Words from the Professional Development and Operations Director

Greetings!,

In this edition of The Anusara Sadhana, Julia Schlenkert shares how a single piece of feedback during her mentoring program sparked a deep reflection on her practice, her teaching, and her philosophy.

As teachers, we work hard to stay curious and remain open to the beautiful mysteries of life. Personally, I find that "Opening to Grace"—our first principle—can be one of the hardest things to actually live out. Yet, it has become the anchor that always brings me back home.

We live in a demanding world where it is easy to forget to look for beauty first. In the rush of daily life, connecting through empathy and recognizing the goodness in one another can feel like a fading art.

Taking the "teacher's seat" requires real courage. It’s not just about being well-prepared; it’s about being brave enough to be vulnerable. It’s about showing up as we are and remembering that the desire to grow and refine ourselves is simply a natural part of being alive.

Our Board President often reminds us of a simple mantra: "Progress, not perfection." While I believe that "perfection"—or the Highest—is already within us and expressed through every breath we take, this mantra is a gift. It lightens the heavy expectations we often place on ourselves and helps us navigate a stressful world with more ease.

I invite you to read Julia’s wonderful story. She shares her personal journey as a teacher with such honesty, offering beautiful insights into the "Absolute", the uppayas or paths of practice, and the divine dance of Shiva and Shakti.

I hope you enjoy it.

With love,

Gianni Chavez,

Professional Development Director

The Anusara School of Hatha Yoga

Deep and Superficial

Alignment, Awareness, and the Highest in Anusara Yoga

Written by Julia Schlenkert

I am writing this article shortly after teaching the last of twelve mentoring sessions with a group of German teachers. The annual program was called “Lueckenfuehlerinnen” (gap sensors) and was designed to give relatively inexperienced Anusara teachers confidence in teaching our method.

The name came about from a typo. Lueckenfueller (gap filler) became Lueckenfuehler (gap sensor). And suddenly the word fit even better, as it is our endeavor to first see the good in our students and ourselves—our own kindness, abilities, our radiance—and only then to look at where development is possible and which practices can support us in this.

Before starting the mentoring, I asked which aspects of teaching were found to be particularly challenging. The answers varied greatly: for some it was the UPAs, for others it was weaving in a theme, and for others it was talking about the Absolute. So I decided to touch on as many aspects of our teaching method as possible throughout the year — and then go into depth where it was most needed.

My own strength as an Anusara Teacher Trainer clearly lies in my understanding of the UPAs and the associated biomechanical principles. This is the area where I spend most of my training and continuing education time, and I would say that I am deeply immersed in our alignment.

Perhaps it was this narrow focus that I used to observe my mentoring group and perceive uncertainties. Most of our monthly sessions focused on the loops, teaching with the UPAs, and above all, the “how exactly and why.”

After a few months, I was all the more irritated by the feedback from a single participant: this strongly alignment-oriented teaching style seemed too technical and not particularly „spiritual“—rather superficial. She didn't want to teach her participants that way.

My geeky heart was shattered! I love anatomy. I love how asana practice can become your own physical therapy, how it can help alleviate pain and to become stronger. And yes, I also love how a greater understanding of all those physical connections enriches my whole experience as spirit in a body. Hardly a day goes by when I don't think about loops and spirals, about the inner and outer body or root to rise – excited about insights that I am just as happy to pass on. And now someone thinks it's superficial to learn more about the body and to teach in a more informed way. Scandalous!

But wait. Was she perhaps a little bit right? Is working with the body less profound than finding inspiration in yoga philosophy?

Alignment is one of the three pillars of Anusara Yoga. Don’t get me wrong. The other two—non-dual tantric philosophy and our kula—are just as important for me. But somehow, teaching philosophy has not yet found a really good place in my everyday teaching. Even as an experienced Anusara teacher, I find it difficult to talk about topics that most people seem to have little connection to. Shoulders and sitting bones are easy for most people to experience. Philosophical concepts are not.

For a long time it seemed somehow superficial to me to talk about those concepts for a few minutes in class – without being able to assume a deeper engagement on the part of the students. But the mentoring group forced me a little bit to prepare and teach philosophical topics more clearly and methodically. And yet I only have 75 minutes for a regular yoga class. You may recognize my dilemma: I long for depth – and quickly judge anything that is taught in a more superficial way (or simply in less time) as being less good.

A turning point came in a conversation with one of my teachers, Jayendra Hanley, when we prepared the European kula gathering next year.

