Art of Consent

Consent in Yoga

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“Informed consent is as new to spirituality as it is to patriarchal capitalism.”

Matthew Remski

 

Elise Tassell and Rupert James invite you to join us as we take an informed and critical lens to the subject of consent in yoga.  Yoga teachers are especially welcome, as is anyone interested in how to co-create consent culture more broadly.

 

Topics covered will include:

     

• What is consent? 

• How power dynamics and authority figures affect our capacity for choice

• Trauma awareness and the impact of trauma on our ability to choose

• Implied versus explicit consent in yoga classes 

• Somatic dominance within yoga

• The history, intentions, benefits and pitfalls of physical adjustments in yoga

• Cultural conditioning and our tendency to 'go along' with touch

• Consent cards in yoga - are they useful?

• Consent in online yoga classes

• Developing best practice, and co-creating consent culture

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There will be a mix of some theory, real-life examples and discussion points.  We’ll have plenty of time for questions and sharing, both in the larger group and in break-out rooms.  We will also invite you into a couple of short practices.  

 

You will be supported to remain in consent at all times.  Everything is optional, including the practices,  sharing and breakout rooms.  We recognise that discussing these topics can sometimes bring emotional responses and triggers. We ask that you practice self-care throughout, and are able to take responsibility for your needs both during, and potentially after, the workshop.

 

This is a substantial topic and we are unlikely to cover all the material within two hours.  Our hope is to hold future workshops to explore further themes and  continue our enquiries together.

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This article by Susan Stringfellow explains some of the complexities around consent in yoga classes:

Permission to Touch: The Complicated Matter of Hands-On Adjustments.

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