Padma Vibhusan B K S Iyengar : The beacon of yoga

Padma Vibhusan B K S Iyengar : The beacon of yoga

By Jamuna Rangachari

It is quite rarely that one is privileged to see visionaries, heroes and people who shall live forever in the hearts and minds of people for being achievers, strivers and yogis. One such stalwart is BKS Iyengar, who  has recently been awarded the Padma Vibushan, India’s second highest civilian honour.

Living majestically till the end, B K S Iyengar

Mr. Iyengar  now 96 founded the Iyengar school of yoga that has millions of followers across the globe including China, was once named by TIME magazine as one of the 100 most influential persons in the world.

In 1934, his brother-in-law, the yogi Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya asked Iyengar, who was 15 years old at the time, to come to Mysore so as to improve his health through yoga practice. 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. This was a turning point in his life. Iyengar says that “he [Krishnamacharya] only taught me for about ten or fifteen days, but those few days determined what I have become today!”

He struggled in the beginning to make a living as a yoga instructor because he was confronted by a great deal of prejudice. Now, he has been credited for establishing and popularizing yoga firstly in India and then moreover around the world.

With the encouragement of Krishnamacharya, Iyengar, aged 18,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 Jiddu Krishnamurthi, Jayaprakash Narayan and Yehudi Menuhin. In fact, he even taught sirsana to the Queen of Belgium when she was 80.

 Spreading yoga worldwide

Wanting to spread the message of yoga, he taught yoga to several noted personalities including Jiddu Krishnamurthi, Jayaprakash Narayan and Yehudi Menuhin. In fact, he even taught sirsana to the Queen of Belgium when she was 80.

The popularity of yoga in the West has been attributed, by some, in large part to Iyengar.

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 title on pranayama various aspects of yoga philosophy. In total, Iyengar has authored 14 books.

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. His daughter, Geeta and son, Prashant have also become yoga teachers of international repute.

Iyengar,,  in fact has become such an inspiration to everyone that his name has become synonymous with yoga and fitness. In 2004, Iyengar was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine. Further,   3 October 2005 was declared as “B.K.S.Iyengar Day” by San Francisco city’s board of directors.

It is not just the West but the east too. In June 2011, Iyengar was presented with a commemorative stamp issued in his honour by the Beijing branch of China Post. In fact, there are over thirty thousand Iyengar yoga students in 57 cities in China.

His philosophy

“Live majestically till the end”, Iyengar says and tells everyone to never worry or become anxious. Worry can never take you anyone anywhere is one of his other aphorisms.

When asked by many people whether he considered yoga physical, physiological, psychological or spiritual, he was clear that yoga comprises of all aspects.

His mantra for well being is remaining a karma yogi by doing one’s duty diligently, a jnana yogi by understanding what is being said with one’s own wisdom and a bhakta yogi who accepts all circumstances and surrenders to the divine will.

We all can certainly take a leaf out of his book.