VOL. 19 NO. 2
Fall 2015/Winter 2016
WOMEN’S HEALTH: MONTHLY CYCLES AND LIFE CYCLES PLUS: INTERVIEW WITH ABHIJATA 2016 IYNAUS CONVENTION PREVIEW PRASHANT’S A MANUAL ON HUMANICS
CONTENTS
YO G A S A M A C H A R ’ S M I S S I O N
Letter From the President – Michael Lucey . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Yoga Samachar, the magazine of the Iyengar Yoga community in the United States and beyond, is published twice a year by the Communications Committee of the Iyengar Yoga National Association of the United States (IYNAUS). The word samachar means “news” in Sanskrit. Along with the website, www.iynaus. org, Yoga Samachar is designed to provide interesting and useful information to IYNAUS members to:
News From the Regions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Interview: Abhijata on the Iyengar Women, Ancient Yoginis, and Pain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 The Practice of Women During the Whole Month – Geeta S. Iyengar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Accommodating Pregnant Women in General Classes – Chris Saudek and Rachel Frazee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
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Promote the dissemination of the art, science, and philosophy of yoga as taught by B.K.S. Iyengar, Geeta Iyengar, and Prashant Iyengar
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Communicate information regarding the standards and training of certified teachers
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Report on studies regarding the practice of Iyengar Yoga
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Provide information on products that IYNAUS imports from India
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Review and present recent articles and books written by the Iyengars
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Report on recent events regarding Iyengar Yoga in Pune and worldwide
Ramamani Iyengar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
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IYNAUS BOARD MEMBER CONTACT LIST
Be a platform for the expression of experiences and thoughts from members, both students and teachers, about how the practice of yoga affects their lives
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Present ideas to stimulate every aspect of the reader’s practice
Twinspiration or The Posture of Motherhood – Tori Milner . 17 Breast Health and Yoga – Bobby Clennell . . . . . . . . . . 19 Taming “The Change” With Yoga – Bobby Clennell . . . . . 22 The Important Pelvic Floor – Jaki Nett . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Yoga and Science Part II: Layers of Utthita Trikonasana – Siegfried Bleher and Jarvis Chen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 2016 IYNAUS Convention Preview – Michelle D. Williams
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Musings: What Is Enough? – Denise Weeks . . . . . . . . . 39 Book Review: Prashant Iyengar’s A Manual on Humanics – Gary Jaeger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Classifieds
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Treasurer’s Report – David Carpenter
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Fall/Winter 2015 Lynda Alfred lynda@montrose.net
Kathy Simon kathyraesimon@gmail.com
Cynthia Bates cynthiabates88@gmail.com
Eric Small ericsmall@yogams.com
Leslie Bradley certification@iynaus.org
Nancy Watson nancyatiyanus@aol.com
David Carpenter dcarpenter@sidley.com
Denise Weeks denise.iynaus@gmail.com
Alex Cleveland clevelandalex@yahoo.com
Stephen Weiss stphweiss@gmail.com
Michael Lucey 1michael.lucey@gmail.com
Sharon Cowdery (general manager) generalmanager@iynaus.org
Tori Milner torimilner@yahoo.com
Contact IYNAUS:
Anne-Marie Schultz Anne_Marie_Schultz@baylor.edu
P.O. Box 538 Seattle WA 98111 206.623.3562 www.iynaus.org
YOGA SAMACHAR IS PRODUCED BY THE IYNAUS PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE Committee Chair: Tori Milner Editor: Michelle D. Williams Copy Editor: Denise Weeks Design: Don Gura Advertising: Rachel Frazee Members can submit an article or a practice sequence for consideration for inclusion in future issues. Articles should be well-written and submitted electronically. The Yoga Samachar staff reserves the right to edit accepted submissions to conform to the rules of spelling and grammar, as well as to the Yoga Samachar house style guidelines. Submissions must include the author’s full name and biographical information related to Iyengar Yoga, along with email contact and phone number. Submission deadline for the Spring/Summer issue is Feb. 1. Submission deadline for the Fall/Winter issue is Aug. 1. Please send queries to yogasamachar@iynaus.org one month prior to these deadlines.
