Lighting
the Way
LOIS STEINBERG RECEIVES LIGHTING THE WAY AWARD BY RICHARD JONAS Lois Steinberg, Ph. D., received the Lighting the Way award for distinguished volunteer service to the U.S. Iyengar Yoga community during the May convention in Boca Raton, Florida. “I am truly touched,” Lois said. “It is a lifetime achievement that I feel so honored by. I thank you from the depths of my soul.”
“Lois’ unbroken devotion and determination to her practice is already well-known. I have known Lois over the past 20-plus years, and in that time, it is something else that I have come to cherish: her friendship—constant, pure, and warm.” —Stephanie Quirk
Advanced Junior II teacher, author on therapeutics, and tireless volunteer, Lois coordinated the International Women’s Intensive with Geeta Iyengar in 1997 and produced the notes. She is the author of Iyengar Yoga Asana Alternatives: The Knees (2015), Iyengar Yoga Cancer Book (2013), Iyengar Yoga Asana Alternatives: Neck and Shoulders (2010), Geeta S. Iyengar’s Guide to a Woman’s Yoga Practice (2006), and other manuals. She was co-investigator on research projects about the efficacy of Iyengar Yoga in treating chronic low back pain and high blood pressure. She produced the Sadhana magazine for the Odyssey Convention in 2001 and Yatra in 2007 and was curriculum chair for the 2010 certified teachers’ convention in Portland, Oregon. Director of Iyengar Yoga Champaign-Urbana, teacher of workshops around the world, and teacher of teachers, Lois is also an assessor and member of the Certification Committee, and she is a past IYNAUS board member as well as previous chair of the Certification and Yoga Research committees. Here’s what members of the Iyengar family, colleagues, and students had to say about Lois: “Lois is a very keen student and a hard worker. I can see that she is devoted. She normally doesn’t deny any student who goes to her with problems. It gives me great joy that she is receiving this award.” —Dr. Geeta S. Iyengar ***
*** “I made a list of Lois’ qualities. She’s indefatigable. No one gets more done! She has tenacity. Discipline. If an element represents Lois, it’s earth. She’s steadfast and unflappable with a wicked sense of humor and a wonderful laugh—both hearty and ‘heart-y.’ I wish I had her hair: wild, curly, beautiful! “She’s devoted her life to Guruji’s teaching. She’s compassionate in the truest sense of the word. How one-pointed she is in Medical Class—so totally present, she can work with two or three patients simultaneously. With her therapeutic books, Lois made an invaluable contribution to our community. “Over 10 or 12 years in India, she and I practiced together next to Guruji, along with Abhijata, Stephanie Quirk, and Dr. Manoj Naik. Lois and I would arrive at the Institute, go upstairs, and put ourselves right near the horse where Guruji practiced. Every morning, we were there receiving his teaching. Sometimes he’d work with her, and I’d listen; sometimes he’d work with me and she would watch. Then we’d talk to make sure we hadn’t missed anything. That’s how we bonded. Sometimes Guruji was wonderful, full of humor, quoting the sutras. Sometimes he’d be really hard on us—though usually if he was hard on me, he’d go easy on her, and vice versa. “After practice, we’d sit in the library with Guruji. Suddenly he’d say, ‘Patricia, do Urdhva Dhanurasana’ or ‘Lois, do Paschimottansana.’ We’d do our best although we were wearing our Indian clothes. We never knew what was going to happen!”
“My congratulations to Lois!” —Sunita Iyengar Parthasarathy
—Patricia Walden, Senior Teacher ***
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Yoga Samachar Fall 2016 / Winter 2017
