In the beginners mind there are many possibilities. In the experts mind there are few.”

—Shunryu Suzuki, Zen 2)monk

Many years ago, as a yoga student, I 3)envisioned how wonderful it would be to teach yoga. As a beginner, my mind was always open: I had begun a love affair with the practice of yoga, and I absorbed it like sunlight to a flower. My teachers always seemed so centered and strong. They offered powerful insights in class, helping me gain greater insight into the challenges I faced in life.

Then one day I heard this statement:

“If you want to know about something, read about it. If you want to understand something, do it. If you want to master something, teach it.”

I was 4)hooked 5)instantly, and I knew I would be a teacher. I wanted to master the practice of yoga, so I needed to teach it.

Though Ive been a teacher for more than a decade, as I write this I am in the middle of an intensive four-week yoga teacher-training program. After all these years and countless hours teaching, I am back to where I started: sitting in a class with a beginners mind.

初学者的思维饱含可能，久习者的思维饱受羁绊。”

——禅修大师铃木俊隆

多年前，我还是一个瑜伽学生时，就在想象教授瑜伽会是件多么美妙的事。作为一个初学者，我总能接受新思想：我开始对瑜伽练习产生了狂热的兴趣，我就像花儿吸取阳光那般，去吸收瑜伽知识。老师们看上去总是显得那么专注有力。他们在课堂上传授强大的见解，帮助我更富见地地面对生活中的挑战。

后来有一天，我听到了这样一个观点：

“欲晓某事，读之。欲悟某事，践之。欲通某事，教之。”

我当即便被吸引住了，并明白到自己会成为一位老师。我想精通瑜伽，所以我需要教授瑜伽。

尽管我已经当了十几年老师，在写这篇文章时，我还在参加一个为期四周的瑜伽教练强化训练项目。多年以来，历经教授瑜伽的无数个日子，我又回到我最初的状态：在课堂上，抱着一个初学者的心态。

For me, the decision to participate in an intensive training program has seemed fairly 6)straightforward, as it allows me to study a style of yoga I have not yet mastered. Yet, as Ive mentioned the training to friends in passing, a few of them have expressed a bit of surprise: “But I thought you were already certified?” Another friend said, “Given both the time and financial commitment, why put yourself through another training program?”

Good question.

In my experience, any good teacher is simply an accelerated student, constantly learning, staying open, and sharing the fruits of their explorations with others. Enthusiasm is 7)contagious, and when we are in the presence of a really inspirational teacher, we feel their excitement and their joy of discovery.

Good teachers inspire us to be with our beginners mind and stay open to new ideas.Even if it makes us uncomfortable, this mindset provides a perspective of willingness—the willingness to listen to new ideas, no matter how overwhelming they seem to be at first. Though it often feels very 8)humbling to be in the classical beginners mind place of “not knowing,” it can also bring such rewards.

When we are feeling stuck, a new idea can powerfully transform our lives. As noted American 9)yogi Joel Kramer states: “Yoga transforms you by opening up the physical and mental binds that block your potential, limiting your life. Transformation is a process that brings newness and interest … the transformation that yoga brings makes you more yourself, and opens you up to loving with greater depth … as a 10)sculptor brings out the beauty of form in the stone by slowly and carefully chipping away the rest.”

于我而言，决定参加强化训练课程，目标似乎是相当明确的，我可以学习还未完全掌握的一种瑜伽风格。然而，当我与朋友们顺带提起这个培训项目的时候，其中几位朋友表露出一丝惊讶：“我以为你已经拥有认证资格了呢？”另一位朋友问道，“训练需要时间和经济上的投入，你为什么还要报读新的瑜伽课程呢？”

问得好。

依我经历之所见，任何优秀的老师只不过是一个进步神速的学生，不懈地学习，保持开放的心态，并与他人分享自己钻研探索的成果。热情是富有感染力的，当我们有一位极具感召力的老师在场时，我们可以感受到他在探索中的兴奋与喜悦。

优秀的老师启发我们保持初学者的心态并乐于接受新观点。即使这使我们感到不适，但这样的心态会令我们积极配合，愿意倾听新观点，无论那些观点起初显得多么有冲击性。虽然“一无所知”这种初学者思想状态需要放下身段，但这样也能收益颇丰。

当我们感觉走进死胡同时，新想法能强有力地改变我们的生活。正如美国知名的瑜伽修行者乔伊·克雷墨所说：“瑜伽可以通过打开束缚你潜能，约束你生活的身心枷锁来改变你的生活。改变是一个带来新奇和趣味的过程……瑜伽所带来的改变能让你更忠于自我，也让你能更深沉地投入去爱……它就如雕刻家那般，通过缓慢而细致地修琢，削掉石块多余的部分，雕琢出美丽的形态。”

Yoga offers a process where you can 11)systematically move through the binds that block your potential, and intentionally transform your life one breath at a time. When you are feeling frustrated or stuck, physical exercise often can be a 12)vital step toward feeling better—but remember that your mind plays a key role in this process as well.

The internal reflection (awareness) encouraged in yoga allows us to explore our mental edge—those places in our heart and mind where weve shut down out of fear or 13)fatigue, where weve decided we can no longer grow, expand, or change. Though it takes effort, we are reminded that we are always able to choose a new path, a different way of looking at our challenges.

As you move through each day, imagine your breath being a powerful sculptors tool. Like the sculptor working with a 14)chisel, with each mindful breath, you begin to see which aspects of your psyche need to be chipped away to reveal the already existent beauty that is within you. Even in situations and conditions that youve had for decades, use your beginners mind perspective to stay open to new possibilities.

瑜伽让你经历这样一个过程：它通过每一次的呼吸，让你有条不紊地穿越那些限制你潜力的束缚，有目的地改变你的生活。当你感觉沮丧或者困惑时，身体锻炼往往是让你走向感觉更好的至关重要的一步——但别忘了，心态在这个过程中也起着关键的作用。

瑜伽唤起的内心反省（认识）使我们能够探索我们的精神极限——我们内心和精神中那些因恐惧和疲惫而紧锁的地方，我们曾认定这些不能再有所成长、发展或者改变的地方。尽管这需要付诸努力，但我们会获得提醒说我们总可以选择一条新的道路，以一个不同的视角来看待挑战。

在每一天的生活中，想象你的呼吸就是一个雕刻家的神奇工具。就像雕刻家使用锤凿工作那样，通过每一次的用心呼吸，你开始意识到心灵的哪些部分需要摒弃，从而展露出你内心本已存在的美丽。即使所处的境况长年不变，你也要发挥自己的初学者思维，向新的可能性敞开双臂。

Remember: In the beginners mind, there are many possibilities, and within these possibilities we are reminded that we are free. May you open your mind to the many wonderful possibilities that exist for you in each moment, and systematically create the life of your highest dreams.

记住：以初学者的思维角度看待问题，有很多的可能性，这些可能性提醒我们，我们是自由的。但愿你每时每刻都能够对众多精彩的可能性保持开放的心态，有条不紊地创造属于你自己的最理想的生活。