Advertising Full-page, half-page and quarter-page ads are available for placement throughout the magazine, and a classified advertising section is available for smaller ads. All advertising is subject to IYNAUS board approval. Find the ad rates at www.iynaus.org/ yoga-samachar. For more information, including artwork specifications and deadlines, please contact Rachel Frazee at rachel@ yogalacrosse.com or 608.269.1441. Cover: Abhijata Sridhar teaching the women’s class at Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute (RIMYI). Photo: RIMYI archives
Fall 2015 / Winter 2016 Yoga Samachar
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IYNAUS OFFICERS AND STANDING COMMITTEES President: Michael Lucey Vice President: Lynda Alfred Secretary: Denise Weeks Treasurer: David Carpenter Archives
Eric Small, Chair Kim Kolibri, Director of Archives Lindsey Clennell, Elaine Hall, Linda Nishio, Deborah Wallach
Certification Committee Leslie Bradley, Chair
Dean Lerner, James Murphy, Nancy Stechert, Lois Steinberg
Elections Committee
Michael Lucey, Chair Lynda Alfred, Alex Cleveland, Anne-Marie Schultz
Ethics Committee
Michael Lucey, Chair Chris Beach, Randy Just, Lisa Jo Landsberg, Manju Vachher, Jito Yumibe
Events Committee
Nancy Watson, Chair Carole Fridolph, Gloria Goldberg, Colleen Gallagher, Suzie Muchnick, Phyllis Rollins
Finance Committee
David Carpenter, Chair Lynda Alfred, Gloria Goldberg, Stephen Weiss
Governance Committee Nancy Watson, Chair
David Carpenter, David Larsen
Membership Committee
Lynda Alfred & Alex Cleveland, Co-Chairs IYACSR – vacant IMIYA – Lynda Alfred IYAGNY – Ed McKeaney IYAMN – Elizabeth Cowan IYAMW – Becky Meline IYANC – Risa Blumlien IYANE – Kathleen Swanson IYANW – Margrit von Braun IYASC-LA – Wendy Alter IYASCUS – Jerrie Crowley IYASE – Diana Martinez IYASW – Carrie Abts
Publications Committee Tori Milner, Chair
Don Gura, Rachel Frazee, Denise Weeks, Michelle D. Williams
Public Relations and Marketing Committee Cynthia Bates, Chair
Ani Boursalian, Rachel Formaro, Shaaron Honeycutt, Louisa Spier, Holly Walck, Nagisa Wanabe
Regional Support Committee
Alex Cleveland & Anne-Marie Schultz, Co-Chairs IMIYA – Lynda Alfred IYAGNY – Ed McKeaney IYAMN – Katy Olson IYAMW – Jennie Williford IYANC – Heather Haxo Phillips IYANE – Jarvis Chen IYANW – Janet Langley IYASC-LA – Jennifer Diener IYASCUS – Pauline Schloesser IYASE – Alex Cleveland IYASW – Lisa Henrich
Letter
FROM THE PRESIDENT
D E A R F E L L OW I Y N AU S M E M B E R S , In an interview he gave in 1982, B.K.S. Iyengar described how, in 1936, he was on a tour with his guru and several other older yogis with the intention to propagate the practice of yoga. The tour was a success, and there were many requests for Mr. Iyengar’s guru to conduct classes. “There were many women in the group who were keen to learn but were reluctant to learn from the elderly persons. In those days, women were very shy even to stand in front of men. So my guruji asked them whether they had any objections to learn from me. As I was the youngest in the group, they readily agreed, but I was nervous. I knew very little of yoga, but the responsibility was great. First I almost became hysterical. Knowing that I was just a novice in yoga, I was placed in a very sensitive situation and yet within myself I thought that I should prove my worth and agree to teach them. This way the inspiration to teach yoga was planted in me by the lady members of Dharwar.” (See Astadala Yogamala, vol. 4, pp. 97–98.) Mr. Iyengar would have been 17 years old at the time. When he wrote the preface to his daughter Geeta’s 1983 book, Yoga: A Gem for Women, Mr. Iyengar noted that “The general notion is that Yoga is not intended for women. It is fallacious, and it underrates the moral, intellectual, and spiritual legacies to which women are entitled as much as men… Multitudes of women are seen nowadays who equal and excel men in every faculty. More women can now come forward and strive to attain new heights to enrich Yoga, which is one of our ancient heritages.” Indeed, in the interview from 1982, cited above, Mr. Iyengar notes that “It is a fact that women take to yoga more than men.” It is now over a year since the passing of this remarkable man, our own guruji. As we slowly take the measure of our loss, we also do well to reflect on the magnitude and the specifics of his achievement, a significant part of which is, of course, the way he welcomed women to the practice of yoga. It seems like fate must have had a hand in the fact that his first students at the young age of 17 were women. He not only welcomed women to the practice, he studied and shared how the practice could be developed to meet different kinds of needs that occur throughout women’s lives. His long essay in volume 8 of Astadala Yogamala on “Yoga: A Saviour in Women’s Life” is excellent testimony to his work in this vein. At the end of that essay, he cites two famous lines from the Manusmrti, the “Laws of Manu,” an ancient Sanskrit text on religious and legal duties: yatra naryastu pujyante ramante tatra devatah yatretastu na pujyantesarvasta traphalah kriyah “Where women are honored, there the deities are pleased; but where they are dishonored, there all religious acts become fruitless.”
