HRIDAYA TEACHER TRAINING COURSE

By popular request, Sahajananda introduced a Hridaya Meditation and Hatha Yoga Teacher Training Course (HTTC) in 2011! See the poster.

In 2012, the Hridaya TTC will be held at the Agama Yoga - Mexico Center in Mazunte, Oaxaca!  We are excited about the opportunity to both build up the Hridaya community in a new sort of second headquarters for both Agama and Hridaya (effectively, an expansion of both) and experience these teachings on a new continent! The HTTC will again be held six days per week, approximately eight class hours per day, and generally the standards, requirements, and intensity to be expected in this course equal the levels currently found in the Agama Yoga TTC (ATTC-500). See further 2012 administrative details below.

Hopeful attendees can expect their training to include the following subjects:

• A systematic and comprehensive approach to meditation
• Presentation and practical guidance in different forms of meditation: Dzogchen, Mahamudra, Isihast (Christian tradition) methods, etc.
• A survey of meditation history
• A survey of mystical paths, including study of the life and teachings of several mystics, intended to help students gain a more intimate understanding of what a mystical life means
• An extensive series on Advaita Vedanta theory and practice, together with insight into its prominent masters’ lives
• Tutorials in Ramana Maharshi’s teachings, including Self-Inquiry (atma vichara), resorption of the “I” thought at its source, witness consciousness, oneness, open attention, Spiritual Heart, etc.
• Mastering the four fundamental stages of Self-revelation and learning to guide others through this process
• The study of Kashmiri Shaivism as it relates to meditation; a deeper insight into spanda (the opening to spanda through the intuition of the Spiritual Heart)
• The study of the effects of the physical and subtle light (phosphenism) upon the mind (the study of Advaya Taraka Upanishad)
• The study of brain waves as they relate to modified states of consciousness and meditation
• Methods for developing creativity and spiritual intuition (enhancing the brain and Heart capacities)
• A teaching module dedicated to achieving and developing lucid dreaming (including elements of Dream Yoga)
• The study of the psyche/mind and methods of transcending them, according to classical Raja Yoga of Patanjali
• The study of asana, pranayama, mudra, bandha from a Hridaya perspective (Hridaya Hatha Yoga)
• Criteria for identifying different states of samadhi and proper attitudes for experiencing them
• Cultivating the proper attitudes for living a Hridaya life; transforming life into the proper tool for Self-revelation
• Practicum training
• Participation in two 10-day Hridaya Retreats led by Sahajananda
• Kaya kalpa, meditation in complete darkness
• Individual evaluation and coaching from Sahajananda
• Practical mastery of the teaching process as it relates to Hridaya Meditation and Hatha Yoga

Successful completion of this 500-hour course grants a participant permission to teach Hridaya Meditation and Hatha Yoga Workshops anywhere, with support materials and guidance provided.

This course is open to 36 participants; a number of spaces will be reserved for Agama Yoga teachers. Teachers who apply to join the HTTC once these spaces have been filled may need to join a waiting list (regardless of total enrollment in the same course). One month prior to the closing of enrollment, if spaces in the course remain open, hopeful participants on the waiting list will be notified that they may join the HTTC.

The HTTC course fee is €2,100. There is no longer a €100 discount for prior full attendance of the Agama Yoga First Level Intensive Course, because this course is now a prerequisite and will not be repeated during the HTTC. Agama Yoga teachers enjoy discounted course fees totalling €1800 (no additional discounts apply).

In Mazunte the HTTC will be partially residential. A vegetarian food plan will be arranged - all participants must join. The fees will be modest: approximately 190 Pesos daily for all meals (about €11). There may be some new accommodation rentals on-site by the time the course begins and additionally participants may consult the website tomzap.com for accommodation options in Mazunte and San Augustinillo. Food fees will be due alongside tuition, one month prior to the course start.

In 2012, participants will have the option to pay in Euros, US Dollars, or Mexican Pesos. Payment details will be sent to accepted participants closer to the course starting date (by November, 2011).

 We would like to address a few points surrounding the HTTC applications process:

• Sahajananda recommends attendance of at least one Hridaya Retreat or Workshop, held either internationally or in Thailand, prior to applying for this course.
• For the 2012 course, the open applications period has been extended until 15 August. Within two to four weeks of this date, the next year's participants will be chosen by Sahajananda in a selections process and notified by email individually.
• Waiting list applicants will also be notified by September. However, approval to join one year's waiting list does not confer any automatic acceptance to a future course should the participant not ultimately have the opportunity to enroll in the course desired. In such a case, the participant is welcome to reapply for a future course.

Contact httc@agamayoga.com with any questions or for more information.