Establishing connection to a mentor is the way in which we establish sangha – one of the Three Jewels on the Buddhist path. Sangha is the community of people who are on an investigative path, who live in or aspire to live in awareness. They are our teachers, mentors and friends who encourage us along the way and help us regain our footing when we falter. They are our spiritual family.
The three jewels – Buddha, our awakened nature, Dharma, the teachings and practices that lead to awakening, and Sangha, those who aspire to live awake – become precious to us as invaluable supports on our yogic path of awareness.
We bring these ideals into practice daily by reciting the refuge prayer:
From now until I reach the very heart of liberation, I take refuge in awareness, the path that leads to awareness and those who live in awareness, my teachers, friends and spiritual family.
We consider the mentoring process an essential element for those on the path of certification with the Insight Yoga Institute. As such, we have brought together a group of mentors to support each of you on the path and in your practice.
You will be assigned a mentor upon acceptance to the Institute after completion/review of your application.
We feel that the mentoring process needs to have a strong structure in place and have outlined the following:
- Individual Mentoring Requirement: Within the 4 years after your acceptance to IYI as you complete your coursework, we require that you communicate formally with your assigned mentor at minimum of four times per year (16 sessions minimum over 4 years), at agreed upon dates between the mentor and the mentee, for a one-hour Zoom/Skype video call.
- It is also important that there is an ongoing mutual communication via email between sessions. To support this communication, your mentor will also be responsible for reading your essays/providing feedback from your coursework as well as assigning supplemental readings and reflection essays.
- The payment of fees for Individual Mentorship are made directly to your mentor. The average cost for a one-hour one-on-one Zoom/Skype session with an IYI Endorsed Teacher is USD$125. If you are assigned Sarah or Ty as your mentor, the cost will be USD$150. Sliding scale options may be available and can be discussed with your assigned mentor.
- IY Online (Group) Mentoring Requirement: Within the 4 years after your acceptance to IYI as you complete your coursework, we also require that you attend 4 IY Online (Group) Mentoring Sessions per year (16 sessions minimum over 4 years) that will be hosted by an IYI Endorsed Teacher. These sessions will include a dharma talk and meditation practice. To have these sessions counted towards your IYI requirements, you will be asked to complete a 1-2 paragraph reflection of each of the sessions.
- Information regarding dates/times/costs of these IY Online (Group) Mentoring Sessions can be found on the Teachings page in the Endorsed Teachers section.
If you are ever feeling that you would like to have a mentoring session with Sarah or Ty Powers in addition to the time with your IYI assigned mentor, please know that is available. Please contact us for their fee structure.