Scholarship and Awards Committee Denise Weeks, Chair
Leslie Freyberg, Richard Jonas, Lisa Jo Landsberg, Pat Musburger, Nina Pileggi, John Schumacher
Service Mark & Certification Mark Committee Gloria Goldberg, Attorney in Fact for Geeta S. Iyengar and Prashant S. Iyengar
Systems & Technology Committee Stephen Weiss, Chair
We live in difficult times, and we have recently lost a great teacher. But his practice, his teaching, his words, and his examples still speak to us and show us a way forward. I hope you enjoy this latest issue of Yoga Samachar and thank you for your dedication to yoga and your commitment to B.K.S. Iyengar’s legacy.
Ed Horneij, William McKee, David Weiner
Yoga Research Committee Kathy Simon, Chair
Jerry Chiprin, Renee Royal, Kimberly Williams
IYNAUS Senior Council
Michael Lucey, President IYNAUS Board of Directors
Kristin Chirhart, Manouso Manos, Patricia Walden, Joan White 2
Yoga Samachar Fall 2015 / Winter 2016
News IYACSR The Iyengar Yoga Association of California, Southern Region (IYACSR) has broadened its outreach to the community of yoga practitioners in the region and beyond. We have established our website at www.iyacsr.org. Visitors to our website will find a directory of Iyengar Yoga centers in the region, with links to the centers’ pages. The site also includes a web-based application for scholarships, funded by IYACSR. We have awarded $600 in scholarships from online applications already. On the website, students can also register for email announcements of workshops and notable events for the Southern Region. IYACSR sponsored senior teacher Birjoo Mehta from Mumbai, India, for a four-day workshop over Labor Day weekend, Sept. 4–7, 2015. Birjoo taught asana, pranayama, and pancamahabhutas (the five great elements). Birjoo last came to San Diego in May 2013 as lead teacher for the IYNAUS Convention, Sarvabhauma Yog.
FROM THE REGIONS
Gurukulum ashram in Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania, the puja ceremony included chanting and the formal installation of the new idol on a plinth in the new space. This Patanjali had auspicious beginnings, created by Guruji’s personal stone carver in India and blessed by Geetaji at her 2014 Yoganusasanam convention last December. The celebration of Guru Purnima is a salute to our teachers, from Patanjali to the Iyengars, and an acknowledgment of all the teachers in the lineage. This intention shaped all the events of the afternoon and evening, beginning with a special benefit class for all levels taught by senior teacher James Murphy and faculty members Tori Milner, Kavi Patel, and Richard Jonas. The class drew on the sequence sent by Geetaji for the celebration of International Yoga Day. There were refreshments and then a puja ceremony with chanting and blessings. The evening concluded with a screening of Atma Darsana, a 2004 documentary about the life and work of B.K.S. Iyengar. —Richard Jonas
Brooklyn Class for the Intellectually Disabled Since May, the Iyengar Yoga Institute of Brooklyn has held a class for an organization called Brooklyn Community Services that shares the same floor. Every week on Wednesday afternoon, a group of 10 participants with a range of intellectual disabilities walks through the long hallway that connects our space. They remove their shoes and socks and are full of anticipation for their one-hour class. With nametags on, they eagerly claim their preset mats and the fun begins.
