Power Dynamics in the Yoga teacher/student relationship
Written by Lauren Munday
“is it ok if I don’t do my full practice today?”
As a Mysore teacher, this is a question I have been asked countless times and one I’ve probably asked my teacher on more than one occasion. I’ve not always considered the question to be problematic but over the last few years, particularly as I’ve deepened my studies into trauma-sensitive yoga, I’ve begun to consider it through the lens of power dynamics in yoga student-teacher relationships.
So what exactly are power dynamics and why are they important?
Power is a person’s ability or capacity to direct or influence others.
Power dynamics are about the relationship between two or more people so these dynamics come into play in all our interactions.
Power moves with identity. How we encounter each other in the world is based on our differing identities. For example, imagine yourself as a child in the first year of secondary school, the older children are in an “up power position”, however, if you then consider the older children in relation to the teacher, then the teacher becomes the one in the “up power position”.
Power dynamics come into play when we consider our identities and the dominant systems of oppression that exist in our society. These systems are created to put those who possess certain identities in an “up power” position affording them societal benefits at the expense of everyone else. Because our identities shift based on the situations we're in it’s important to always keep this in mind so that we can stop re-enforcing systems of oppression.
So how do these power dynamics show up in the yoga room?
As yoga teachers, we have what’s often referred to as "Expert Power”.
We have knowledge and information, and people come to us wanting to learn yoga. We're the professionals in this scenario, therefore we’re required to act ethically and professionally. This is particularly important considering that many people explore yoga to find healing and maybe in a vulnerable place.
Yoga is about having an embodied experience and gaining a deeper understanding of ourselves. To be able to have this kind of experience we need to feel safe. It’s impossible to have an embodied experience if you're in fight, flight or freeze mode. Therefore, as yoga teachers, our job is both to share knowledge about yoga and create a space of relational safety for our students
What happens if there’s an imbalance of power dynamics?
As we’ve seen already there’s a natural power imbalance in any teacher/student relationship whether you’re a teacher in a traditional education setting or in the yoga room.
If not managed this power imbalance can lead to students feeling unable to advocate for their own best interest. For example, they might feel unable to take rest at a certain point in a class; do a shorter or less intense practice; speak up if they don’t want an adjustment, or tell the teacher if they receive a painful adjustment.
This can lead to pain, injury or worse.
As we know, almost every modern lineage of yoga, including Ashtanga, has a history of sexual and/or physical abuse. In the last few years, many survivors have bravely come forward to share their stories, and in many cases, these abuses of power went on for year's unchallenged. The overwhelming number of documented cases of abuses of power and the pain it causes speaks to the need to examine power dynamics specifically within yoga teacher/student relationships.
Addressing the power imbalance
As yoga teachers, we want practitioners to be empowered to advocate for their own best interests. Although there will always be an inherent imbalance in the teacher/student relationship there are things we can do and behaviours we can adopt to attempt to mitigate these risks for our students and ourselves. After all, the last thing we want as yoga teachers is to hurt anyone either physically or emotionally.
I'm certainly not an expert on power dynamics but these are quesstions I ask myself regularly throughout my teaching practice.
1. Am I centring the practitioner's wellbeing?
2. What are my motives?
3. Am I setting clear boundaries?
4. Am I staying humble
Centre the pracitioners wellbeing
Although this seems pretty obvious, if I'm honest, I've not always done the best job centring my students. As a newer teacher, I spent a lot of time trying to do things the way I thought my teacher would want them done rather than considering what was best for the person in front of me.
On reflection, I can now see that was about my insecurities as a new teacher. I didn’t have any idea what my teacher wanted me to do in a given situation because he wasn’t there.
In Ashtanga, as new teachers, we can often get hung up on the idea of rules (admittedly I've been one of those people). However, I believe these “rules” were intended more as guidelines, to be considered alongside what would work best for each individual practitioner.
When we’re teaching, centring our students is also about interrogating our motives and asking ourselves honest questions.
For example;
Am I making suggestions because I feel they might be helpful?
Is it about my belief in how I think things should be done?
Am I being driven by my own need for someone to "progress"?
How do I feel if someone decides not to take on my suggestions?
These are all inquiries that are sometimes challenging to ask ourselves but form an essential part of the practice of teaching yoga.
Invitational language and choice making
Invitational language and choice-making are two of the key pillars of “Trauma Centre Trauma Sensitive Yoga” (TCTSY). TCTSY is a method of trauma-sensitive yoga designed as a therapeutic intervention for survivors of relational trauma.
Although facilitating a TCTSY session is very different to teaching a regular yoga class, since becoming certified in the TCTSY method I’ve begun to incorporate some of the methodologies into my regular Mysore Ashtanga classes.
