Find the Right Class or Guru for learning Yoga/Asanas

(Pic courtesy: www.envisionpersonalizedhealth.com)

There is an old saying which says “when a student is ready, teacher will appear”. Of course it is completely true. Teacher is a bridge between you and your destiny. They were the people who let you achieve your goal by imparting whatever knowledge required for achieving the goal. Long back, the situation how teachers were treated was different. Especially in India, the teacher is a person who comes next to parents and is considered more important than the spiritual powers. But now, the scenario is different. Earlier, it was the teacher who used to select the student to be taught. Now it is the student who is selects the teacher. However the practice be, Yoga conveying the best knowledge and practice is must. So, students while selecting their teacher must have to be aware that he is the one who can make you master in the art of Yoga.

How to select a Yoga Guru (teacher)?

Well selecting a Guru for learning Yoga is must, but has no pre determined criteria like selecting a candidate for a job. There are some Gurus in Yoga, who are known best for teaching the art to their students. There are some people who take classes with little knowledge they have in Yoga. It differs from person to person. Now it is your duty to search for a best one. The first thing to be noted while selecting a Guru is to have an idea of how much knowledge does the Guru has in the yoga art. It is kind of easy to be understood by looking at how their students practice Yoga or perform it. People who don’t have an idea of analyzing yoga posses and grades can actually go for an enquiry with the students.

(Pic courtesy: yogateachercentral.com)

The next thing to be noted is that the duration of the classes. Most of the classes nowadays run between 60 to 90 minutes. This is an average duration of doing Yoga asanas. It is also better to know the number of people in your class. This is because, usually if a class is having more number of students, then the Guru cannot concentrate on every individual. This will have more chance of learning the art wrongly which is worse than being unknown about the art. Choose classes and Gurus who have fewer students so that you will get option to get concentrated by the guru on your posses and styles.

(Pic courtesy: lifehackery.com)

Another important thing to be noted is the awareness of Guru about your physical strength and weakness. This must be negotiated with the guru himself before starting the classes. If a student has back pain or injuries in knees or any part of the body, then the guru will not allow him to practice certain posses which may affect them more. This is possible only if the Guru is aware of what your physical position is. People who don’t have an idea of what is the physical position of their students, cannot teach Yoga. While choosing a Guru, you can also go for personal enquiries and other aspects.

Yoga Guru : B.K.S.Iyengar

Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja (BKS) Iyengar is a known legendary Yoga Guru of India, known for popularizing Yoga worldwide by the founding the unique Yoga style famous as the "Iyengar Yoga".

BKS was born on December 14, 1918 in an Iyengar Brahmin family in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. He was a victim of malaria, typhoid and tuberculosis during in his childhood. He learned Yogasans under the guidance of the legendary Yoga Guru T. Krishnamacharya. He was a sincere and committed practitioner. His own practice helped him to explore and achieve perfection in Yoga asanas.

Iyengar has taught several eminent personalities of his lifetime such as J. Krishnamurti ,Jayaprakash Narayan, Achyut Patwardhan. His practice and teachings were well appreciated by the first President of India Dr. Rajendra Prasad), ex-Vice President of Indonesia Dr. Mohammad Hatta, Pope Paul VI and also by various other eminent personalities from around the world. A fortuitous meeting with the violin maestro Yehudi Menuhin in 1952 was instrumental in introducing the Western World to Iyengar. Menuhin was responsible in introducing several luminaries to BKS Iyengar; one of them was the Queen Mother of Belgium, Elisabeth of Bavaria.

Iyengar laid great emphasis on precision and alignment which is followed by his students. He got the students to perform and break barriers and bring about an automatic transformation in the mind and habits of people. He was amongst the few personalities to teach the highest aspects of Yoga “Atma Darshan” through the Yogasanas. Through practical search and regular practice of yoga, he used to define the actual meaning of the Yoga Sutras. Even at the age of 90, he continued to practice Yogasanas for 3 hours and Pranayamas for an hour daily. 

He took his final breadth on 20 August 2014 in Pune at the age of 95. His style of teaching Yoga is now famous all over the world as "Iyengar Yoga" and is now followed by certified teachers across the world.  With his intellectual and spiritual practices, Iyengar masterminded the techniques which can be used by all practitioners of Yoga. "Research based experience" and "experience based research” helped him in evolving the technique. He made it possible for ordinary human beings also to experience the wisdom of the Yoga Sutras.

Iyengar yoga is meant for all and is a way of life. The use of props, designed by him like wooden gadgets, belts, ropes helps the practitioner to achieve perfection in any asana.