On Teaching

Nov 11

The dance of learning and sharing knowledge is integral to being alive. The idea that all of nature adapts, constantly taking on new survival skills and patterns, is the basis of evolutionary biology – the effects of which can be positive or negative. Thus, one might argue, to be alive is to be open to the possibility of learning. This idea also places a sacred value on the exchange of learning and teaching. If learning is the act of being receptive, responsive, and skillful with the knowledge available, then teaching is the art of presenting and shaping knowledge. In the words of the poet Mark Van Doven, “Teaching is the art of assisting discovery.”

What does it take to be a good teacher? Or, to actively cultivate a frame of mind that engages learning from a variety of sources? Teachers come in many forms – as parents, elders, gurus, babysitters, formal educators, pets and animals, nature itself, and more. Yet, to intentionally take on the role of a teacher, in formal education, as a yoga teacher, or as a leader within a community, bears a particular responsibility and opportunity. A good teacher is transformative and, sometimes, salvific. Good teaching also emerges from a shared moment between student and teacher. As an organic, interpersonal, I-thou interaction, there is also something about teaching and learning that is arguably incompatible with capitalism and consumption. One might be able to reproduce and scale the outward, physical frameworks of learning, but one can never package, or produce on command, a moment of authentic interpersonal connection. Thus, the cultivation of the classroom as a dedicated space – as a physical location, a virtual space, in a yoga shala, or in the intentional moment – is also an artform that greatly impacts teaching.

In this issue of Tarka, On Teaching, we explore pedagogy within the contemplative and dharmic traditions. This issue emerges out of a year-long research project within Embodied Philosophy. The “From Faculty and Friends” section features excerpts from three speakers at the 2022 “Radical Teaching Conference,” wherein Embodied Philosophy invited eleven innovative speakers for to consider the possibility of “contemplative pedagogy.” Additionally, the articles by Isa Gucciardi, Jeffrey Long, and Marcy Braverman Goldstein were each initially presented as part of a panel titled, “New Directions in Dharma Pedagogy,” at the Dharma Academy of North America (DANAM) meeting, held in Denver, Colorado in 2022. Our proposal has been that by investigating ancient philosophies and practices, not as mere historical curiosities, but rather as technologies that are still pregnant with possibility, we can perhaps reclaim some of the knowledge and wisdom of our forebears and we can innovate and rethink what it means to teach in productive ways.

Contemplative pedagogy holds a vision of adult learning and a pursuit of knowledge that, to draw from Vineet Chander’s talk at the “Radical Teaching Conference,” promotes “heart-centered” and not only “head-centered” learning. Contemplative pedagogy, in this sense, is not only about a degree and a job – though of course this is important – rather, it is more about recentering and cultivating knowledge that is also connected to the very purpose of being, as well as making that accessible to wide and diverse audiences.

Another speaker at the “Radical Teaching Conference,” Alka Arora (CIIS), synthesizes critical aspects of her work in her article, “Integral Feminist Pedagogy: Uniting the Contemplative and the Activist.” This approach requires that we consider the numinous, that we open towards deeper questions that center around meaning, purpose, and value, and it acknowledges the necessary and natural extension of this inquiry beyond the personal and the classroom, and towards the social sphere. All too often, contemplative studies is perceived as a solitary, individualistic, or even a selfish endeavor. Yet, as discussed in Carla Wilson’s article, “Contemplative Pedagogy and Social Justice,” and as described in this issue’s book reviews, contemplative practices have a natural partnership with all other aspects of being alive, including ecology and other issues of social justice.

In “Nothing Can Be Taught,” Katy Jane discusses the process of learning Vedic chanting and ṛta, or the “eternal rhythm” of knowledge that unfolds through the experience of Vedic education. Jane describes this as a kind of “feeling intelligence,” that is often overlooked when we imagine that learning facts, history, equations, etc., is separate from spiritual formation. A related discussion of the “de-emphasizing of words,” is illustrated in the article by Jun Wang that discusses Buddhist, Chan meditation and the poetics of the great Tibetan Yogi, Milarepa. And, in a contemplative, therapeutic approach, Isa Gucciardi discusses intuitive, inner knowledge as “The Unseen Teacher.”

Another important topic addressed in this issue is that of the role of the guru and, while there is still much more than can be explored on this, we herein offer several diverse perspectives on gurus which work to both remind the reader of the traditional value and role of the guru for contemplative traditions and, on the other hand, point towards cautionary narratives and circular, non-hierarchical models that are emerging in contemporary communities. Since the 1990s, when works that were highly critical of guru traditions emerged, like The Guru Papers, there has been a pattern of critiques of the guru model in both academia and popular commentary, along with the exposure of the crimes of corrupt gurus. We take a more nuanced view herein, however, and would not necessarily propose throwing out the baby of paramparā (teaching lineage) with the bathwater of abuse. For more on this, check out the articles by Hari-kirtana, Tova Olsson, Jacob Kyle, Allegra Lovejoy, Shambhavi Sarasvati, and Zoë Slatoff.

Finally, embodiment and the integration of mind, body, and spirit, is a theme that runs throughout this issue (and all of the work done at Embodied Philosophy) with particular attention exacted in the articles by Dana Pinkerton (“What is a Body?”) and Allegra Lovejoy (“Sexual Ethics”). Leonard N. Bloksberg engages the Jewish, contemplative tradition of Kabbalah with contemporary theories of psychology and education to underscore the value of kinesthetic, embodied learning.

Education, particularly in the United States, is undergoing some radical shifts. In the article, “(a)dharmic academia,” Marcy Braverman Goldstein highlights the challenge of intolerance, pointing to incidents of guest speakers being shouted down at universities for holding controversial opinions. Books are being banned, the price of education is prohibitive, and, increasingly the ideal of educating the whole person that sat at the core of university education is giving way to a focus on trades and jobs, rather than general education and/or liberal arts. Rather than condemning these shifts in education and ideology outright, it can be helpful to see these symptoms as indicators of cultural shifts. Educators are now being called to skillfully respond – recognizing, for example, that the urge toward trades and jobs is also a call for increased hands-on learning and embodied, practical experience. Additionally, the polarity of banned books, forbidden speakers, and divisive politics makes clear the need for nuanced, contemplative thinking – like that modeled in the Jain concept of anekāntavāda, discussed by Jeffrey Long in this issue. We need more diverse ways to value diversity and to embody tolerance.

Creative, contemplative pedagogy encourages students to engage in introspection, self-inquiry, and reflective thinking, enabling them to develop a more profound sense of meaning and purpose in their learning. This issue of Tarka showcases diverse ways to engage teaching as a craft and an artform. By incorporating contemplative practices into the educational process, educators can create a transformative learning experience that goes beyond the acquisition of knowledge and skills, nurturing the whole person and supporting their personal growth and well-being.

— Stephanie Corigliano

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