For ALL current VK Teachers and ALL prospective VK Trainees. Please read the following ethics TWICE.

Vinyāsa Krama Ethics

1. Beneficence – be of practical benefit for the student and cause no harm.
2. Autonomy – the student has the right to reject the treatment or instruction.
3. Respect – the student and teacher have the right to be treated with respect.
4. Informed Consent – the student should be advised about the practice or technique in advance, as much as is practicle. The latter also applies for any fees involved.
5. Justice – fair treatment of all students regardless of age, ability, race, or sex.

Generally the first VK sequence I grant approval for teaching is Chandra Krama.

Please note! To gain approval to begin teaching the Moon Sequence also includes approval to teach New Moon Seq and Shoulder Moon Seq, and at least three of the foundation Pranayama. The latter will be dependent on your commitment, and attendance on all relevant online classes. 

For students who are new to VK this will take approx 4-5 online courses before I will give such approval, over an 18-month to 2-year period. Each online course is 6-weeks long, 3 classes per week. There are three time-slots to suit all time-zones around the world! Please check the online courses page here: https://yogatemple.com/vkm-online-classes/

For students who have already learned the above material through an established VK teacher, or from me via live courses in Bali, this can be accomplished via two online courses only. If I sense any lack of commitment – both in time and communication, it will take more courses to gain approval. 

To reiterate: 

1. Teacher Training for New Students: 4-5 consecutive online courses.
2. Teacher Training for Established Students: 2-3 consecutive online courses. 

A $500 USD fee for approval to teach each Level I Foundation Sequence applies. That is: 

• Chandra Krama (includes all level I versions of the Moon Sequence): $500.
• Atapa Krama + variations: $500. 
• Lion Cub + variations: $500. 
• Lion Seq + variations: $500. 

Each sequence after Chandra Krama, for TT approval, can be managed via 2-3 additional online courses. If you do not know the sequence very well, it will take longer. If you know it well: 2 courses. 

To gain approval to teach the Lion Sequence means you must already have approval to teach the prior three sequences: Moon, Sunshine, and Lion Cub. You must also make a fair attempt to teach some self-practice classes for Simha Krama. 

After these payments, there are no further fees for teacher training. Any further approval to teach the other Support Sequences, or Intermediate Sequences is free of charge, and only dependent on your ability and commitment to practice each one. You must wait for my approval! 

Finally, you can complete every second TT with me online, but in between approval to teach each Foundation Sequence, you must make at least one trip to Bali for an in-person live course – 2 weeks or 4 weeks, as you can manage. During this course you will do extra training to learn hands on adjustments and extra scaling ideas for each sequence. 

Generally this will mean

1. Some courses online, then approval to teach Chandra Krama and its children. Then a course in Bali, this completes the Moon Sequence TT. 
2. Some courses online, then approval to teach either Sunshine or Lion Cub. Then a course in Bali, this completes either Sunshine TT or Lion Cub TT, whichever you decide upon as no 2.
3. Some courses online, then approval to teach Lion Cub or Sunshine Seq. Then a course in Bali, this completes either Sunshine TT, or Lion Cub, whichever you decide upon as no 3.
4. Some courses online, then a course in Bali. Completes Lion Seq TT. 
5. Any further approval to teach VK sequences is free of charge, just requiring time and practice, and my written approval.

You can gain approval to teach these sequences via online classes. However, I will only consider each training complete if you also come to Bali. Thus, fulfilling the training happens in Bali after you get approval to teach the sequence! I hope this makes sense 

One reason I am not utilising the traditional method of YTTC is because I never observed that the latter consistently produced better teachers. This is across the board in all teacher trainings world-wide. Essentially it is impossible to gauge whether attending a teacher training really improves the overall quality of teaching. In some cases it may actually lower the international standard. This is because few trainings have pre-requisites (just pay and you’ll get a certificate at the end of it), and so an unfortunately large percentage of such trainees tend to make poor teachers.

Contact me for further details: bendsalot@gmail.com

Best wishes
Matthew Sweeney

FOR QUALIFIED VK TEACHERS

The following guidelines should be re-read approx every 6 months to keep yourself updated. Also, start by re-reading the medical / teaching ethics above. They are the first REAL yoga philosophy we utilise. 

