Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja Iyengar (December 14, 1918 - August 20, 2014), better known as B.K.S. Iyengar , is the founder of yoga style known as "Iyengar Yoga" and is considered one of the world's leading yoga teachers. He is the author of many books on yoga and philosophical exercises including Light Light on Yoga, Light in Pranayama, Light on Patanjali Sutra, and Light on Life . Iyengar was one of the earliest disciples of Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, often referred to as "the father of modern yoga." He has been credited with popularizing yoga, first in India and then around the world.
The Government of India rewarded Iyengar Padma Shri in 1991, Padma Bhushan in 2002 and Padma Vibhushan in 2014. In 2004, Iyengar was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine .
Video B. K. S. Iyengar
Initial years
B.K.S. Iyengar was born into a poor family of Sri Vaishnava Iyengar in Bellur, Kolar district, Karnataka, India. He is 11 of 13 children (10 of whom survived) who were born from Sri Krishnamachar, a school teacher, and Sheshamma. When Iyengar was five, his family moved to Bangalore. Four years later, a 9-year-old boy lost his father, who died of appendicitis.
The home town of Iyengar, Bellur, is in the grip of an influenza pandemic at the time of his birth, and the onset of the illness made the boy sick and weak for many years. Throughout his childhood, he struggled with malaria, tuberculosis, typhoid fever, and general malnutrition. "My arms are thin, my legs are thin, and my belly stands out in a rigid way," he wrote. "My head used to hang, and I have to lift it with difficulty."
Maps B. K. S. Iyengar
Education in yoga
In 1934, his brother-in-law, the Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya yogi, asked Iyengar, 15, to come to Mysore, to improve his health through yoga practice. There, Iyengar learns about asana practice, which improves his health steadily. Krishnamacharya has Iyengar and the other disciples giving yoga demonstrations at Maharaja's court in Mysore, which has a positive influence on Iyengar. Iyengar considers his relationship with his brother-in-law as a turning point in his life saying that over a two-year period "he (Krishnamacharya) only taught me for about ten or fifteen days, but a few days it determines what I have experienced today." K. Pattabhi Jois claims that he, and not Krishnamacharya, is an Iyengar teacher. In 1937, Krishnamacharya sent Iyengar to Pune at the age of eighteen to spread the teachings of yoga.
Although Iyengar greatly respects Krishnamacharya, and sometimes asks for advice from him, he has a problematic relationship with his teacher during his guidance. At first, Krishnamacharya predicted that rigid and sick teenagers would not succeed in yoga. She is ignored and assigned to domestic work. Only when Krishnamacharya's favorite student at the time, Keshavamurthy, left a day to begin serious training. Krishnamacharya began teaching a series of difficult postures, sometimes telling him not to eat until he mastered certain postures. These experiences will later inform how he taught his students.
Teaching career
With encouragement from Krishnamacharya, Iyengar, aged 18, moved to Pune in 1937 to teach yoga. He spends a lot of time each day studying and experimenting with various techniques.
He teaches yoga to some famous figures including Jiddu Krishnamurti, Jayaprakash Narayan, and Yehudi Menuhin. He taught sirsasana (standing head) to Elisabeth, Queen of Belgium when she was 80 years old.
Among his other followers were novelist Aldous Huxley, actress Annette Bening, Mira Nair filmmaker and designer Donna Karan, as well as prominent Indian personalities, including cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor.
International recognition
In 1952, Iyengar made friends with violinist Yehudi Menuhin. Menuhin gave him a break that transformed Iyengar from a relatively obscure Indian yoga teacher into an international teacher. Since Iyengar had taught the famous philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti, he was asked to go to Bombay to meet Menuhin, known to be interested in yoga. Menuhin said he was very tired and could only spare five minutes. Iyengar told him to lie in Savasana (lying on his back), and he fell asleep. After an hour, Menuhin wakes up fresh and spends two hours with Iyengar. Menuhin became convinced that practicing yoga enhanced his game, and in 1954 invited Iyengar to Switzerland. At the end of the visit, he presented a yoga teacher with a watch on the back that read, "For my best violin teacher, BKS Iyengar". Since then, Iyengar has visited the west regularly, and schools that teach his yogic system have sprung up all over the world. Now there are hundreds of Iyengar yoga centers.
Iyengar made his first visit to the United States in 1956, when he taught in Ann Arbor, Michigan and gave several lecture-demonstrations.
In 1966, Iyengar published his first book Light on Yoga. This eventually became an international best-seller. On October 10, 2005, it has been translated into 17 languages ​​and sold three million copies. Light on Yoga followed by pranayama titles and aspects of yoga philosophy. Iyengar wrote 14 books. (See Bibliography.)
In 1975, Iyengar opened the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute in Pune, in memory of his late wife. He formally retired from teaching in 1984, but continues to be active in the Iyengar Yoga world, teaching special classes, giving lectures, and writing books. Princess Iyengar, Geeta, and son, Prashant, have gained international recognition as teachers.
In 2005, Iyengar visited the United States to promote his latest book, Light on Life, and to teach a special workshop at the Yoga Journal conference in Estes Park, Colorado. October 3, 2005 declared as "B.K.S.Iyengar Day" by the San Francisco City Supervisory Board. Anthropologist Joseph S. Alter of the University of Pittsburgh stated that Iyengar "has so far had the greatest impact on the global spread of yoga." In June 2011, he was presented with a warning stamp issued in his honor by the Beijing Post's Beijing Post. There are now more than thirty thousand Iyengar yoga students in 57 cities in China.
