Iβd like to start a little discussion here and get some feedback from my fellow yoga teachers and students on the use of Sanskrit versus English for the names of yoga poses during class.
I will go on the record to say that I primarily use English names for the poses when I teach. I lead a lot of basic and beginner classes, and I just feel it makes the class more accessible to all students. There is already a lot to digest during a yoga class. Why throw another component in there? My goal is to demystify yoga and allow the students to go inward as they relax into their poses. I donβt want them to worry about memorizing words from an ancient foreign language.
However, I do tend to weave in a few Sanskrit words here and there. For example, it just wouldnβt seem right to call the final relaxation at the end of class anything else but savasana. And I love putting students into reclining bound angle pose, otherwise affectionately known as supta baddha konasana. I just love saying supta baddha konasana; it sounds so fun rolling off my lips. Come on, say it with me: soup-ta bah-dah ko-nass-a-na. It sounds like it should be some bad-ass tropical drink instead of a super relaxing (and always a crowd favorite) yoga pose.
I recently attended a workshop given by Max Strom (author of A Life Worth Breathing), and he advised yoga teachers to pick one language and stick with it. Either conduct your class in all English or all Sanskrit, but donβt mix and match the origin of language for your yoga-pose names. I guess I never really thought about it, but if I was learning something new, I wouldnβt want someone jockeying around, teaching it to me in two different languages. Good point, Max!
I know there are yogi purists out there who live and breathe by the Sanskrit terms, and, donβt get me wrong, I totally respect that. In fact, Iβm a bit jealous that I am not the Sanskrit-language aficionado that I should be.
I guess, for me, itβs really all about the students and helping them grow in their yoga practice. So, please weigh in, students and teachers alike. Do you like to hear/give the yoga-pose cues in Sanskrit or English? And why? What makes you most at ease and helps you get out of your mind and into your body during yoga class?
Let the battle (this is a love battle, not a vicious battle) begin! Hmmm, maybe next time Iβll do a battle of the yoga posesβWarrior 1 versus Warrior 2.
I have always had a massive mental block with sanskrit and can never remember the poses except for Trikonasana. I honestly don’t believe it makes any difference to my teaching
I use both – I try to name the sanskrit whenever possible, but then add the English afterwards. If you were taking a foreign language, you would need to know the translation, right? But like others have said, sometimes I don’t know or remember the sanskrit. I don’t see anything wrong with using both.
I use only English. I am with you on making yoga accessible and demystifying it. I know a lot of people prefer Sanskrit but this is what I am comfortable with and I think my students appreciate it too π
I would love to honor the Sanskrit, but it’s just so much easier to remember the English terms. I’m getting better with remembering the Sanskrit, but every once in awhile I look at my instructor with crazy eyebrows as to say “which one is that?”
I think you are doing a great things by using both in your classes so your students do learn them, so they are prepared when they move to more advanced practices.
I use Sanskrit and my mother tongue to teach. For a class of beginners or people I don’t know, I’ll use French first, then if I have some regulars (even in my cover classes) I add more and more Sanskrit. Sometimes still use the French to keep the overwhelm away but at some point I can go all chaturanga dandasana – urdhva mukha svanasana – adho mukha svanasana on them and they will follow π
However I haven’t come to the point where I can do all the class in Sanskrit. And I have to admit, I don’t know what all poses are called in Sanskrit π
I love it when the teacher uses both. I am fascinated with the history of yoga and find that as I am learning all the English names that I can match them with the Sanskrit too. As you do, I often giggle to myself at the funny names too.
I want to know the insides and out of yoga and one of these ways is learning Sanskrit… what better way to remember the names when acting out their action in class.
I agree with Nettie, I like it when the teacher uses both: “Half Moon Pose, Ardha Chandrasana.” Vinyasa incorporates so many poses – I feel like I learn a new one every day – so it can be confusing to hear a sanskrit pose name that you might not recognize when you are in the middle of a flow. To me, the Sanksrit name is a bonus… another level of appreciation for the practice. So as an intermediate/advanced student, I say use English to keep the practice accessible, but sprinkle in the sanskrit as a little something extra – something for the student to focus on while they are acting out the pose!
I use mainly English and add the Sanskrit when appropriate. I believe in making yoga accessible to all while honouring tradition. I also teach German and French and use the same principles as in class.
Could you tell me how to say Downward Facing Dog in German?
Heidi – I don’t know how to speak German, so I can’t answer your question. Thanks for reading my posts and for your comments! Where do you teach yoga?
I enjoy both, honestly. When I was ‘newer’ it was overwhelming to hear instructors who used only Sanskrit, but honestly the ‘combo-method’ has really taught me the best.
And in any sense- it’s not like learning nouns truly results in learning a ‘language’. Although the names of the postures may originally have been in sanskrit, as yoga students were not actually as a goal wanting to learn the language (that would involve grammatical structures and a much longer, larger process).
I like both! Saying the words in Sanskrit is like a party for my mouth. I also teach mostly basics classes. My teaching style is to say the name of the pose first, usually in English, and then to cue the alignment for newer students. This way regular students who are familiar with the pose are able to begin getting into the pose. IF and when I use the Sanskrit name, I almost always follow it up with the English translation for those students that are less familiar with Sanskrit.
There are so many wonderful aspects of yoga. I enjoy sharing little pieces of it all. Shanti!