In TCTSY we always facilitate yoga by offering choices and using invitational language. Because relational trauma is so often about the removal of power and agency, TCTSY aims to empower participants to make choices about how and when to move their bodies.
Invitational language is the opposite of commanding language. Using invitational language to facilitate power-sharing we might say something like “if you’d like to you could try XXX” instead of "Now do XXX"
Choice-making is something we can bring to our regular classes to address power dynamics. Offering choices without putting weight on one option over another allows power and autonomy to reside with the practitioner. We can say things like "you could try option A or option B or maybe try both and see which one works best for you".
Another way to do this is to explain the thinking behind the suggestions we make. For me, this is about power-sharing and adding value because many times it's something that can be applied to other aspects of practice once the practitioner understands the logic behind it.
Choice making, invitational language and providing clear explanations are all methods of centring the needs of the person in front of us and empowering them to do the same.
Obtain consent
Obtaining consent is particularly important when offering any kind of physical assistance. We can develop our own ways of doing this depending on the type of classes we teach and how well we know the practitioners.
In the Mysore room when I'm teaching, I want practitioners to feel empowered to say yes or no to physical assist depending on their needs at that moment. This could change daily. I try to never assume consent and make it clear hands-on assists are optional. I always feel happy if someone says they'd like to practice without any adjustments because it means they are empowered to speak up in that moment.
For new practitioners, it’s important to take time to explain how and why we use physical assists in the Mysore room, and that it is always optional.
If I’m teaching a non-Mysore class I don’t tend to offer any kind of hands-on assists because I feel consent is problematic in that space, especially because in these situations we’re less likely to have a relationship with those in the room.
Most studios now have consent cards, but it’s worthwhile acknowledging that not everyone will feel comfortable using them, particularly if they’re the only person in the room doing so. It’s also worth considering that it may feel more difficult to speak up and say no to an adjustment in a led class dynamic when everyone is moving together.
I know the system I've created isn't perfect which is why it's so important to evolve and continue this conversation with practitioners in our spaces and with each other (suggestions welcome). Outside of trauma-sensitive classes that have strict no-touch policies, many practitioners do find hands-on assists helpful so it's important to strike the right balance.
Consider our identity when we show up to teach
We already know, as a teacher, that aspect of our identity affords us power in the teaching space but what other aspects of our identity bring power and which aspects might be subject to oppression?
As teachers, it’s our responsibility to unpack our identities and how they show up in the different spaces we move. For example, how I show up when teaching a group of female trauma survivors with refugee backgrounds might be very different to how I show up to teach a workshop to a group of male athletes.
To create spaces of relational safety it’s important we continue this investigation happening within ourselves.
Set clear boundaries
Students can often put their teachers on a pedestal, seeing their positive attributes and not noticing their flaws. You might have noticed this happening yourself. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been asked if I drink alcohol (I do), go to parties (occasionally), stay up past 9 pm (very rare these days), and practitioners surprise they realize I’m a regular person with flaws, much like themselves.
Because students can put their teachers on a pedestal sometimes attraction develops. As we’ve already said, we are the professionals in the room therefore it’s our responsibility to create boundaries and examine our motives in forming both friendships and romantic relationships with students.
It’s worth considering that within psychotherapy there’s a strict ethical code that prevents therapists from engaging in relationships with their clients for a minimum amount of time after the termination of the therapy.
We didn’t become yoga teachers to find partners, however, sometimes a genuine attraction can develop. In these situations, I would suggest the safest thing is to talk about it with the practitioner. If you do decide to date, ask them to attend another teachers’ class either permanently or until you’re in a comfortable and established relationship.
Dating students who attend your class can bring a different (and sometimes sexual) dynamic into the room. Other students will pick up on this and it may make them feel uncomfortable or worse unsafe.
Stay humble through continuous study
Albert Einstein is famously quoted as saying ‘The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know.’ This is a statement I can relate to.
There are more religious, philosophical and spiritual texts preserved in India than anywhere else in the world. Once we start to study the philosophical texts of yoga we realize how little we actually know. If like me your Sanskrit is extremely basic and you're a native English speaker we’re only accessing the small amount of knowledge that has been translated into English.
Another way of putting things in perspective is to consider that according to the Gheranda Samhita there are 8,400,000 asanas described by Shiva, as many as the species of living creatures in the universe! When I compare that with my knowledge it's another reminder of how little I know!
Remembering these statements motivates me to continue to deepen my understanding of yoga and to continue examining my role as a yoga teacher/facilitator so I can show up in the best way for the people that come to my class.
It's an acknowledgement that it's the teachings of yoga and the power of the practice unfolding within each of us that is the true teacher.