Birjoo Mehta teaches in San Diego.
IYACSR also recently sponsored two members’ workshops. Intermediate Junior III teacher Sunny Keays taught “The Koshas” in May 2015 at San Marcos Iyengar Yoga Studio. Intermediate Junior I teacher Nancy Phillips taught our fall members’ workshop at Radiance Yoga in October 2015. This was the first time that a members’ workshop was held at a studio that does not teach strictly Iyengar Yoga. The board approved this venue because it provided an opportunity to share Guruji’s teaching and method with a broader audience. IYAGNY
Iyengar Yoga Institute of Brooklyn Celebrates Guru Purnima Students and teachers alike gathered at the Iyengar Yoga Institute of Brooklyn for Guru Purnima on Saturday, Aug. 1. The celebration marked the special blessing of the association’s newer institute and a welcome for its new idol of Patanjali. Conducted by Pandit Ravichandran from the Arsha Vidya Fall 2015 / Winter 2016 Yoga Samachar
Each week brings different students—although many take the class again and again. We program a rotation of teachers to keep the students and faculty engaged with the program. As one of the teachers in the program, I do not exaggerate when I say that teaching this group is a highlight of my week. These folks have, on average, a first-grade level of intellectual ability, so it is a challenge to make it both simple and accessible. More than making sure they “get it right,” we find creative ways to present the postures and get them to aim in the right direction and pay attention along the way. This is one of the only physical activities they engage in all week through their day program. It is gratifying to see their progress. The physical challenges that may come along with their conditions, as well as chronic tension and tightness in certain parts of their bodies, can make everyday movements difficult. Giving them an experience of supported chest-opening, even for a short duration, in poses such as Supta Baddha Konasana and supported Savasana make a profound impact on soothing their nervous systems. In one session, after Savasana, a young man sat up and exclaimed, “The room looks different. It got bigger!” I smiled and said, “The room is the same; you got bigger inside! That’s how yoga works!” He looked 3
as though he would burst with happiness, and said, “Yeah, I got bigger on the inside!” The program is guided by association director and senior teacher James Murphy. Program faculty include Naghmeh Ahi, Eve Holbrook, Tori Milner, Tzahi Moskovitz, Kavi Patel, Dan Truini, and Susan Turis. —Tori Milner
IYALA The Iyengar Yoga Association of Los Angeles has had a busy year, but then time seems to fly from season to season. Most recently, we had a wonderful Guru Purnima lecture by renowned Vedic scholar and spiritual advisor Phil Goldberg, professor at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. He spoke on the history of the “Vedic transmission” from the east to the west via the United States, beginning after the Enlightenment in the early 1800s. His talk drew from his book, American Veda, which he brought and signed for attendees. IYALA held a Sraddhanjali (tribute) celebration for the one-year memorial of Guruji on Saturday, Aug. 22, at the Institute. Los Angeles Institute founder and IYNAUS board member Scott Hobbs and senior teacher Lisa Walford spoke on the meaning of the celebration and on the impact Mr. Iyengar had on the teaching of yoga and on individuals using his methods. They also spoke about and introduced the next generation of Iyengar family members who are carrying on the work begun by their father. A community gathering and feast ensued. The Iyengar Yoga Institute of Los Angeles has hired a general manager, Erica Marie Liscano. She began work on Aug. 4 and is busy helping the staff, teachers, and board strengthen its mission and service to the community. Welcome to Erica! The Los Angeles Iyengar Yoga community was also proud to host the Iyengar Yoga Therapeutics teacher education course at the Iyengar Yoga Institute of Los Angeles in February and July. Teachers traveled from all over the U.S. and even from other countries to study for three intensive days with Manouso Manos and other senior teachers. This is an important new initiative under the leadership of Manouso Manos, Gloria Goldberg, Marla Apt, Lisa Walford, and Eric Small. The Iyengar Yoga Institute also continues to host “Weekends with Gloria,” where the public is welcomed in to one of the afternoon sessions. We are very happy to be of service to the teacher community.