The noun "Iyengar" is defined by the Oxford Dictionaries as "a type of Hatha yoga that focuses on correct body alignment, utilizing ropes, wooden beams, and other objects as aids in achieving correct posture."
On December 14, 2015, what will be Iyengar's 97th birthday, he is honored with Google Doodle. It is shown in India, North America, most of Europe, Russia, and Indonesia.
Personal practice
Iyengar reported in the interview that, at the age of 90, he continued to practice the asana for 3 hours and pranayama for an hour each day. In addition, he mentioned that he found himself conducting unintentional pranayama at a later time.
Approach to teaching
Iyengar attracts his students by offering what they are looking for - which tends to be physical stamina and flexibility. He did a demonstration and then, when his scooter sprained his spine, began exploring the use of props to help disabled people practice Yoga. He also gets inspiration from Hindu deities such as Narasimha Yoga and the stories of yogis using trees to support their asanas.
Recognition by Krishnamacharya
In an interview, Iyengar said that Krishnamacharya supports his teaching style:
He [Krishnamacharya] never taught me much about teaching, but he saw me teaching. In 1961, he came to Pune and taught my daughter and son. He taught them for hours, but unfortunately they could not get what he was trying to show them. When I came and asked what was wrong, my daughter told me what she did not understand about posture. So, I explained to him, "You must stretch from this end to the end". And immediately when Krishnamacharya sees this, he gives me a gold medal known as Shikshaka Yoga Chakravarti, which means "Emperor of Guru Yoga, Master Teacher". He said I should teach like this and not only in person, but in public.
Family
In 1943, Iyengar married a 16-year-old Ramamani in a marriage arranged by their parents in the usual Indian way. He said of their marriage: "We live without conflict as if our two souls are one." Together, they raise five daughters and a son. Ramamani Iyengar died in 1973, aged 46 years. Later, Iyengar named his yoga institute, Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute, afterwards.
Both Iyengar's eldest daughter, Geeta (born 1944) and her son, Prashant, have become internationally known teachers by her own right. Other children from B.K.S. Iyengar is Vanita, Sunita, Suchita, and Savita. Geeta Iyengar is a writer of Yoga: A Gem for Women (2002), and Prashant is the author of several books, including A Class after Class: Yoga, Integrated Sciences (1998) , and Yoga and the New Millennium (2008). Geeta and Prashant lead together the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute (RIMYI) in Pune. Iyengar's grandson, Abhijata Sridhar Iyengar, trained for several years under his guidance, and now a teacher at the Institute in Pune and internationally.
Philanthropy and activism
Iyengar supports nature conservation, stating that it is important to preserve all animals and birds. He donated Rs. 2 million for Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens, Mysore, is considered the largest donation by an individual to any zoo in India. He also adopted a tiger and a small child to commemorate his wife, who died in 1973.
Iyengar helps promote the awareness of multiple sclerosis with the Pune unit of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of India.
The most important Iyengar charity project involves donations to his ancestral village, Bellur, in the Kolar district of Karnataka. Through the trust fund he formed, he led the village transformation, supported a number of charitable activities there. He built a hospital, the first temple in India dedicated to Sage Patanjali, a free school that supplies warm uniforms, books, and lunches for children in Bellur and surrounding villages, high schools, and colleges.
Death
Iyengar died on August 20, 2014 in Pune, India due to heart failure and kidney failure, aged 95 years. He was cremated on the same day at the Vaikunth Auditorium near his home.
Bibliography
- Iyengar, B.K.S. (1966, revised ed. 1977). Light on Yoga. New York: Schocken. ISBN 978-0-8052-1031-6
- Iyengar, B.K.S. (1981). Light on Pranayama: The Yogic Art of Breathing. New York: Crossroad. ISBNÃ, 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). Yoga Tree. Boston: Shambhala. ISBNÃ, 0-87773-464-X
- Iyengar, B.K.S. (1996). Light on the Patanjali Yoga Sutra. London: Thorsons. ISBN: 978-0-00-714516-4
- Iyengar, B.K.S., Abrams, D. & amp; Evans, J.J. (2005). Light on Life: The Yoga of Journey to Wholeness, Inner Peace, and Ultimate Freedom. Pennsylvania: Rodale. ISBNÃ, 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 Volume, 2000-2008). Astadala Yogamala: Work Collected. New Delhi: Allied Publishers.
- Iyengar, B.K.S. (2009). Wisdom of Yoga and Exercise. New York: Dorling Kindersley. ISBNÃ, 0-7566-4283-3
- Iyengar, B.K.S. (2010). Yaugika Manas: Know and Realize Yogya's Mind. Mumbai: Yog. ISBNÃ, 81-87603-14-3
- Iyengar, B.K.S. (2012). The Essence of Yoga Sutra: A Definitive Guide to Yoga Philosophy. London: HarperThorsons. ISBN: 978-0007921263
References
External links
- Iyengar's official website
- B. K. S. Iyengar on IMDb
- BBC World Service article and program by Mark Tully
- Leap of faith (2008), Trivedi & amp; Makim, Documentary about the life of BKS Iyengar
- BKS IyengarÃ, - 97th birthday on YouTube
- BKS Iyengar Google Doodle. 97th Birthday "Iyengar Yoga" Founder on YouTube
- Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute at Google Cultural Institute
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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