I have always struggled with the idea of accepting money for teaching yoga. The physical exchange of money placed into hand before or after a class. In a way that's where the 'middle-man' almost makes this feel nicer, it takes away that interaction of monetary value for the class. I have seen many a video from people in India, or the west, claiming that the commercialisation of yoga is wrong and has got out of hand. In a way I do agree with them, it makes me sad to see yoga changed so far away from its roots and made commercial in order to 'sell'. But let us not forgot that this is also happening in the East. For a long time people have been making an income from yoga school, drop-in sessions and meditation centers for geared up for Westerns. This really hit a booming point in the 60's with the Beetles making their journey to an Ashram to study transcendental meditation techniques in Risikesh, and also with Osho's Ashram, monetising meditation as a service with a price.
So what is so wrong about the commercialisation of Yoga & Meditation?
This is the question I've been pondering myself. We live in a world where everything has its value. Time has a value, people have value, objects have value. I think part of the accessibility of yoga is actually putting it into these modern day terms. If we lived in a moneyless society where everything was exchanged, I believe yoga or meditation classes would still be an exchange method. What I'm trying to get across is money is how we 'value' goods and services. If yoga was always free, would it be of the same value?
On the other side of this coin, it does mean that these 'services' have been molded and shaped into forms that are reasonably far removed from there original meaning or state. They have to be 'packaged' in a way that makes them easy to digest and not 'too spiritual'.
But even if these forms are almost unrecognisable, if they are helping people does it really matter?
Coming to acceptance..slowly!
I teach because I love teaching, I want to help people through yoga and meditation techniques to encompass all aspects of yoga not just the asana (physical postures). It has taken me a while to get to this point where I am. I'm not greedy with how I want to price my classes or only teach in certain places. I like to keep classes accessible. I realise that I wouldn't be at the point I am now with my teaching if I didn't get paid for it. It enables me to sustain myself, a roof over my head, food in my stomach. By no means do I have money to spend on fancy holidays, expensive clothing or even eating out very much. There is a massive learning curve to undertake from going from working full time to teaching full time. And actually, I have a lot more commitments with teaching. If I do go anywhere for a few days I loose income on getting my class covered. You take the good days and the bad and hopefully reach a balance, nothing is set in stone. I know that quite a few yoga/ meditation teachers are in the same position as me. There maybe a few extreme cases, like in any field, where people are making mega bucks, but I'm sure they put so much time and energy in to get where they are today. On the whole you teach yoga because you love to do so, to inspire people, to share knowledge and to help people reach an acceptance of their own. Its a labour of love and devotion. There are up's and downs just like in anyones life, we don't always float on clouds..!