IYAMN One of the goals of the Iyengar Yoga Association of Minnesota (IYAMN) has been to support the Iyengar Yoga community throughout our region beyond the Twin Cities. In the spirit of outreach, this year IYAMN hosted its annual celebration of Guru Purnima day in Decorah, a beautiful small 4
town in rural Iowa. Decorah is home to a thriving yoga community, and local students were joined by practitioners from across our region, including the Twin Cities, Fergus Falls, and La Crosse. Around 50 students attended class with senior teacher Chris Saudek in a lovely dance studio on the Luther College campus. Local Iyengar Yoga teachers offer classes on campus as part of the college offerings. The day concluded with a shared meal catered by Luther College. The day was a great success, and the Decorah community did a great job organizing and hosting the event. Another goal of our association is to bring senior teachers from outside of our region to teach local students. In June, John Schumacher visited us from Washington, D.C., for a weekend of instruction. Throughout the weekend John shared his deep knowledge of the Iyengar Yoga tradition with us. He shared anecdotes and teachings from his many years of traveling to Pune and studying with Guruji. In the fall, we once again hosted Mary Obendorfer and Eddy Marks in the Twin Cities for a weeklong workshop. Our association has a good foundation of offering workshops and yoga days to local students. As part of our efforts to highlight the senior teachers in our association, Chris Saudek taught a one-day workshop in September. Our goal now is to continue to seek new avenues for supporting and strengthening our association across our entire region. We are working on a new Web presence that is mobile-friendly and that will be a good resource for promoting the practice of Iyengar Yoga in our region.
IYAMW The Iyengar Yoga Institute of the Midwest (IYAMW) is proud to have a lively and productive group of board members including Sue Salaniuk, Lorene Zant, David Larsen, Alicia Rowe, Annie Melchior, Alex Hansen, and Kelly Sobanski. Our committees include Events, Scholarship, Social Media, Nominations, and Membership. Alex Hansen is our newly recruited social media artist and his first project has been posting a sequential “Daily Sutra” since April 1 on Twitter. We are halfway through all the sutras now and just about to start the exciting and sublime third pada. This is on our Twitter account: Iyengar Yoga Midwest (@IYAMidwest). A visual image is included many times, and these creative depictions allow viewers to see the sutras in a new light and further explore their meanings through art. To keep up with IYAMW workshops, scholarships, and news and to see artistic philosophical musings, please “like” us on our Iyengar Association of the Midwest Facebook page, follow us on Twitter at Iyengar Yoga Midwest (@IYAMidwest), and visit our website: www.iyamw.org On Sept. 25–26, the fall retreat was held in St. Charles, Illinois, at Yoga Samachar Fall 2015 / Winter 2016
IYANC The Iyengar Yoga Association of Northern California (IYANC) celebrated its one-year anniversary in its new location in San Francisco this past May. The move has brought new energy and vibrancy to our community and teachers but has also come with a significant financial responsibility to pay back the construction loan. So far, we have surpassed our expectations in terms of new classes and well-attended workshops at the new Institute, but we know we can do even better!
2015 IYAMW Iyengar Yoga Retreat
the beautiful Q Center. Senior teacher Laurie Blakeney and Intermediate Junior I teacher Debra Johnson led classes and inspired us to ignite the flame of devotion within ourselves. The annual retreat is an opportunity to spend an entire weekend immersed in asana, pranayama, book studies, sutra studies, quiet times of reflection, and bonding moments with friends. The theme this year was “Luminosity,” inspired by a quote from The Art of Yoga by B.K.S. Iyengar: “As one sees the invisible electricity in the form of light, the yogi too sees the invisible soul in the form of the visible body through perfect yogic performance. In this state he is alone, clean in body and mind, with focused attention and will, ripe in intelligence, simple and innocent in nature. He is full of delight in the tranquility of his consciousness.” A book discussion was held about The Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twin Eng. And new this year, Sue Salaniuk and David Larsen facilitated a philosophy discussion for those of us who wanted to dive deeper into the Yoga Sutras. In particular, we discussed Sutra I.47 and commentary from The Tree of Yoga by B.K.S. Iyengar: “When an object is held against a flawless crystal, it reflects without refractions. Similarly, when the consciousness is cleansed from the clutches of thought-waves, it becomes highly sensitive, stainless, and pure and absolute as the seer.” IYAMW awarded two full scholarships to members for attendance at the 2015 IYAMW Fall Retreat. IYAMW scholarship awards are based on financial need and dedication to Iyengar Yoga and are available to certified teachers and general members. The IYAMW scholarship committee’s upcoming projects include development of grant opportunities for IYAMW members who seek funding for community outreach projects. All proceeds from our annual retreats are put into a scholarship fund to support future opportunities. For information about our retreats, please see our website: iyamw.org.