The theme of our first joint workshop session there: “The Highest first.” Big philosophy theme! Among other things, we asked ourselves:

What is the Highest?
How is it taught in the various scriptures?
What does it mean to practice from the inside out—to express an attitude or a feeling?
What is the opposite, to practice from the outside?

Jayendra said, in essence:

The path from the inside out should be our first choice. But often it is difficult—or impossible—for us to simply feel our first principle and the Highest without using our mind or body as a bridge.

The Highest, which we suspect in the depths of our being, often seems barely tangible. So in Anusara Yoga we look out for it in different ways:

We use the mind: through philosophy and teaching with a theme, contemplation, or thought-provoking ideas that challenge our usual perspectives. Abhinavagupta writes: “You can't think your way to enlightenment.” And yet, the mind can help us see more clearly.

We use the body: āsana, pranayama, energy, imagination. This embodied path is the most accessible for most people—no wonder it makes up the majority of our teaching.

And then there is the divine method for direct, non-conceptual awareness, the heart or the spirit: Either it opens up right away, in this moment—or it doesn't.

Neither of these methods is better or deeper than the other, because (to quote Christopher Wallis):

Consciousness is not only deep—it is everywhere!

Consciousness can be still, calm, indescribable, and free. And Consciousness is also dynamic.

Both are the same Consciousness. That is what we mean by all-pervading. Consciousness is not only hidden and easily overlooked. True reality does not only lie in the depths. It permeates everything – to the surface and beyond. I repeat: Consciousness is deep AND superficial! Super-subtle and tangible as well. Pure being and, just as much, the coccyx (sorry, the cool rhyme is lost in translation here).

Working with the body is therefore ONE way to get to know the Absolute in all its facets better. Alignment is also a way to question the way we think about ourselves, to unravel patterns of movement and behavior – and simply to have a little fun in the process.

When we become still at the end of the practice, the path "inside" may have become a little easier. Not because we have dug deeper, but because we have spent over an hour practicing to adopt a different posture – both literally and figuratively.

Above, I have described the three so-called upāyas, the three paths of practice or “effective methods”: body, mind, and direct awareness. Ideally, we give space to all three – in our teaching and in our own practice.

I have a few questions for you to contemplate:

Do I give my students space to simply be, to dwell in silent awareness—without further instructions, without using the body?
How easily do I manage to sink deep within myself within a few breaths – without the support of thought or movement?
How many breaths of real silence are there in the initial centering and at the end - or in between?
What does depth mean to me?
What does “within” or "inside" mean to me?

Can you agree that silence is unfamiliar for most folks and that our attention easily wanders outward in learned patterns – to sensory impressions, to the body, to what is visible on the surface?

That’s a pattern and it’s part of how reality unfolds. Like a magnet, Shakti draws silent awareness into motion: thoughts, feelings, physical sensations arise. We wander along timelines and back to our stories about supposed reality.

Movement also follows learned patterns. What we think is ideal might also be a misjudgment of reality or coming from a place of comfort. Pressing your toes down to create an arch or learning to really bend that front knee above your ankle might be challenging for both mind and body, but hopefully it will help to re-pattern yourself on the path of awakening. Or at least help to get stronger feet and walk more happily.

Perhaps depth in teaching Anusara Yoga methodically does neither lie in always wanting to lead further inward nor explain more and more. Perhaps it lies in giving space to all levels: the body, the mind, and pure awareness.

That is what I personally take away from the feedback and the subsequent conversations and contemplations: more space for all three levels. More silence – but also lots of alignment.

Julia-style. Jai Ma! Shakti Ma! Ananda Ma!

BONUS: Join our “School Online Trainings Watchlist” to receive future announcements of online courses that The Anusara School of Hatha Yoga will be offering for you and receive a beautiful gift from us.

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Julia shares with us two amazing videos:

A beautiful Tutorial for Sukhasana in German

And a Teaching Skills Development session from Kula Bhrajana Online on Building Arches

Strengthening your Feet:

Teaching Drills for the Feet

Events For You

Kula-Hrdayam 2026 - European Anusara Kula Gathering in Nettetal (Germany) | July 24-26, 2026

Includes a 6-hour workshop (co-teaching with Julia Schlenkert, Jayendra Hanley, and Letizzia Wastavino) and 12 additional asana classes, four meditations, and kirtan jam. German and English classes—you can choose at any time!

Learn More