Video clips of Yoga Gurus Krisnamacharya and B.K.S. Iyengar

[Immortal4life]

Here is some old video footage of 2 well known Yoga Gurus. I dont have a lot of information on them, so anyone else who does feel free to contribute to this thread. This is, if nothing, else, an impressive demonstration of flexibility-

[Immortal4life]

Is Yoga not popular here?

 

Come on Taobums! I dont know a huge amount about Yoga, so help me out

[goldisheavy]

It's interesting to watch, but what is there to say? "Nice form?" That's not a meaningful comment.

 

Also, when it comes to yoga, I much prefer Jnana Yoga to Raja. If you posted something like a translation to Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, that would be more interesting to me than watching contortions.

Edited December 8, 2010 by goldisheavy

[Immortal4life]

What is the difference between Jnana and Raja Yoga? Why do you prefer Jnana?

 

What are the Sutras of Pantanjali?

[Dainin]

Is Yoga not popular here?

 

Come on Taobums! I dont know a huge amount about Yoga, so help me out

 

Krishnamacharya was the teacher of B.K.S. Iyengar, as well as K. Pattabhi Jois. Iyengar and Jois later established their own styles which are quite different. Iyengar emphasizes precision in alignment, and pioneered using props to make the asanas more accessible. Jois (Ashtanga yoga) emphasized vinyasa, which is flowing from one asana to another, and linking them with sun salutations and ujjayi breathing. Jois stated that Krishnamacharya taught him Ashtanga yoga based on some ancient writings which were on palm leaves. Another student of Krishnamacharya who became a teacher was Indra Devi, who I think was born in Russia and lived in Argentina, and had some books that were popular back in the 60s or 70s. It was rare for a traditional Indian teacher to accept a foreign female student back then.

 

Krishnamacharya's son T.K.V. Desikachar established a style of yoga called Viniyoga, which emphasizes therapeutics. A guy named Gary Kraftsow from Hawaii is the main teacher of this in the U.S. There are soem other teachers of Krishnamacharya around such as A.G. Mohan and Srivatsa (I forgot his first name). Mohan recently wrote a biography of Krishnamacharya that would probably give you more details about all of this.

 

Some things that stands out for me about Krishnamacharya are that, one, his students were able to develop distinctive styles based on their own experiences with his teaching (i.e. they were encouraged to think and not just imitate), and two, the great longevity achieved by many of them. Krishnamacharya and Indra Devi lived past 100 years. Jois died recently at 93 or 94, and Iyengar and the others that I mentioned are still alive. Hope this helps!

[Immortal4life]

Thank you for that, you are helpful and kind.

[Immortal4life]

Jois stated that Krishnamacharya taught him Ashtanga yoga based on some ancient writings which were on palm leaves.

 

That is quite interesting. Does this mean that Ashtanga yoga is a revived art, and would that make Krishnamacharya the modern founder?

 

How far back does this system go?

[Dainin]

That is quite interesting. Does this mean that Ashtanga yoga is a revived art, and would that make Krishnamacharya the modern founder?

 

How far back does this system go?

 

I think that if you mean Ashtanga yoga as practiced by K.P. Jois, that is probably an accurate statement. In general, Ashtanga means "Eight Limbs" referring to the eight types of yoga discussed by Patanjali:

 

Yama : Universal morality

Niyama : Personal observances

Asanas : Body postures

Pranayama : Breathing exercises, and control of prana

Pratyahara : Control of the senses

Dharana : Concentration and cultivating inner perceptual awareness

Dhyana : Devotion, Meditation on the Divine

Samadhi : Union with the Divine

 

There is a recent book out called "The Yoga Body," published by Oxford University Press, that looks at the question of how much modern hatha yoga comes from traditional sources versus the influence of Western physical culture. Many of the asanas currently practiced were not mentioned in the traditional writings. The ones mentioned in the sutras were mostly seated postures, used for meditational purposes.

[Immortal4life]

Thank you again.

 

I am interested in Yoga, but I dont know a whole lot about it. You hear all the time that Yoga is such an ancient art, and about how old it is. So I found it quite surprising how little information there is available out there about the history, or lineages, of most of the more well known systems.

 

I guess Im just used to Qigong, where they will say, our lineage is handed down through 10 generations, or 20 generations, or whatever it may be, and our system is X many of years old in its current form, and has roots going back even before it was systemized etc....

[mYTHmAKER]

And don't forget Bhakti yoga = the yoga of devotion

Kriya yoga = the yoga of action

[Immortal4life]

[Dainin]

I am interested in Yoga, but I dont know a whole lot about it. You hear all the time that Yoga is such an ancient art, and about how old it is. So I found it quite surprising how little information there is available out there about the history, or lineages, of most of the more well known systems.

 

I guess Im just used to Qigong, where they will say, our lineage is handed down through 10 generations, or 20 generations, or whatever it may be, and our system is X many of years old in its current form, and has roots going back even before it was systemized etc....

 

Well...I think that there is a tendency among some people in both arts to exaggerate the age of the lineage in order to make it seem more credible. It is likely that any form that actually is very old has changed substantially over the course of time. For example, if you look at something like 8 Section Brocade or Yi Jin Jing, there are many different variations. Remember, not everything new is bad, nor is everything old good. Personally, I find some newer qigong forms to produce results as good or better than some of the legacy forms. Also, if you encounter a practice that makes extravagant claims about it's lineage, that doesn't mean that the practice is bad either. For example, I tend not to believe that the Yogi Bhajan style of Kundalini Yoga is 40,000 years old, as they claim. However, I like the practice, and find it to be fun to do, so the actual age of the lineage doesn't matter much to me. Let your own experience of the different practices guide you, versus the rhetoric of the schools. Good luck!

[Immortal4life]

That is definitely true.

 

I dont mind a little glorification, lol

 

But I do like to know about the art I practice. If I dont get to see a real lineage chart, I at least like to have a general idea of the history of the art. It can help put the art into context for me, help me understand how it developed, help me understand what its really about, and make me more interested.