Fall 2015 / Winter 2016 Yoga Samachar
In March 2015, we had our Annual Meeting of the Membership during which we had our first formal election of board members in many years. We had 98 members in attendance and doubled our board members with five new people stepping up to volunteer their time to serve with the association. Our new board is made up of seriously committed practitioners of Iyengar Yoga who also have needed and valuable professional skills to help us build and grow our organization. The new board of directors (iyisf.org/about/leadership) has been working hard to create a more financially stable organization as well as develop plans to expand, improve, and grow. In an effort to improve our class schedule, attract more students, and increase revenue, our Programming Committee, made up of a combination of board members and certified teachers, developed a new schedule of classes with consistent times, regular options for beginning and intermediate students, and clearer class descriptions. We are also looking into ways to enhance our teacher education program and develop new programming focused on building students’ practice and “studentship.”
IYANE Along with Iyengar Yoga communities all over the world, the Iyengar Yoga Association of New England (IYANE) observed United Nations International Yoga Day on Sunday, June 21, 2015. Our festivities began with a “participatory demonstration,” during which teachers and students were invited to take part in an asana improvisation for 10 minutes, each person playing off one another and creating a shifting tableau of asanas with a joyful and meditative atmosphere. Leslie Freyberg then led us in chanting the second pada of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. This was followed by an asana class in which New England teachers Roni Brissette, Claire Carroll, Jarvis Chen, Willamarie Moore, Nadja Refaie, Kathleen Swanson, Nancy Turnquist, and Manju Vachher guided us in the sequence given by Geetaji for Yoga Day. The practice sequence ended with a deep and profound Savasana led by Guruji himself in a recording from the 2005 Estes Park Convention. To hear Guruji’s voice leading us in Savasana was a tender and precious experience indeed! Together, our community raised over $500 in donations to support IYANE scholarship programs. IYANE members across our region marked the one-year anniversary of Guruji’s death on Aug. 20. At Patricia Walden’s 5
scholarship offerings, and we look forward to being able to announce new scholarship initiatives in the coming year. Our association is also eager for volunteers to help organize special events and workshops and for writers to submit articles and essays to our bi-annual magazine, The Beacon.
IYANW
IYANE International Yoga Day celebration
suggestion, many of our members devoted themselves to quiet reflection and practice on this day, pausing in gratitude to recognize the profound influence that Guruji has had on our lives, our practice, and our teaching. As we did last year just after Guruji’s death, many Boston-area Iyengar Yoga teachers gathered for a small Sraddhanjali gathering at the Brookline yoga studio of Manju Vachher. This year’s Annual General Membership Meeting took place on Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, at St. Mary’s Church in Cambridge, Massachusettes. Patricia Walden taught a free class for IYANE members, followed by the General Membership Meeting. The evening concluded with an Indian dinner and a celebration of Guruji’s birthday. IYANE is currently working on a much-needed redesign of its website. Visitors to the new and improved website can look forward to a sleeker and more user-friendly design, the ability to submit scholarship applications online, teacher listings for all certified teachers in New England, and a workshop calendar utility allowing IYANE member teachers to list their upcoming workshops and events. Check out the updated site at www.iyengarnewengland.com. Our New England community continues to grow, and this year has been a record year for candidates applying for assessment. The latest group of candidates includes graduates from our region’s Iyengar Yoga teacher training programs (including programs directed by Patricia Walden, Linda DiCarlo, Peentz Dubble, Kim Peralta, and Janice Vien) as well as a number of teachers who are pursuing higher-level certifications. Our association wishes this year’s candidates the best of luck! A number of teachers and students from our region are planning to attend Geetaji’s Yoganusasanam 2015 intensive in December. IYANE would like to remind its members that scholarships of $500–$1,000 are available to defray the costs of study in Pune at RIMYI. Application information is available at www.iyengarnewengland.com, and all IYANE members are encouraged to apply. IYANE is also working to expand its 6
During the quiet summer months this year, the Iyengar Yoga Association of the Northwest (IYANW) board made some decisions and plans for the future. Our (mostly) new board includes many members who live beyond the borders of the big cities of Seattle and Portland, and it has great enthusiasm for extending the Iyengar Yoga reach to the outskirts of the Pacific Northwest. For this reason and without hesitation, the IYANW Board raised the stipend for teachers willing to teach free member classes in our rural towns for the next year. We’re looking at it as selfless service to our Iyengar Yoga community on one hand, coupled with a motivation to expose the small towns of the Northwest to some great teachers. This is also an opportunity to extend a helping hand to the many dedicated teachers who have worked diligently to gain expertise by years of study with so many of our amazing senior teachers in the country and abroad. The IYANW Board hopes to expose the next generation of yoga teachers to new students through this program. In November, Nina Pileggi, Intermediate Junior III teacher from Portland, traveled south to the small Iyengar Yoga community of Ashland, Oregon, and held a member class for about 15 grateful Iyengar Yoga practitioners. We hope this class is the first of many member classes throughout our region in the coming months.
