We who practice Iyengar Yoga are fortunate to be a part of a living tradition of yoga, in which knowledge is handed down directly from teacher to student in an unbroken line of transmission from the great yoga master, BKS Iyengar. His work was continued through the enormous contribution of his daughter Geeta and goes on today through his children Prashant and Sunita, and his granddaughter Abhijata. These wonderful teachers share Guruji’s work, while also making their unique contributions to Iyengar Yoga.
Mr. Iyengar’s granddaughter Abhijata Iyengar had the opportunity to work directly with Guruji on a daily basis for many years, and he poured his knowledge into her. She is now fully engaged in carrying on this great tradition and teaching us with wisdom, energy and enthusiasm. In May of this year, about 750 students in person in Philadelphia, and about 250 online, joined together to learn from Abhi at our Iyengar Yoga National Association of the United States (IYNAUS) Convention 2026. The convention was a profound experience of learning with Abhi, and of joyful connection with companions on the path of yoga.
It was wonderful to share this experience with five other yoga friends from our Ohio community! Green Tara Yoga teachers and Certified Iyengar Yoga Teachers (CIYT’s) Amy Runnels and Evelyn DeLiso, CIYT’s Julie Tamarkin and Janet O’Brien, and longtime Green Tara Yoga student Karen Fleming, all made the trek to Philadelphia for five days of classes and fellowship.
Abhi’s teaching was inspiring and uplifting. There is a rhythm to her classes that allows her students to move deeply into the work without getting exhausted. She always offered multiple ways to approach a pose, so that everyone was included, whatever their level or limitations might be. Her energy is positive and encouraging. I really appreciate that in her class, I was not anxious about making mistakes but felt free to explore how to do a pose in the way that was right for me in that moment.
If you have been following this blog, you know that I had major surgery on my left leg for lymphedema in January. So less than 5 months later, I was unsure about how I would do in the convention classes. What a happy surprise to find that I was able to do some version of most poses. The other wonderful discovery was that poses I had been avoiding, or wary to try, were actually coming along better than I would have thought. When Abhi announced a pose that I had not done in 5 months, I just gathered my props and gave it a try. It was exhilarating to be challenged, and to find out that I had more capacity than I realized. In 5 days of study with Abhi, I think that my leg improved more than in my own previous month of practice!
Abhi shared many thoughts with us, but I want to highlight two things that stood out to me. One concerned our approach to practice. Abhi said that she was happy to answer our questions, but that she wondered if we might start being able to answer some of our questions for ourselves, through our practice. If we were taught that something was a mistake, could we explore that and fine out why it was considered less than optimal? If an instruction was given, could we find out for ourselves why that exact instruction was given? How does that instruction help us? What problems are avoided if we carry it out?
Abhi shared a brief story that struck me. She said that when she was teaching alongside Guruji, she once changed his words “Dive the tailbone forward” to “Take the tailbone forward” and Guruji challenged her. Did she think that “dive” and “take” were the same? He then told her that sometimes it had taken him decades to find exactly the right words to convey the experiences he was having.
This made me reflect upon the preciousness of our instructions in Iyengar Yoga and the importance of our precise use of language. Certain phrases that we identify with Iyengar Yoga have been carefully and thoughtfully selected to communicate something to us. It is then our job to learn the meaning of those instructions and understand how they impact our practice.
Another important idea that Abhi shared with us was that we should understand that the poses are to be practiced differently depending on how they are functioning in the sequence. A pre-Sirsasana (Head Balance) Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog Pose) is not the same as a post-backbend dog pose. They are serving completely different purposes. Is the pose being done at the beginning, middle or end of the sequence? Is it meant to be dynamic and energizing, or is it intended to be calming and pacifying?
I personally love this feature of Iyengar Yoga. From an outside view, it might seem as if we are rigid in our approach, when in truth, we are precise, but not rigid. On the contrary, our method is highly adaptable, offering multiple ways to do any given pose depending on not only the sequence, but the age and condition of the practitioner, and many other factors – time of day, time of year, what was practiced the day before, and on and on.
This means we do not have monolithic poses, but sensitive, responsive and lively poses that work for us in the context of the moment. What a beautiful metaphor for the whole meaning of yoga – being in the present, adapting to changing circumstances, and being responsive and resilient.
What good fortune it is to be a part of this great tradition!
If you are a regular Iyengar Yoga student and have not yet joined IYNAUS, I highly encourage you to do so! While the main reason to join is to support the spread of Iyengar Yoga, you will also find there are some wonderful member benefits, especially a great catalogue of free recorded classes with our senior teachers.
Join IYNAUS Today!
Namaste,
Karen
