Sat Sangha

My fellow yoga students and my teachers huddled together and Richard snapped this shot of all of us all on our last weekend of instructor training together. This was to be part of a gift (see John and Kate below) we put together for our teachers, Kate Tremblay and John LeMunyon of Heartwood Yoga.

I had nine copies made of the chosen shot. One went into a scrapbook for John and Kate, and the remaining eight were passed out among the rest of us. I picked them up from Wolf Camera and then slid each photo into a folded sheet of paper labeled Sat Sangha.

Sat Sangha is a sanskrit term that means "honest community". It is a lovely thing to be a part of a group I can refer to with this term. That has been one of the best parts of this training. These people have grown to feel like family to me. These are people I have grown to trust and respect.

What a bittersweet day. The year of study had been wonderful, time consuming, tiring and exhilarating all at once. Now it was coming to an end.

In the time since our course completion we have maintained contact. Most of us are working on building a teaching practice around Birmingham and beyond, but what is amazing about these folks is the true feeling of community among us. We studied together, coached each other, praised each other, gave helpful and respectful feedback and we had fun together.

We all want to do similar things and yet there is no hint of rivalry or jealously among these lovely people. Snatching and groping for business, hoping to force shut down the competition, demeaning another yoga instructor; it's just not part of this group.

Kate and John offer the opportunity to teach at Heartwood while supporting and applauding our efforts to seek other avenues. We all are encouraging each other, sending ideas and referring students when it seems appropriate to do so. It is about right action, not good or bad action -- simply right action. With that, life really is very pleasant. It is a very nice contrast to some of the experiences I've had in my professional history.

In the long run this kind of mindset only serves an entire community. It's a mark of faith and confidence, of wanting the best for all and knowing it is possible. It's about honoring every individual while respecting and honoring the self because it is about knowing we are connected.