Yogacharya BKS Iyengar, born 14th December 1918, was the world’s foremost modern-day master of yoga, having devoted a lifetime to its study. ‘Guruji’, (as Iyengar is affectionately known to his many thousands of students), is widely credited with introducing yoga to the western world.
Guruji began learning asana from his brother-in-law, Sri T. Krishnamacharya, in 1934. Through years of sincere practice, teaching, research and study of early texts, he reached back to the roots of yoga and introduced a contemporary, dynamic and relevant revitalisation of the ancient art.
Mr Iyengar believed in demystifying yoga and in making it available to all, regardless of age, race or creed. Promoting yoga as an art, a science and a philosophy, one of his greatest contributions was in bringing yoga to ‘ordinary’ people, and in helping to make it accessible to thousands world-wide.
Mr Iyengar was recognised for his intimate knowledge of the body, and explanation of pathology from a yogic point of view by many leading medical practitioners and institutions. He was the recipient of numerous international awards and the author of the seminal books Light on Yoga, Light on Pranayama, The Art of Yoga, The Tree of Yoga, Light on Astanga Yoga, Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and most recently, Yoga – The Path to Holistic Health.
In 1975 he opened the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute in Pune, India. Although he retired from teaching general classes in 1984, he still practiced daily at the Institute well into his nineties. Now, his daughter Geetaji, son Prashantji, and grand daughter Abhijata Sridhar Iyengar continue to teach and promote the art of yoga.
From their base at the Institute in Pune, the Iyengars set up a world-wide, standardised system of instruction and a recognisable teacher’s qualification. With the objective of maintaining the purity of Guruji’s research and teaching, and disseminating it for the best possible effect, they instigated a formal teacher training programme, with rigorous standards and assessment procedures.
On August 20, 2014 Guruji passed away at the age of 95 leaving behind an enduring legacy.
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