IYASW The Iyengar Yoga Association of the Southwest (IYASW) hosted an Introductory I/II assessment in our region in October. It had been nearly 10 years since the B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga Center of Tucson hosted an Introductory I assessment, with Rita LewisManos, Janet McLeod, and Dean Lerner as assessors. The Iyengar Yoga Center at Scottsdale Community College was excited to host this year’s assessors, Sandi Jordan, Glenn Kawana, and Sue Salaniuk, as well as trainee Craig Kurtz and some of this year’s assessment candidates. This was the first time for the Scottsdale Center to host the event, and the warm, sunny desert weather made for an inviting place for the assessors and candidates to spend the busy weekend. We had our annual and always much-anticipated visits from senior teachers Dean Lerner and Carolyn Belko in October and November, respectively, and IYASW is gearing up to host our second Iyengar Yoga Teacher Meet & Greet event in the spring. Last year was such a hit that we decided to make it an annual event. We found it was a great way to bring teachers and students from around our geographically large area under one roof to meet new friends, see old ones, and of course, practice! Yoga Samachar Fall 2015 / Winter 2016
From the upcoming documentary Sadhaka: The Yoga of BKS Iyengar. Photo: Jake Clennell
ABHIJATA ON THE IYENGAR WOMEN, ANCIENT YOGINIS, AND PAIN
F
ollowing in the footsteps of her grandfather, B.K.S. Iyengar, her aunt, Geeta S. Iyengar, and her uncle, Prashant Iyengar, Abhijata Sridhar is now a senior teacher at Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute (RIMYI) in Pune. She began her studies as a young woman of 16 and is now a mother and one of the world’s leaders in continuing Guruji’s legacy.
For this issue, we asked Abhi a few questions about women and Iyengar Yoga, and here’s what she had to say. Yoga Samachar: What influence would you say that the Iyengar women have had on the development of Guruji’s method? First, Ramamani, then Geetaji and now, of course, you. Abhijata Sridhar: My grandmother Ramamani, of course, played a very important role in Guruji’s sadhana, and this Guruji has said. He would ask her to help him in a certain manner during his early days of practice. Her involvement was vital in the early development of Guruji. Geetaji, of course, deciphered and interpreted Guruji so beautifully. Her influence is invaluable in making people understand the principles of our system. Sometimes, Guruji’s teaching may seem aphoristic for us, and it is because of her that we understand the depth of Guruji’s teachings.
Fall 2015 / Winter 2016 Yoga Samachar
And about me, I am too raw now to stake a claim on influencing our system. YS: You have a unique perspective as Guruji’s granddaughter, Prashantji and Geetaji’s niece, a wife, a daughter, a mother, etc.—how do all these facets of your life as a woman influence your own practice and teaching? AS: Each of these roles may be influencing me in a manner that I still can’t comprehend because I don’t have a bird’s-eye view of it. I was extremely lucky because I had the three masters shaping me simultaneously. I can understand now very well how different it would have been if even one of those was missing. It is human nature to be swayed by what is palatable to us. So, I am grateful that I was positioned by God such that I could receive from all of them simultaneously.
