• Table of Contents
  • The Yoga Youth and Children’s Retreat by Joanne Sullivan
  • Wisdom of Ten Years Old by Swami Veda Bharati
  • To Serve Nature by Swami Veda Bharati
  • Seeds Were Planted by Sabina Cesaroni
  • An Experience of the Yoga Youth and Children’s Retreat by Carolyn Hume
  • TTP for the Taiwanese: Reflections on the 2011 TTP by Joanna Siauw
  • A New Important Project by Giancarlo Colombo
  • Dr. Shirley Telles at SRSG by Joanne Sullivan
  • 40 Days Silence at SRSG by Dave Downing
  • Something Swamiji Said by Four Sadhakas
  • Three YMT Seminars in Italy by Danielle Belloni
  • Toronto News December 2011 by Shanta Sawh
  • Expanding Identity by Randall Krause
  • Perpetual Youth by Swami Rama
  • Book: "Yoga in India" A Journey to the top 24 Yoga Places
  • Book: "Love is a Song of the Nightingale" by Nandini
  • 2011 Events and Beyond
  • Full Moon Meditation Dates
  • Location of our SRSG ashram
• AHYMSIN Newsletter Archive

TTP for the Taiwanese: Reflections on the 2011 TTP

by Joanna Siauw

(Click for larger photo)

(Click for larger photo)

It is always difficult to put in words how the Teachers Training Program affects people. One thing for sure is that this program does as it was designed in the first place, which is to transform those who stay on with the program.

In 2008, a group of twenty-six came from Taiwan for the Level One training. It was not the first group that came from Taiwan for this training, but this was the first group that had members coming back to continue with the training. Out of the 26, nine came back for Level Two training; and out of the 9, four finished the Level Three in 2010 while another four finished in 2011. As a person who accompanied these future yogis for their trainings and studies in the past few years, I have to agree that transformation doesn’t come easy, and practice is, as Swami Rama and Swami Veda constantly remind, the key.

(Click for larger photo)

(Click for larger photo)

We had two groups this year; one group came for continuing training, and the other one was for their first (level I) Chinese TTP. Some of the Chinese TTP members also arrived early, hoping to observe silence until the beginning of Chinese TTP. People, new and old, came with the hope to accomplish the training as soon as possible. As the yoga society in Taiwan still focuses mainly on certification, it is only natural that people came to Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama bearing the hope of acquiring the certificate t0 add the touch to their teaching so that they could stand out amidst the many teachers in the market (sorry for the use of word, but it is still a ‘market’ in Taiwan – and a rather competitive one.)

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(Click for larger photo)

This year, unlike the previous years, our teachers put more emphasis on the real purpose of the program. It was true that we all want to finish something fast, seeing it the same as the college education or self help classes. Although our beloved teachers have been advocating the spiritual progression which has no business with the certification, it is inevitable that most of the members dwell on their old habits and focus mainly on the proof of purchase. To be honest, it was quite frustrating to go through answering questions on whether certificates would be presented and whether our training would be accepted by the Yoga Alliance and how. Luckily, Tinyu Chen, the clear mind in our organization, encouraged that we should not stand in the way of the lineage, that the lineage would guide these members and do the magic.

And so the magic began (again). The class schedule was fairly intense. Students rose before dawn in the icy cold November mornings and gathered in the even colder meditation hall for the morning prayers in starting a day long learning.

They were swamped with medical school level – well, close to medical school level – anatomy analysis by Peter; exhausted and rejuvenated at the same time by Ashutosh’s asana practices; and mesmerized by Swami Ritavan’s and Stoma’s vast knowledge in the yoga philosophy, in-depth meditation, and breathing practices.

(Click for larger photo)

(Click for larger photo)

By the end of the day, instead of just clarity, I saw more awareness of what we still needed to learn. I saw humbleness in people that faced infinite majesty. Even in our group where people were normally eager to finish all three level trainings, students now talked about repeating the same level until they could be more ready for the next one. This felt like entering into the depth of a cave that we were so eager to enter, only to realize that the treasure within is far greater than we can haul. So we could either pick up a small gold coin lying in front of us or move back out to calm ourselves down before going in further, inch by inch.

We have another 26 new faces this time. I don’t know how many of these 26 will come back or stay on. One thing for sure, they were all deeply touched by the lineage, and I pray that their lives would never be the same again.

Editor’s Note:

Taiwan Himalayan Yoga Meditation Association is an AHYMSIN affiliated center. We invite you to visit their blog at http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/hymt_taiwan and also their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_123732924355599