B. K. S. Iyengar

B.K.S. Iyengar
Iyengar on his 86th birthday in 2004
Born
Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja Iyengar

(1918-12-14)14 December 1918
Bellur, Kolar district, Kingdom of Mysore (now Karnataka, India)
Died20 August 2014(2014-08-20) (aged 95)
Pune, Maharashtra, India
Occupations
  • Yoga teacher
  • Author
Known forIyengar Yoga
SpouseRamamani
ChildrenGeeta and 5 others

Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja Iyengar (14 December 1918 – 20 August 2014) was an Indian teacher of yoga and author. He is the founder of the style of yoga as exercise, known as "Iyengar Yoga", and was considered one of the foremost yoga gurus in the world.[1][2][3] He was the author of many books on yoga practice and philosophy including Light on Yoga, Light on Pranayama, Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, and Light on Life. Iyengar was one of the earliest students of Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, who is often referred to as "the father of modern yoga".[4] He has been credited with popularizing yoga, first in India and then around the world.[5]

The Indian government awarded Iyengar the Padma Shri in 1991, the Padma Bhushan in 2002, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2014.[6][7] In 2004, Iyengar was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine.[8][9]

  1. ^ Jain, Andrea (2015). Selling Yoga: from Counterculture to Pop Culture. Oxford University Press. p. 66. ISBN 978-0-19-939024-3. OCLC 878953765.
  2. ^ Aubrey, Allison. "Light on life: B.K.S. Iyengar's Yoga insights". NPR. Morning Edition, 10 November 1995. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
  3. ^ Stukin, Stacie (10 October 2005). "Yogis gather around the guru". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 9 January 2013.
  4. ^ Iyengar, B. K. S. (2000). Astadala Yogamala. New Delhi: Allied Publishers. p. 53. ISBN 978-8177640465.
  5. ^ Sjoman 1999, p. 41.
  6. ^ "Ruskin Bond, Vidya Balan, Kamal Haasan honoured with Padma awards". Hindustan Times. HT Media Limited. 25 January 2014. Archived from the original on 25 January 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  7. ^ "Padma Awards Announced". Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs. 25 January 2014. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
  8. ^ "2004 Time 100 – B.K.S. Iyengar". Time. 2004.
  9. ^ Iyengar, B. K. S. "Yoga News & Trends – Light on Iyengar". Yoga Journal. Archived from the original on 31 August 2007. Retrieved 15 November 2012.