Registered Yoga School # 26861 | Established 2006

Click here for the 200 hour standards from Yoga Alliance, which this program meets and exceeds.

200 Hour Certification Course

Overview

The coursework in our 200 hour teacher training program is centered around classical yoga theory and practice. Ashtanga Yoga as outlined by the sage Patanjali in his yoga sutras are the theoretical foundation. The Hatha Yoga practices of the great T. Krishnamacharya will be the backbone of our asana and pranayama sequences.

The training is collaborative, and thus relies upon the input and feedback from the cohort of yoga training students. Communication is very important. The path of yoga is not always one of assuredness and comfort, and so the training offers a space to dwell in the uncertainty of meaning and skill. We forge pure ideas into workable methods, relying upon well researched traditional and contemporary means of achieving insight into yoga. This training is designed to ensure that you will be able to teach, practice, adjust, and instruct people in asana and that process can be a difficult one. We will undertake it together, embracing the positives and negatives that come from the experience.

Each of us will be bringing something unique to this practice, and there will be many opportunities to learn and share. Be ready to practice, be ready to share, be ready to question. No one wants to know what you think more than the people around you.  You will never (unless you take another training) be in a place where you are surrounded by so many people who are excited and passionate about the exact same things as you are, about a subject as meaningful as this one.  This training is note a time to be reserved, it is not a time to hold back...  It is designed to be challenging, and there is a lot of material that seems to be forcefully being jammed into you. While you can always step away if needed, it’s vital to take the commitment seriously to 200 hours of study. It is a time to dive deeply into the yogic arts and practice. 

Lead Instructor

Luke Baugh

Curriculum

Notes on curriculum: The curriculum can changed, updated, or new programs added for specific locales based on the cohort and specific needs of the students. Below is a general outline of the training structure as of February 2025.

Module One | Karma Yoga & Jnana Yoga (philosophy)

  1. History of Ashtanga Yoga and its founders

    1. The Dravidian People

      1. Select material from Alain Danielou

    2. Samkhya Philosophy

    3. Yoga Sutra origins & relationship to Samkya & Dravidian Peoples

  2. Yoga philosophy & Theory

    1. Tree of Samkhya

      1. Purusha

      2. Prakriti

        1. 3 Gunas (Sattva, Rajas, Tamas)

        2. Phenomenal Elements (wind, fire, earth, etc.)

        3. Dieties as representations of Gunas

          1. Shiva = tamas guna

          2. Visnu = sattva guna

          3. Brahma = rajas guna

    2. Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

      1. Introduction and Overview of Quintessential Yoga Sutras

        1. Yoga Sutra 2:23-29 as purpose and reason for the practice

          1. Ignorance of Duality and causes of suffering

          2. Eight Limbed Path of Ashtanga (Ashtau = eight, Anga = limb)

        2. Yoga Sutra 2:1-3 as method of practice

          1. Tapas

          2. Svadyaya

          3. Isvara Pranidhana

        3. Yoga Sutra 1:2-3 as definition of yoga

          1. Truth of the “seer” being “hidden” by chitta vritti (disturbances of mind)

          2. Truth of seer existing in pure form in state of harmony through yoga

      2. Yoga Sutras Chapter 1 

        1. Chanting Chapter 1

        2. Discussion and Analysis of Chapter 1

    3. Veda

      1. Bhagavad Gita

      2. Upanishads

      3. Vedanta

        1. Gaudapada & Adi Shankara

          1. self vs. non-self (atman vs. non-atman)

          2. monism vs. dualism vs. non-dualism

        2. Vishnu & Shiva as contemporary

  3. Required Reading & Study Materials

    1. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali by Swami Satchidananda 

Module Two | Hatha Yoga & Ashtanga Yoga (practice)

  1. All Primary Series Asana (as taught at KPJAYI)

    1. Standing Postures: sūryanamaskāra pādāṅguṣṭāsana  pāda hastāsana  utthita trikoṇāsana (A+B)  utthita pārśvakonāsana (A+B)  prasārita pādottānāsana (A,B,C,D)  pārśvottānāsana  utthita hasta pādāṅguṣṭāsana  ardha baddha padmottānāsana  utkatāsana  vīrabhadrāsana 

    2. Primary Series Postures: paścimattānāsana  pūrvattanāsana  ardha baddha padma paścimattānāsana   tiryaṅgmukha ekapāda paścimattānāsana  jānuśīrṣāsana  marīcāsana  nāvāsana  bhujapīḍāsana  kūrmāsana  supta kūrmāsana  garbha piṇḍāsana  kukkuṭāsana  baddha konāsana  upaviṣṭha konāsana  supta konāsana  supta pādāṅguṣṭāsana  ubhaya pādāṅguṣṭāsana  ūrdhva mukha paścimattānāsana  setu bandhāsana 

    3. Finishing Postures   ūrdhva dhanurāsana  salaṁba sarvāṅgāsana  halāsana  karṇa pīḍāsana  ūrdhva padmāsana  piṇḍāsana  matsyāsana  uttāna pādāsana  cakrāsana   śīrṣāsana  baddha padmāsana  yoga mudrā  padmāsana  utpluthiḥ

    4. Yoga Sutras Chapter 2  

      1. Chanting Chapters 1-2

      2. Discussion and Analysis of Chapter 2

    5. Adjustments for classical postures

  2. Anatomy

    1. Online Course by David Keil

  3. Injures & Variations

    1. Specific challenges

      1. Multiple Sclerosis

      2. Inflexibility or Common Injuries

      3. Pregnancy

      4. Disabled Students

  4. Energetic Body

    1. Vayus

      1. Prana

      2. Apana

    2. Nadis Overview

    3. Chakras Overview

  5. Introduction to Pranayama

    1. Ujjayi & Mechanics

  6. Second Series of Ashtanga Yoga (note: we do not instruct on all of these postures, but we will explore the purpose and benefits of the first half. Each of these postures must be “given” by a qualified lineage holding Ashtanga teacher).

    1. 1st half of 2nd Series: Pasasana   (Noose Pose)  Krounchasana   (Heron Pose)  Shalabhasana A, B   (Locust Pose) Bhekasana   (Frog Pose) Dhanurasana   (Bow Pose) Parsvadhanurasana   (Side Bow Pose) Ustrasana   (Camel Pose) Laghu Vajrasana   (Little Thunderbolt Pose) Kapotasana   (Dove Pose) Supta Vajrasana   (Sleeping Thunderbolt Pose) Bakasana   (Crow Pose) Bharadvajasana   Bharadvāja’s Pose Ardha Matsyendraasana   Half Matsyendraasana’s Pose

    2. Ekapada Sirsasana A, B, C  Dwipada Sirsasana B  Yoga nidrasana   Tittibhasana A, B, C  Pincha Mayurasana Karandavasana  Mayurasana   Nakrasana  Vatayanasana   (Horse Face Pose) Parighasana   (Iron Bar Pose) Gomukhasana A, B, C   (Cow Face Pose) Supta Urdhvapada Vajrasana A, B   (Sleeping Elevated Vajra’s Pose) Mukta Hasta Sirsasana A, B, C   (Open Hand Head Stand) Baddha Hasta Sirsasana A, B, C, D   (Bound Hand Head Stand)

Module Three | Raja Yoga (Meditation)

  1. Meditation

    1. How to Meditate by Pema Chodron

    2. Discussion

Module Four | Business & Ethics

  1. Business and Ethics

  2. Sexual Assault

  3. Social Justice

  4. Sequencing Logic

  5. Student Teaching

  6. Advanced Adjustments

  7. Required Reading/Study List

    1. Yoga Alliance Code of Ethics