The Problem with Iyengar Yoga

August 16, 2014
Pune, India

I have spent now almost 19 years studying, practicing and teaching Iyengar Yoga. And I have come to the conclusion that I have not learned anything. Everything I've learned has been mostly from my own imagination and perspective. And I suspect, that Except for those with the actual name of Iyengar, most Iyengar Yoga teachers are deluded. Let me explain.

There is only one man, BKS Iyengar, who began to share yoga in an innovative way, that he himself does not call Iyengar Yoga. We (the students and fans) call it that. He says he just teaches yoga. But wow, how he teaches yoga!

I had the great fortune to be in his presence as a student on a few occasions. The first one was memorable because it was his 80th Birthday Celebration. I was very much a beginner, but the experience propelled me into a whole new world.

One memorable moment was, while he was teaching Virabhadrasana 2, and he told us we needed to let our soul spread all the way into the fingertips. I still recall how I felt a bright light filling my arms all the way to my fingertips and spilling out through my fingernails.  I felt illumined in a way I had never experienced before. This man was speaking straight to my soul, through my dull body. I was in the presence of a Master. He was teaching us ahimsa when he made sure everyone could see. He was teaching us Satya when we were ignoring body parts or an area thereof. He was teaching tapas, holding us in poses in order to build stamina and strength. And he was softening our senses so that we could really feel our SELF. He has captivated thousands of students with his unique method. 

I have been able to study with Geeta, his daughter, as well as Prashant. each of them sharing their own understanding of their fathers work in their own creative ways. 

I have been blessed to study with Senior Teachers, who have devoted themselves to proselytizing his work worldwide. 

But there is one problem. There is only one person that can teach Iyengar Yoga. And that is the Master himself. Don't get me wrong, yes, he has created a systematized method of teaching, practicing, studying, and understanding his work. Everyone else who teaches his method adds something to it. They add their own flavor based on their own experiences.

Some favor the technical aspect of the method. Some have followed the philosophical aspect (as Prashant clearly has). And some, like Geeta, have developed even more innovations, such as the restorative work for women. 

In my experience, I started out with back pain, and the pain began to subside with the attention to detail and sequencing that Iyengar Yoga is known for.

For me, Iyengar Yoga has been therapeutic in many ways. It has healed my back, neck, knees, shoulders, and by default, my nervous system. My PMS disappeared. As my body grew stronger, my mind became more focused. As my body shed all its pains and sorrows, it became a vessel fit for peace to reside in and grow. I am a different person than when I began this work back in 1995.

I remember when I first started teaching as an unqualified yoga teacher. I started the day my teacher didn't show up at the gym. The students loved my class. They didn't know what I had done. All I did was parrot my teacher. I had training as an aerobics instructor. None as a yoga teacher. I somehow ended up teaching my own class. Scary. I know. But I started teaching based on my experiences. I was true to myself and my students, and really only shared what I had learned from my own experiences.

I modified postures that I couldn't do, and lucky for me, my students couldn't do either. I stuck to the basics. And stayed away from what I didn't understand. Turned out that at the 80th birthday, Guruji told us to teach what we know. I knew I had tight hamstrings. And so I taught from my experience. 

I suspect many teachers have had similar challenges in their practice. We all come to asana with a gift. I have had teachers who seem to shine at teaching backbends. Turns out they can do them. I learned twists from a teacher who could twist better than a screw being driven by a screwdriver. 

Having had the fortune to study with many teachers, I have found that they all speak from their experiences too. But some of us lack flexibility. Some are technical, but lack a sense of spirituality.

I recall Guruji and his family teaching with joy and passion. Guruji's immense personality shining through. Animated, he sometimes had to raise his voice for our bodies to hear him. He hit, to awaken the dullness in our bodies. 

And so many mimicked his seemingly rough mannerisms, not understanding that Iyengar Yoga is not about hitting or yelling or intimidating the students. That was his way. His culture, his personality, his passion. Too bad some took that as the hallmark of Iyengar Yoga. Or perhaps they were just parroting as I did in the beginning.

But one day the parrot flew away, and I found my voice. The voice that shared my own experience, or at least, my interpretation of the teachings of BKS Iyengar. And that is technically not Iyengar Yoga. 

Yes, I follow the "protocols" and the basics of Iyengar Yoga from the training I've had, but I am not the master that can ignite another human being to see their own inner light in Virabhadrasana 2.

There are teachers who come close to encompassing the right recipe of technicality, spirituality, leadership, and compassion. But except for the Iyengars, who have it in their blood, the rest of us can just pretend to teach Iyengar Yoga.  But because of our imbalances, our fears, our blockages, and our delusions, all we can do is aspire to teach Iyengar Yoga. 

Because of our missing Iyengar gene, we continue to forge on in our practice, so that we can continue pressing our inner and outer heels evenly. So that we can lift our shoulder blades in sirsasana, and move our tailbone in. Perhaps one day we'll do it. We'll learn. Or even get it. But in the process of our own self discovery, we'll realize that it was never about the tailbone. It was never about the shouting. It has always been about the inner awakening. And the only ones qualified to really share that are the Iyengars. And that is the problem. The rest of us just teach yoga. But at least we have an amazing role model we can parrot. Until we can understand, and then we can just teach yoga from our hearts, in our own voice, being true to ourselves and all of our deficiencies. 

Perhaps that's the truth of what Iyengar Yoga is. Pioneered by a real man. Who overcame many obstacles. And managed to change the world. At least my world. And a few others.