Musings: Longevity and Good Health Guaranteed! – Yoon Cho

Musings Longevity and Good Health Guaranteed!By Yoon Cho Illustration by Curtis Settino

“You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone, only you’re not. See, in all our searching, the only thing we’ve found that makes the emptiness bearable, is each other.”—Carl Sagan, Contact

I’m more than halfway into my first year of teacher training, and I cannot help but look back and take stock of the journey so far. My emotions have ranged widely from profound unworthiness, controlled panic, and impatience with myself at one end to elation, excitement, and gratitude at the other.

As fear of death subsided, I actually began to enjoy our classes and the amazing faculty members at the Institute.

I have been most pleasantly surprised by the esprit de corps of our group, fostered through intense learning and growing together in the program. I came to the Iyengar Yoga Institute of San Francisco alone, but I will never be alone again because now I belong to a community of people who care deeply about teaching and practicing Iyengar Yoga.

Before applying for the program at the Institute, I had always been interested in teacher training but never followed up on my urge to explore. I’m not a particularly flexible person with effortless form, nor was I ever disciplined enough for consistent home practice. And I had never taught anything before—though I do enjoy lecturing my sister, my husband, and close friends. After a move to the Bay Area for my husband’s job late last year, I finally investigated and applied to the program, deluding myself that I would participate simply for the knowledge and to deepen my practice. After all, the official name for the program is Advanced Studies/Teacher Training.

Shortly after the program began, I realized what an overwhelming flow of information I had to take in—and the program really asks a minimum of what is needed to become a teacher. I have felt at times that I was trying to drink from a fire hose, but instead, the fire hose, with its monstrous and raging stream, had me pinned against the rope wall (especially after five hours of anatomy on Friday afternoon, followed by three hours of asana).

And yet, my inner transformation has been ongoing, albeit in inelegant and unsteady lurches. As fear of death subsided, I actually began to enjoy our classes and the amazing faculty members at the Institute. My respect for them and my previous teachers deepened as I caught glimpses of their own journeys and the struggles they must have had along the way. When I make small breakthroughs in class and in my own practice, I am deeply grateful for everyone who has gone before me. As we invoke the wisdom of Patanjali at the beginning of each class, I wonder about ancient yogis who mastered yoga and passed down their knowledge only after lifetimes of devoted practice and sacrifice.

I intend to jump out there and be the loudest preacher of Iyengar Yoga there ever was! Lululemon has not come up with a shade of yoga pants that is bright enough for me.

Of all the things I’ve come to love about the program, I have been especially enjoying the camaraderie and support of the people in my class. A Saturday dinner with my classmates is the highlight of an intense and exhausting weekend of classes, and I relish the kindness, intelligence, and fascinating life experiences of my fellow yogis.

Among us are business owners, stylists, a physical therapist, a software engineer, a meditation teacher, a nutritionist, a flight instructor, a nurse, a speech therapist, and several yoga teachers. I would never have met them had I not participated in the program. Our program is immensely enriched by their presence. Even if someone doesn’t speak up in class, the fact that he or she is there makes a difference in the room. I firmly believe that speech is sometimes overrated and represents a fraction of our communication with one another. I always feel the openness and compassion of my fellow students and feel absolutely safe not knowing the answers or making a mistake. Where else would I experience this unique and beautiful community?

In Appendix I of Light on Yoga, Guruji says that “optimism and pessimism were equally balanced” in his years of hard work toward mastery. He also urges us to be “happy in what you have attained and never despairing at any temporary failure.” I repeat Guruji’s words whenever feeling discouraged or disappointed. Controlling my emotions and bringing equanimity to my inner self are an essential part of growth and maturity that is as important as a well-balanced Ardha Chandrasana. Moreover, while I draw inspiration from the strength and courage of my fellow yogis, I also have to own my practice and experience the asanas when nobody is looking or cheering me on. Unless I work through the challenges and improve my practice, I will not have a strong foundation from which to teach or share. Therefore, I am, and must remain, alone with yoga.

Recently, my view on my potential as a teacher shifted after a chance conversation with a mother and daughter who happened to share an outdoor table with me at a restaurant. The adult daughter had been on disability because of a serious accident years before. When I suggested yoga, the daughter revealed that she swore off yoga after a few sessions of (insert whatever type of yoga that does not care much about alignment or one’s injuries) yoga left her worse off than before. I thought, if I complete my teacher training and, more important, truly absorb and internalize what I’m learning, there is no way I will simply enjoy my deepened practice in private. I will need to be certified, of course, but teach I will, and teach I must.

I intend to jump out there and be the loudest preacher of Iyengar Yoga there ever was! Lululemon has not come up with a shade of yoga pants that is bright enough for me. My voice, as strong as my fierce appearance, will be energetic and excited like that of the fruit sellers who used to shout through the loudspeakers up and down the narrow streets of my childhood neighborhood in Seoul. In the summertime, the tires of the small, three-wheeled trucks would be almost flat because of the weight of so much fresh fruit piled high. “Taste the juicy watermelons! Free samples of honeydews going fast! Strawberries bursting with flavor! Longevity and good health guaranteed! Come get these NOW!” They would shout all day long.

Like them, I will be confident through knowledge and firm belief. I will someday be a forceful advocate of a style of yoga that heals people’s bodies and minds. I will shout, “Practice yoga the Iyengar way! I can help you take better care of yourself. Practice safe yoga—here’s how! Workshop on yoga philosophy next week. This is the GPS for your soul. Reserve your spot TODAY!”

In 1998, Yoon Cho walked into her first yoga class in New York City, which was taught by an Iyengar Yoga teacher. Her interest and practice were encouraged by teachers at Julie Lawrence Yoga Center in Portland, Oregon. She now lives in San Jose, California, with her husband, Robert, and two dogs, Dante and Livia. When not practicing or thinking about yoga, she works as a stylist for a luxury Italian fashion house.