The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast

385: When the Yoga Teacher Stumbles with Jivana Heyman

Description:

Have you ever been deeply disappointed in a yoga teacher, mentor, or celebrity? You are not alone. It is a common experience that many yoga teachers and practitioners go through, but how should we react? In this episode, Jivana Heyman joins Shannon to discuss how they deal with their feelings of grief and disappointment caused by folks in the yoga world.

Jivana Heyman is a teacher, author, and advocate, well-known in the yoga community. He is the founder and director of Accessible Yoga, an international non-profit organization dedicated to increasing access to yoga teachings for people of all abilities and backgrounds. He has authored multiple books and brings decades of experience as an advocate and teacher to this conversation.

Shannon and Jivana discuss the complex topic of navigating a path forward when yoga teachers or mentors disappoint us. Whether through actions that fall short of our expectations, problematic behavior, or situations where trust is broken, these experiences can be deeply personal and disheartening. Jivana draws on his years of experience in teaching and his commitment to fostering compassionate and ethical yoga communities to share some deep insights and thoughtful reflections on tackling these moments with grace, understanding, and authenticity.

This episode promises to inspire and empower yoga teachers and practitioners alike to approach disappointment with wisdom and resilience.

Key Takeaways:

[0:12] Have you ever been deeply disappointed in a yoga teacher, mentor, or celebrity? Shannon and Jivana are discussing their feelings of grief and disappointment in connection with folks in the yoga world.

[2:33] Shannon introduces herself and gives a shout-out of thanks to sponsors - OfferingTree and her 20-hour Yoga for Pelvic Health Training.

[5:51] Shannon introduces her guest for this episode - Jivana Heyman.

[10:05] What's the newest thing in Jivana's world right now with his work and personal life?

[15:12] It is common to be disappointed by yoga teachers or celebrities that we are learning from. Jivana and Shannon reflect on their experiences.

[19:40] Can we separate the teacher from the teachings? Is it possible to find a distinction between yoga and the people we learned from?

[21:26] Shannon shares an experience she had with a yoga teacher with a sizeable following just before the US elections.

[27:35] A second part of that interaction Shannon had is that they seemed to stop speaking up because of capitalism. Jivana shares his perspective on Shannon's reaction and disappointment.

[30:18] At what point do we call people out or call them in for the harm they are causing and how do we do that?

[32:26] Shannon pops in with a message about the sponsor, OfferingTree.

[36:00] Someone reached out to Shannon about wanting to call out a teacher they've been studying with who has said nothing about Palestine but has spoken up about other world events. What is the best way to navigate these situations?

[42:43] What is Jivana's advice to a yoga teacher who is observing that their teachers or yoga celebrities they follow are not speaking up about the issues that are important to them?

[47:46] It can feel like it takes a lot of energy to work in community. How should we approach this task of overcoming our differences to work towards a common goal?

[55:14] Yoga doesn't always feel good. It's not the goal of a yoga practice to leave us in a "blissed out" state.

[57:57] What would Jivana say to the yoga celebrity who is listening and having people ask them about not speaking up about social justice causes?

[59:24] What would Jivana tell yoga teachers who feel like they are not doing enough right now?

[65:48] What is Jivana's next book (his fourth) about?

[66:34] What are some practices Jivana is using now for grieving the destruction that is happening to the earth and around the world?

[71:51] Shannon shares some of the actions that she is taking to fight back against oppressive systems in the world.

[73:17] Connect with and learn from Jivana via his website or Instagram.

[74:26] Shannon shares her biggest takeaways from this conversation with Jivana.

Links:

• Jivana Heyman

• Jivana Heyman on Instagram

• Previous Podcast Episodes with Jivana Heyman

• 365: How to Teach Accessible Yoga with Jivana Heyman

• 321: Accessible Yoga & Pelvic Health with Jivana Heyman

• 273: Yoga is a Revolution with Jivana Heyman

• 251: Reflect & Plan [Part 2] with Shannon Crow & Jivana Heyman

• 209: Online Yoga Teacher Training with Jivana Heyman

• 138: Accessible Yoga Beyond Asana with Jivana Heyman

• Inclusive Yoga: Creating Community Through Accessibility (OfferingTree)

• Zel Amanzi on Instagram

• Yoga for Pelvic Health 3-Hour On Demand Workshop with Shannon Crow

• The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast Team

• Shannon Crow on Instagram

Gratitude to our Sponsors, OfferingTree, and Yoga for Pelvic Health 20-hr Online Training with Shannon Crow.

Quotes from this episode:

"You know, we're all human, we're all trying our best." - Jivana

"Where we always get stuck in life is the expectations. .... the expectation is what causes our suffering." - Jivana

"Non-attachment is just freedom, that's what this is. Freedom from desire, freedom from being focused on the outcome." - Jivana

"When you're giving someone feedback or criticism, try to be as nice as you can about it because we're mostly really insecure people." - Jivana

"Direct communication is more effective with people." - Jivana

"Don't let your emotions decide your life for you. Don't let emotions make the decision." - Jivana

"We all have a lot of power in small ways that we don't recognize." - Jivana