highest place, these are reasons why I feel the pull to do it:

1.- To share some of what  I have gathered
2.- To learn from others and from the situation
3.- To be clear about what I know and what I do not
4.- To attempt to share and induce in others, if they want to, the benefits that yoga has given me
5.- To grow

And then I wonder, what does a teacher want? I guess a teacher wants a student that is keen and willing to learn, a dedicated and serious student, one who has respect for the practice, one who is willing to put in the time, who is open to learn, and to de-learn old habits, to listen, to question, practice, investigate, read, experience, get some glimpses, have a strong desire to reach the goal of yoga.

Krishnamacharya was very selective of the students he accepted, he thought that it was the quality of his students that would reflect back on him. He cared about what was important in a student, which is to have a sincere desire to learn.  He cared about spreading yoga wisely.

Ramaswami recently published a Vedic prayer in Facebook (after his teacher training) in gratitude for his students:

May earnest students from all directions come to me! May earnest students with varied capabilities come to me! May earnest students with exceptional capabilities come to me! May earnest students with self-restraint come to me! May earnest students with peace in heart come to me!

May them come indeed for all of us who feel the pull.

Recommended Reading:
The Book Every Yoga Teacher and Student Must Read
A Kick in the Butt: When You Don't Feel Like Practicing