The way of teaching Washindo

The awakened teacher sees clearly what is unfolding around them during practice sessions. They remain open, inquiring, searching for truths beyond existing beliefs about these integrated disciplines.

Aligned with the spirit of embodied learning, teachers emerge who wholeheartedly personify the ethos of living the yogic and martial way. Ethos transcends what one outwardly says or promises about these paths – it is the way of being that is the living embodiment, the ideas brought into every sphere of life far beyond just the physical practices.

Fundamental to our approach is the understanding that there is no separation between practicing, teaching, and learning these awakened disciplines. Teaching is not something one does after having “mastered” the practices, nor is it reserved for those who have “finished learning” them.

When taking on the tremendous responsibility and privilege of becoming a Washindo teacher, one must accept the often-humbling challenge of communicating the essence of these practices in ways that create authentic understanding among many different students.

To rise to this nuanced task, the teacher acknowledges that the real meaning will not be found merely in what they outwardly say or demonstrate about the practices, but in how each student integrates and responds to the teachings from the depths of their own being.

This is the power and beauty of the teaching path. The teacher becomes the perpetual learner, and the students themselves become the living teachers of these transcendent practices.

Teaching and learning intertwine as inseparable partners in an eternal dance, the lead continually alternating between the two roles. A unique hallmark is that the teacher remains ceaselessly open – not only to learn from those they teach, but to be profoundly taught by them as well. This requires a letting go of self-importance, loosening the grip of ego to approach the practices with a humble beginner’s mind.

From this spacious state of openness, the teacher’s own messages about yoga, meditation and martial arts become enriched by each student’s unique perceptions and lived experiences. They experience the teachings manifesting physically, mentally, emotionally – exploring the strengths while having limiting gaps revealed.

The awakened teacher does not cling to rationalizations or cherished rituals but remains free to explore and evolve the practices through curiosity, inquiry, and beginner’s mind – respecting the ancient traditions while simultaneously remaining vividly present to their own living, embodied unfolding.