I’m a big proponent of using both languages. As a student, I really want to LEARN the sanskrit words but I would never know what they heck they meant if my teachers didn’t tell me them in english as well.
Like you, I want yoga to be approachable and unintimidating. That’s why I use English almost exclusively. Occasionally I’ll say chatarunga and I always use savasana.
Personally, I love Sanskrit, and I have found that when I teach using both (“step forward into warrior A, virabhadrasana”) my students learn it, and then they love it, too. π Sanskrit is an inherent part of the practice; it connects us to the lineage, and connects us to each other. I agree 100% with the “accessible” part, and I think it is our responsibility to make Sanksrit accessible by teaching it.
Wow – thanks for all the great comments! This is turning into quite a lovely battle π
I agree that you can and should mix them–why not? It is staying on an understandable level for your students, but also starts to teach them that this ancient practice does not just have ancient roots, but it uses an ancient language. Why not touch on it? If you don’t, you may have some students saying “SA-VA-SANA” instead of the “shiv” sound. π The practice is universal–we bridge cultures and religions… why not language?
Love your writing!! Keep it coming.
Joanne
I completely agree with joanne and the mixing camp. Yoga has become a very fluid concept and practice for most people who do it in the US and I personally love the experimentation that’s taken place in yoga recently. I can go to a traditional vinyasa flow or a yoga for athletes class – and the amount of sanskit totally varies between the two. I love having that spectrum.
I love the sanskrit, though it would be a little more difficult to remember what is what at first, I do love the way the sanskrit sounds. I learned with English terms, so I don’t know alot of the sanskrit. I wish I had not learned the English names first. As far as Warrior 1 and Warrior 2, I hate both poses. π Give me pigeon, camel, and savasana!
I’m on the same page as lot of other commenters here. In my experience as a student, an English-Sanskrit combo is the best solution. I prefer the English word first, so I know what the heck to do, followed by the Sanskrit translation. I think it’s important that yoga be accessible to everyone, and a Sanskrit-only class can be intimidating and confusing. But it is nice to show respect for the tradition and history by incorporating Sanskrit throughout a class.
Like so many of the others here, I like to use both. I like to say the name in english then sanskrit whenever I can. I think as long as the english name is used first, it is still accessible, but using the sanskrit honors the tradition and history of yoga. Without it, I feel it can slide into becoming just another form of exercise and that worries me, although obviously there are many other aspects that combine to make yoga more than just another exercise routine. I want students to think it is special and sacred and I think the sanskrit helps. On the other hand, I still have a hard time remembering pose names for sure!!!
We are always learning with yoga aren’t we….
Cheers to you,
Cathy
I always use English and then follow it up w/the sanskrit….simply because a teacher once said to me “If you know sanskrit, then you can take a yoga class anywhere in the world”. I love the language.
I use both: Sanskrit followed by English. If I can I throw in the story that goes with the name. In my classes I like to teach details about the asana to give a foundation along with the alignment. I’ve become know for throwing in a little extra knowledge which invites my students to ask more questions.
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As a student I prefer the combo method. I usually get the english followed by the sanskrit. But this has really only helped me learn a few.
Drishti Yoga had a cool little Iphone app – Yoga Flashcards that has scores of level 1 & level 2 poses (pictured) and plays like a flashcard game. You can choose English or Sanskrit. It’s the only yoga app that ever made any sense to me.
I emailed them I just wish they had an audio pronunciation added to the app at some point – especially for those sanskrit words that start with like 4 consonants in a row
I’m a firm believer in blending: a little bit of both. When I just started I so appreciated the teachers who spoke in English and then as my practice grew I loved learning the Sanskrit. I try to give my students tiny nuggets of knowledge to enhance their practices too without making them feel like I’m talking over them.
I love this discussion! It’s great to see what other teachers and students are saying. I really think that the way that my most influential teachers teach, is the way that inspires me. I try to honor them by using a mix of what they have done in class and what resonates to me personally. Which in my case is a mix of Sanskrit and English. I love to be accessible to my students but also connect them to a little mystery as well, to “stretch” them out of their comfort zones a little:)
I primarily use English when teaching a class. I have been in classes where the teachers use only Sanskrit and find that my internal practice moves to an external practice when I am not sure of what pose the teacher is talking about. I do not feel it is wrong to teach with Sanskrit or English. Do whats best for you as a Teacher.
From my first class as a yoga teacher, I have made it a point to use Sanskrit although most of my experience as student I was taught poses in English. I see confusion at times in class especially with new students and of course always offer the English name along with Sanskrit. I wonder if presenting the poses in Sanskrit allows the student to move into more of a meditative state. Like the mystery of another language being presented allows them to stay in the present moment and to embrace their yoga practice as a spiritual experience.
I always try and say both the Sanskrit and the English term when setting up a posture only because it gives me an opportunity to practice/learn the name of the postures along with my students…. If I don’t know the Sanskrit I announce just the English term but every so often I spend some time practicing saying the new Sanskrit term during class in turn committing it into my own memory as well as possibly into theirs.
I use both but I try to use the sanskrit with postures I do frequently like balasana and uttanasa. I am a French and German teacher so I love the fact there are links in the languages so I always point them out the students and they love that. Supta – supine, Navasana – boat, tri – trois – three, pada – pied – foot.