VINYASA KRAMA TEACHING GUIDELINES

As a VK teacher, please do your best to remain faithful to the following tenets of teaching:

1. Be of Benefit, Cause No Harm, and Be Kind.
2. Generally speaking you should only teach postures with which you are proficient. For example, if you are not proficient with Urdhva Dhanurasana (straight arms, head off the floor, and slow breathing) you should not be teaching that posture. If you cannot free-balance in handstand, you should not be teaching that posture. For this reason, I am unlikely to give approval to teach a sequence if you don’t have proficiency with 80% of the key postures – key postures are usually the more difficult ones in that sequence.
3. Be aware of the form and energy of each sequence – for example, the types or groups of postures, the level of intensity, and the variations I teach on a regular basis. Do your best to keep within the framework of each sequence. You should adjust a sequence for the different groups you teach; for individual constitutions, and for your own inspiration. However, generally do not take a section of one VK sequence and put it into another – they exist within each sequence for a reason, so try to remain faithful to that. 
4. You can scale any sequence downward, or scale sideways. Generally you will not scale a sequence upwards. Over time, all VK teachers should continue learning appropriate scaling for ALL the postures you teach. This will include adequate understanding of anatomy and physiology for all the postures you teach.
5. When you first start teaching a sequence, do not teach all of that sequence. This is to save time, and easier for your students’ bodies, and better for their memory. Leave aside the more difficult postures until your group is more capable and experienced.
6. Generally you should teach the different VK sequences in order of difficulty. Moon Sequence should either be the first or second sequence you teach students. Followed by either Lion Cub or Sunshine, depending on the student. Some students might learn Sunshine first, and then Moon. Some students Lion Cub, then Moon. This depends on what you are seeing, and what they ask for – students coming from Ashtanga will often prefer to learn something like Lion first. To get approval to teach Lion is a big step, however! You should not teach Sunshine to anyone who is not prepared to let go of Primary. You should not teach Skandha Krama to anyone who has not learned Moon and New Moon, and practicing them regularly via self practice. Learning the latter via led class is not usually sufficient for this. “I will not teach other sequences or other sections of sequences within Vinyasa Krama that I do not have approval to teach from Matthew.”
7. Continue to learn and practice the Level I VK Pranayama, so you can teach them in conjunction with the Asana practice. If you are confused by what Pranayama is within Level I – which ones are main practices vs support practices – you need to keep coming to the Level I Pranayama classes every Sunday, 130pm Bali time. There are four Foundation Pranayama. What are they? You must not teach any of the Level II Pranayama until you have my approval to do so. 
8. Teach whichever version of meditation and philosophy suits you; whatever you tend to practice consistently. Anything compatible with the Asana practice. Kevala Kumbhaka and Advaita Vedanta are a good example, but you are not limited to those. If you prefer Buddhist philosophy and practice, you can apply that. If you prefer Samkhya Yoga, Raja Yoga, or Patanjali’s Sutra, these can also be applicable. If you prefer a mix, that is also possible, but probably also quite messy 🙂 Be careful, and try to be precise.
9. You must learn the VK Prayer and chant it before every class in which you teach a VK sequence – whether Asana or Pranayama. You will learn all the names of the postures and what they mean. 
10. Vinyasa Krama is a SELF-PRACTICE SYSTEM. To be considered a fully qualified VK teacher, you will need to start teaching self-practice classes yourself. This is for your benefit as well as your students’ benefit. The only effective way for your students to adequately understand (and develop) each of the VK sequences, is via self-practice. So don’t be nervous about this, just start teaching more self-practice classes. You have my blessing! The only impediment to teaching self-practice is your confidence. It is not because your students won’t come to self practice classes, or because they do not like it. It is because you are not full of enthusiasm about it. Self-practice is the most effective way to get your students to truly experience Yoga – self-awareness and self-practice go hand-in-hand.

*** Ideally use the branding “Vinyasa Krama” somewhere in your primary business name or advertising to help promote all aspects of it. This benefits the whole community ***

Note: anyone you teach is your responsibility – whether injuries, payments, personal problems, or ethical conduct; all of these need to be within your awareness. In terms of your contract with me: you must ensure everyone you teach does not teach any Vinyasa Krama sequences to others without my approval. It is your job to ensure they conduct themselves ethically also. You can ask me for advice, but it will be your responsibility to monitor this and prevent mishaps.