B. K. S. Iyengar

B.K.S. Iyengar
Iyengar on his 86th birthday in 2004
Born	(1918-12-14) December 14, 1918 Bellur, British India (present-day Karnataka, India)
Occupation	Yoga teacher, author
Known for	Iyengar Yoga
Spouse(s)	Ramamani
Children	Geeta Prashant Sunita
Relatives	Abhijata Sridhar (grandchild) Hareeth Sridhar (grandchild)

B. K. S. Iyengar, or Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja Iyengar (born December 14, 1918), is the founder of Iyengar Yoga and is considered one of the foremost yoga teachers in the world.^[1][2] He has written many books on yoga practice and philosophy including Light on Yoga, Light on Pranayama, and Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Iyengar yoga classes are offered throughout the world. Iyengar is one of the earliest students of Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, who is often referred to as "the father of modern yoga."^[3] After modern yoga had arisen from the teachings of Krishnamacharya, it was Iyengar who established it. As he revealed in an interview in the documentary Breath of the Gods he struggled in the beginning to make a living as a yoga instructor because he was confronted by a great deal of prejudice. He has been credited for establishing and popularizing yoga firstly in India and then moreover around the world.^[4]

He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1991, the Padma Bhushan in 2002 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2014.^[5][6] In 2004, Iyengar was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time Magazine.^[7][8]

Early years

B.K.S. Iyengar was born into a poor Iyengar family ^[9] (a priestly Brahmin caste)^[10] at Bellur, Kolar District,^[11] Karnataka, India. He was the 11th of 13 children (only 10 of whom survived) of father Sri Krishnamachar, a school teacher, and mother Sheshamma.^[10] Iyengar's home village of Bellur, in Karnataka, was in the grip of the influenza pandemic at the time of his birth, leaving him sickly and weak. Throughout his childhood, he struggled with malaria, tuberculosis, typhoid fever, and general malnutrition. When he was five years old, his family moved to Bangalore and within four years his father died of appendicitis.^[10]

Education in yoga

In 1934, his brother-in-law, the yogi Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, asked Iyengar, who would have been 15 years old at the time, to come to Mysore, so as to improve his health through yoga practice.^[10] There, Iyengar learned asana practice, which steadily improved his health. Krishnamacharya had Iyengar and other students give yoga demonstration in the Maharaja's court at Mysore, which had a positive influence on Iyengar.^[10] Iyengar considers his association with his brother-in-law a turning point in his life^[10] saying that over a two-year period "he [Krishnamacharya] only taught me for about ten or fifteen days, but those few days determined what I have become today!"^[12] K. Pattabhi Jois has claimed that he, and not Krishnamacharya, was Iyengar's guru.^[13] At the age of 18 (1937), Iyengar was sent by Krishnamacharya to Pune to spread the teaching of yoga.^[10][14]

Though BKS Iyengar has very high regard for Krishnamacharya,^[15] and occasionally turned to him for advice, he had a troubled relationship with his guru during his tutelage.^[16] In the beginning, he predicted that the stiff, sickly teenager would not be successful at Yoga. He was neglected and tasked with household chores. Only when Krishnamacharya's favorite pupil at the time, Keshavamurthy left one day, did serious training start.^[17] Krishnamacharya began teaching a series of difficult postures, sometimes telling him to not eat until he mastered a certain posture. These experiences would later inform the way he taught his students.^[18]

Teaching career

With the encouragement of Krishnamacharya, Iyengar, aged 18,^[9] moved to Pune in 1937 to teach yoga. He spent many hours each day learning and experimenting with various techniques.

He taught yoga to several noted personalities including J Krishnamurti, Jayaprakash Narayan and Yehudi Menuhin.^[19] He taught sirsasana (head stand) to Elisabeth, Queen of Belgium when she was 80.^[20]

International recognition

In 1952, Iyengar befriended the violinist Yehudi Menuhin.^[21] Menuhin arranged for Iyengar to teach abroad in London, Switzerland, Paris and elsewhere. The popularity of yoga in the West has been attributed, by some, in large part to Iyengar.^[8]

In 1966, Light on Yoga was published. It eventually became an international best-seller and was translated into 17 languages. Light on Yoga was followed by titles on pranayama and various aspects of yoga philosophy. In total, Iyengar has authored 14 books.^[22]

In 1975, Iyengar opened the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute in Pune, in memory of his late wife. He officially retired from teaching in 1984, but continues to be active in the world of Iyengar Yoga, teaching special classes and writing books. Iyengar's daughter, Geeta, and son, Prashant, have gained international acclaim as teachers.^[8]

