Yoga Teachers Guide to the Bhagavad Gita

Name of Course: Yoga Teachers Guide to the Bhagavad Gita

Total Number of CPD Hours on Course: 32

Name of Main Teacher:  Swami Saradananda

Dates of upcoming course: TBA

Description of the course: an 18-week development training for yoga teachers who wish to acquire a deeper understanding of the Bhagavad Gita, a prime-text of yoga which guides the life and thoughts of millions of people around the world.

Course participants will probably find the words of the Bhagavad Gita to be close and strangely familiar. This ancient epic is a mystical poem about life, death, love and duty; it is a literary masterpiece about the heights and depths of the human soul. The Bhagavad Gita is a guidebook for living a more purposeful and fulfilling life, while being active and working in the world

What will yoga teachers get out of this course?

  • An in-depth analysis of the Bhagavad Gita

  • Ways that you and your students can use the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita to go more deeply into your practice and to find more joy in daily life

  • The Bhagavad Gita is a manual that will aid you in taking your yoga practice off the mat and letting it guide your daily life

The background to discuss the Bhagavad Gita with students

This course balances student-teacher contact hours with personal practice

  • 18 live classes (1 hour 45 minutes each) + recorded for further viewing

  • You will also receive written notes and suggestions for additional study

How yoga teachers will benefit from this Course

  • You will be part of a community of yoga teachers who are interested in taking yoga beyond their mat and into the world

  • There is ample opportunity to exchange ideas with your fellow yoga teachers. This is  to find positive ways to deal with the some of the philosophical challenges present in the teaching of yoga.

  • Mentoring by Swami Saradananda, a senior yoga teacher who holds an MA degree from SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies), University of London

  • Introduction to philosophical principles underlying the teaching of yoga

  • Application of Bhagavad Gita’s teachings to daily life

Requirements for participation

  • Completion of yoga teachers’ training or yoga therapy training

  • Computer access, basic computer literacy and an email address

To register: bank transfer of non-refundable deposit of £150. The balance is due 3 weeks before the start of the course.

Classes are small, as the number of participants is limited. Please book as soon as possible.

Refunds and transfers: once payment has been made, there are no refunds. However, you may transfer to another session of the course, with a £100 transfer fee. You must complete the course within 3 years.

Attendance: students are expected to attend all classes via Zoom (with their camera on) and be absent only with good reason. If you are unable to attend because of illness or other emergency, you must inform the tutor before the start of the class.

Students are required to register 80% attendance at live sessions– the first class cannot be missed. If any live class is missed, it is the student's responsibility to make up the content by viewing the recorded sessions and submitting a detailed written summary.

Course participants who do not reach the required attendance will not receive their certificate until they have made up the time/practice and assignments and this may incur additional costs. If you miss more than three live classes, you will be expected to transfer to a subsequent session of the course, with payment of the £100 transfer fee.

Homework: a re-reading of the text is suggested, but not required. There will be no other homework.

Students will evaluate their own practice and progress through their own reflective self-assessment and are requested to keep a reflective diary showing learning progress.

Code of conduct: students and teachers are expected to act with mutual respect and kindness. Students are expected to set up their camera in a quiet area, where they will not be distracted by other members of their household, including pets and children. It is best to wear loose comfortable clothing (no jeans).

Students are requested to not bring their phones to class (not simply put them into silent mode). No eating during class, please.

 

Module 1: Introduction to the Bhagavad Gita; discussion of “Arjuna’s Anguish”

Module 2: the path of Knowledge; sankhya yoga

Module 3: the path of action; karma yoga

Module 4: Integrating  the paths of knowledge, action and renunciation; jnana-karma-sanyasa yoga

Module 5: contemplating the goal; sanyasa yoga; the yoga of renunciation of action

Module 6: the yoga of meditation; taming the mind and senses; dhyana yoga

Module 7: the yoga or wisdom and realisation; knowing and experiencing the divine

Module 8: yoga of the imperishable Brahman

Module 9: the kingly science and the kingly secret

Module 10: the divine glories

Module 11: the vision of the cosmic form

Module 12: the path of love; the yoga of devotion

Module 13: distinguishing between the field and the knower of the field

Module 14: the division of the three gunas; going beyond the qualities of Nature

Module 15: the yoga of the supreme spirit; devotion to the supreme Self

Module 16: division between the divine and the degenerate

Module 17: the path of the three-fold faith

Module 18: liberation by renunciation