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Each one’s life is his or her own, and the journey is personal. So too, yoga for each one is a personal journey. As a woman evolves in her body and mind with age, so too her practice evolves. I started yoga as a young girl, and now I am a mother of a girl. In the beginning, my attitude and aims were very different from now. In that sense, there surely is an evolution. Each one’s life is his or her own, and the journey is personal. So too, yoga for each one is a personal journey. It is difficult to say how it evolved. But if you mean to ask the various routes it has taken, it has indeed been a journey from the body toward my inner being.
By dedicated practice of the various aspects of yoga, impurities are destroyed: The crown of wisdom radiates in glory.
YS: In the past, yoga was passed down from male guru to male pupils. In the West, although it is slowly changing, yoga classes are mainly filled with women. What do you think opened up this channel for women to embrace the practice? Is the same true in India?
AS: Teaching the ladies’ class under Guruji was a phenomenal experience. There were days that I cried; there were days that I laughed. I have learned so much in those classes that I really can’t pinpoint. He taught through the asanas, but what he really taught was yoga. If you ask me as a teacher what I learned, it will be a very lopsided perspective for the readers. You must keep in mind that I was practicing under him, seeing him practice, and also just seeing him be at the same time. So, it was an all-around development.
AS: Well, Lord Shiva taught yoga first to a female, his wife, Parvati. Saubhagya Lakshmi Upanishad has the teachings of Lord Vishnu to Lakshmi. There have been many yoginis (female yogis) in our ancient history. We also know of wives of sages as being practitioners of yoga. Maitreyi, the wife of Sage Yajnavalkya, for example. In the medieval period, things changed, especially because of the foreign invasions that happened in India. So the women had to be protected and hidden from the aggressive invaders. Now, women are coming up in all fields. These days, a woman’s multifaceted role brings so much stress that she benefits a lot with the practice of asanas and pranayama. So many women take to yoga these days. YS: Our lives as women go through so many dramatic changes from puberty to menopause, and yet there is a tendency to want to practice the same way. Can you speak to this and give us some practical advice for the most beneficial aspects of practicing through the ups and downs of womanhood from youth to ill health and old age? AS: It is wrong if we want to practice the same way throughout our journey of womanhood. Nature has designed us such that our body and mind both undergo changes with time. We have to respect that. Guruji said, “Body is your child, take care of it.”
Wisdom brings a sense of discrimination. So, we should use our sense of discrimination well as students of yoga. YS: The women’s class at RIMYI is often one of the most difficult. Can you tell us a little bit about your experience both taking and then teaching this class under Guruji’s guidance?
If you are talking about it being difficult in terms of physical performance, we have to understand that our will power and courage is poor, and we think he demanded more than what we could do. He was actually showing us what we really are capable of. That is one of the biggest lessons we can have. One day, Guruji made me do Virasana with my metatarsals on a steel rod and knees up on wooden bricks. It was painful. Much as I forced myself to sit down in Virasana, my body seemed to have a mind of its own, and it simply refused to sit completely in Virasana. Guruji said, “Sit,” and I sat. He asked me how it felt. I said, “It is very painful.” He said, “Who is asking you about the pain?” The only response I could perceive was pain, and for Guruji, that held no value. We are trained to look at pain in just one way: AVOID, ERADICATE and GET RID OF PAIN. Yoga should teach us that pain is a very, very different concept. We look at pain from the point of view of bhoga—pleasure. Guruji taught us to look at pains that lead to apavarga— emancipation. We are habituated to not even look into that. He once told me, “You only look to gratify the senses in your asanas. This way, yoga is far, far away from you.”
This has a deeper meaning. As our outlook, motives, and behaviors change from youth to old age, so too our practice has to be shaped so.
Basically, our notion of easy and difficult is not what reality is at all! So, when we say that something is difficult, it simply means we are not used to honestly putting in that much effort.
Patanjali has said it already: yoganganushthanat asuddhiksaye jnanadiptih avivekakhyateh
YS: Thank you so much, Abhijata. AS: You’re welcome.
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Yoga Samachar Fall 2015 / Winter 2016
B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga National Association of the United States P.O. Box 538 Seattle, WA 98111 www.iynaus.org
Streets of Pune. Photo: Denise Weeks Painted portrait of B.K.S. Iyengar at the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute in Pune, India