In 2005, he visited the United States to promote his latest book, Light on Life, and to teach a special workshop at the Yoga Journal conference in Colorado. 3 October 2005 was declared as "B.K.S.Iyengar Day" by San Francisco city's Board of Supervisors.^[2] Anthropologist Joseph S. Alter of the University of Pittsburgh stated "He has by far had the most profound impact on the global spread of yoga.^[2]

In June 2011, he was presented with a commemorative stamp issued in his honour by the Beijing branch of China Post. There are over thirty thousand Iyengar yoga students in 57 cities in China.^[23]

The noun "Iyengar" is defined by Oxford Dictionaries as "a type of astanga yoga...", named after B.K.S.Iyengar, its deviser.^[24]

Personal practice

BKS Iyengar reported in interviews^[15][16] that, at the age of 90, he continues to practice asanas for 3 hours and pranayamas for an hour daily. Besides this, he mentions that he finds himself performing non-deliberate pranayamas at other times.

Approach to teaching

BKS Iyengar attracted his students by offering them just what they sought - which tended to be physical stamina and flexibility.^[16] He conducted demonstrations and later, when a scooter accident dislocated his spine, began exploring the use of props to help disabled people practice Yoga. He also drew inspiration from Hindu deities such as Yoga Narasimha and stories of yogis using trees to support their asanas.^[18]

Recognition by Krishnamacharya

In an interview to Namarupa this is what BKS Iyengar said about Krishnamacharya’s endorsement of his teaching style:^[15]

“He [Krishnamacharya] never taught me much about teaching, but he saw me teach. In 1961, he came to Pune and was teaching my daughter and son. He taught them for many hours, but unfortunately they could not get what he was trying to show them. When I came up and asked what was wrong, my daughter told me what she did not understand about a posture. So, I explained to her, “You must stretch from this end to that end.” And immediately when Krishnamacharya saw this, he gave me a gold medal known as Yoga Shikshaka Chakravarti, which means “Emperor of Yoga Teachers, Teacher of Teachers.” He said I must teach like this and not just in private, but in public.”

Family

In 1943, he married Ramamani, to whom he had been introduced by his brothers. Together they raised five daughters and a son. Both his eldest daughter Geeta (born in 1944) and his son Prashant have become internationally-known teachers in their own right. The other children of B.K.S. Iyengar are Vanita, Sunita, Suchita, and Savita.^[25] Geeta Iyengar is the author of Yoga: A Gem for Women (2002), and Prashant is the author of several books, including A Class after a Class: Yoga, an Integrated Science (1998), and Yoga and the New Millennium (2008). Geeta and Prashant co-direct the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute (RIMYI) in Pune.^[26]

Charitable works and activism

Iyengar has supported nature conservation, stating that it is important to conserve all animals and birds.^[27] He donated Rs.20 lakhs to Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens, Mysore, reckoned to be the highest amount donated to any zoo in India.^[27] He also adopted a tiger and a cub in memory of his wife, who died in 1973.^[27]

He has helped promote awareness of multiple sclerosis with the Pune unit of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of India.^[28]

See also

• Iyengar Yoga

Bibliography

Iyengar published his first book (Light on Yoga) in 1966. The book has been translated into 17 languages and sold 3 million copies.^[2]

• Iyengar, B.K.S. (1966; revised ed. 1977). Light on Yoga. New York: Schocken. ISBN 978-0-8052-1031-6
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (1989). Light on Pranayama: The Yogic Art of Breathing. New York: Crossroad. ISBN 0-8245-0686-3
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (1985). The Art of Yoga. Boston: Unwin. ISBN 978-0-04-149062-6
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (1988). The Tree of Yoga. Boston: Shambhala. ISBN 0-87773-464-X
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (1996). Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. London: Thorsons. ISBN 978-0-00-714516-4
• Iyengar, B.K.S., Abrams, D. & Evans, J.J. (2005). Light on Life: The Yoga Journey to Wholeness, Inner Peace, and Ultimate Freedom. Pennsylvania: Rodale. ISBN 1-59486-248-6
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (2007). Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Dorling Kindersley. ISBN 978-0-7566-3362-2
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (8 Vols, 2000-2008). Astadala Yogamala: Collected Works. New Delhi: Allied Publishers.
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (2009). Yoga Wisdom and Practice. New York: Dorling Kindersley. ISBN 0-7566-4283-3
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (2010). Yaugika Manas: Know and Realize the Yogic Mind. Mumbai: Yog. ISBN 81-87603-14-3
• Iyengar, B.K.S. (2012). Core of the Yoga Sutras: The Definitive Guide to the Philosophy of Yoga. London: HarperThorsons. ISBN 978-0007921263

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to B. K. S. Iyengar.

• The official Iyengar website
• Blog covering Mr. Iyengar's 2005 US visit
• BBC World Service article and programme by Mark Tully
• Leap of faith(2008, Trivedi & Makim) Documentary about the life of BKS Iyengar