Tradition, Lineage, Parampara
All yoga practices derive from some sort of tradition. Some are more on the innovation end of the spectrum, but most can be linked to only a few original lineages. I won’t get in to specific lines of teaching but would like to explore the tradition of parampara in yoga and what it means to us as students and teachers of a yoga method. Parampara is a Sanskrit word that denotes the principle of transmitting knowledge directly from teacher to student in direct, unbroken succession. A student chooses their teacher, surrenders and commits their path of learning to that instruction. The teacher in turn commits to their student, pledging a lifetime of guidance and offering everything they know to that student. It is a sacred relationship.
When talking to new yoga students I have always stressed the value of trying as many different methods and teachers as they can access. There is a yoga for everyone but not every type of yoga is for you. Not every teacher is your teacher. When you come upon the practice and the teacher that is right for you, you will know. You will somehow feel immediate benefit, you will feel immediate connection, and you will feel challenged in new ways.
Before finding my own path, I dabbled in several different styles, jumped from one teacher to the next. I connected to a method for a few years before finding my primary teacher. While I could not have articulated it at the time, looking back, I know what determined for me that Kino MacGregor was my teacher. Simply, she knew what I was capable of before I had any idea. She believed in me and I believed in her. While I don’t have the opportunity to practice with her regularly these days, I still feel that I can reach out to her and she is there for me. I have had other teachers that have provided incredible value to my practice and my life, but I will always consider her my primary teacher.
When I finally ventured to India and the home of the Ashtanga Yoga lineage, home of Kino’s teacher and my other teachers’ teacher, I became fully committed to the Guru, Sri K. Pattabhi Jois. He became my Teacher - capital “T”. And since his passing, my practice is devoted to his grandson, R. Sharath Jois. My teaching is a reflection, a continuation of knowledge transferred from Kino, Guruji (Sri K. Pattabhi Jois) and Sharathji (affectionately - The Boss). Kino’s teaching is a direct continuation of what she learned over many years as a committed student of Guruji’s and now Sharath’s. Sharath was devoted to Guruji and Guruji was devoted to his teacher, Tirumalai Krishnamacharya and so on… and so on…. back and back.
There are practical benefits to practicing within a lineage. The information gained by practice can continuously be built upon. Someone who has been practicing and teaching a particular method for many years has gained a lot of information about what works, what doesn’t; what benefits, what does harm; what damages, what heals. Then this information is passed on, the next student or teacher adds to it the information gained by their own practice and teaching. Each student has the benefit of all of those years of experience, not just of their teacher, but of their teacher’s teacher, and their teacher’s teacher’s teacher. Knowledge is compounded, wisdom deepens and expands.
Most of the benefit of practicing within a parampara tradition and committing yourself to one teacher is philosophical or spiritual in nature. When we find our teacher, we are able to surrender. This is a difficult concept for many in western culture. We are taught to question authority, or to be our own authority. This also has value and can remain a part of your approach to your yoga practice, but how do you know what you do not know? Choose your teachers wisely. It is important to do the practical research of their training and teaching experience. You want to be able to trust that they have knowledge and experience that you yourself do not have. Then there is the element of a connection you are looking for. If you find a teacher you can surrender to, that is Ishvara Pranidhana of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. Do the work as your teacher instructs, without attachment to the outcome or the fruits of your action. Do not seek the results, but allow them. Trust. I’ll say it again - Trust.
In a parampara relationship, the teacher not only transmits information but also the energetic spark of illumination. The same blessing that traveled the line of the lineage is transferred to you. It is this spark that lights the fire of true inner transformation, that lights the way to truth and enlightenment. If it sounds dramatic, that is my intention. There is nothing frivolous about a yoga practice. It’s primary intention is liberation. Don’t choose a teacher or method that promises to give you enlightenment. A teacher cannot promise that. Choose a teacher and method that offers to shine a light on the path that you yourself must travel on, rough roads and all.
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