Ethical Guidelines for Yoga Teachers
Being a yoga teacher means following certain ethical principles. Below, we have compiled these guidelines based on the Buddha’s Five Training Rules: Pañca Sīla.
Remember: trying is enough. This is about doing our best, making the effort, and failing again and again. Being a yoga teacher is about spreading peace and love.
Good luck!
Magdalena & Mats
1. Non-violence
To (try to) avoid harming oneself or any other living being.
In our case: not harming ourselves or our students, neither physically (in yoga asana) nor through speech (scolding, mocking, hurting – this also includes looks, attitudes, and tone). Nor killing any living beings, such as mosquitoes, flies, ants or other small creatures.
Instead, we strive to help and heal – to increase harmony, happiness and wellbeing, and above all to reduce stress in ourselves and our students (with the important addition of knowing when to engage and when to let go).
2. Non-stealing
To (try to) not take what is not freely given.
This includes not asking students for services or things unless they are freely offered (this also applies to course fees – they should not be overpriced, and we should offer free or reduced prices to those who cannot afford them).
It also means not extending classes unnecessarily, not arriving late (i.e. stealing someone’s time), not interrupting conversations (taking someone’s speaking space), not pushing ahead to take food (for example during a retreat), and not touching students without first asking for consent (such as massaging feet or backs).
We should strive for generosity – sharing our time (for example after class), our smiles, our kindness, inner calm and joy.
3. Not misusing sexuality
To not misuse our own or anyone else’s sexuality.
As yoga teachers, we carry significant responsibility toward our students in this area. We must never cross the boundary between a sexual relationship and a teacher–student relationship. The student always loses in such situations.
This also includes not flirting or giving compliments about students’ appearance or bodies. Of course, love and friendship can sometimes arise in a yoga room, but as teachers we carry the main responsibility and must honestly examine what is actually happening.
How can we teach yoga and meditation – practices that aim to reduce craving – if we ourselves give in to it? By treating our own bodies with respect and our sexuality with care and love, we also radiate harmony and calm, which naturally affects others.
4. Right speech
To (try to) speak rightly.
This is fundamental for a teacher. It is essential to be deeply aware of one’s speech: not lying, not using coarse humour, not making jokes at students’ expense, not exaggerating, gossiping, spreading rumours about students or other teachers, or speaking negatively about other yoga styles we may personally dislike.
Instead, we should speak about what unites, strengthens, and brings joy, love and calm. In short: to speak consciously. Right speech is the most difficult part of Pañca Sīla – but also a powerful form of meditation.
5. Non-intoxication
To (try to) avoid intoxicants that cloud the mind.
This does not mean that we can never have a glass of wine. But drinking to the point of intoxication, using cannabis, or other drugs while advocating the “purification” of the mind through yoga and meditation is a form of hypocrisy.
This also applies to the misuse of food, sugar, excessive “clean living” (orthorexia is common among yogis), and the internet and social media.
Here, self-awareness is key. We must take responsibility for our own dependencies – and at the same time be kind to ourselves by working with them. That means acknowledging them (we all have different forms and degrees of dependency, such as co-dependency) and caring for them.
PAÑCA SĪLA
1. Panatipata veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from destroying living creatures.
2. Adinnadana veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from taking that which is not given.
3. Kamesu micchacara veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from sexual misconduct.
4. Musavada veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from incorrect speech.
5. Suramerayamajja pamadatthana veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
I undertake the precept to refrain from intoxicating drinks and drugs that lead to carelessness.