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| Dear jimg: Please read my post again carefully. And, then the following:
- NO Iyengar is NOT God to me and in my opinion, NOT even close to it. Actually, even the style itself has some essential elements of Yoga Science, NOT taught. But, what is there is Great and Worthy of Praise.
- I do not know what infallible means in your statements. The correct things (which you yourself are advising from the style to do) are infallible. At least, what one things correct should be infallible to that person for that time of thinking.
- Your comments on music below, including Beethoven, etc. are all accepted and appreciated by myself. But, that does NOT make Iyengar Style boring, as you have stated. Exactly as you have written, when one takes learning from a NON Boring Style, one can develop their own personality using that knowledge fully or partially.
- I do NOT teach Iyengar Style. I studied with him in 1985 for only 5 months. I do not feel, from my own experience, that it is boring, and it stopped me from my own development in anyway. I visit the respected BKS each year.
- Yes, I respect him. Respect does not mean I have to copy him, or take him as God. However, I know personaly some whom I shall take as GOD, as I have found that to be my Infalliable Thinking.
- And, in my response to Sister Tourist, while quoting my mother's slapping me, I did not mean slapping by a Yoga Teacher. My mother's slapping was of different nature. Even if I am NOT wrong, and she slaps me today, I would more than welcome it. I know for sure that it helped me. I am not advising mothers to slap their children, I never even once slapped mine. (In the next post under this same thread, I am going to give an anecdote of mine with the respected BKS. I never told this before, but I shall do that next time.)
OM ShantiH
jimg - 2008-07-21 1:05 PM
I guess that using the words "boring" in the same sentence as Iyengar hits some raw nerves! Sorry if I offended.
Neel-The palm tree goes with the wind and withstands the hurricane. The fir tree stands tall and proud, and is blown over with the first strong wind.
Is Iyengar a god or a saint? Is his yoga infallible?
Learning your scales is necessary to play music. Learning the details of the poses is necessary to do yoga. They are only the starting point. Neither the scales nor the poses are the music! Once the scales (or the poses) become an automatic reflex, the actual music can start. That music flows through you and is not a product of conscious thought. It does not come to you by following another. You find it in yourself; not by effort or force (or slapping), but by letting it unfold.
When Beethoven was a young man, he studied with Haydn. He copied Haydn's style and wrote poor music. He was merely an echo of someone else. Once he found his own unique voice, he became BEETHOVEN and wrote some of the greatest and most sublime music ever written. That unique voice was not static. It flowed and Beethoven continued to develop in new and deeper ways until his death.
There were many other composers at that time (like Danzi or Dittersdorf) who wrote scales accompanied by chords in perfect form, but no real music. They copied the norms of their day and became accomplished in them, but never got in touch with their own inner voices.
We, as yogis, can make this choice: to be echoes of someone else or become our own unique self, however humble. The gods do not smile on copies, no matter how accomplished. The gods smile on those who find and are true to their unique inner voice.
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| Hi Neel,
Thank you for clarifying your "slapping" remark. Let me clarify my "boring" remark. I also respect Mr. Iyengar and believe that he has done much for the art of yoga. I studied Iyengar yoga seriously for two years with senior teachers and have attended several week long Iyengar teacher trainings and studied all his books. I have learnt a lot from his yoga system. I have also moved on and therefore for me, going back to scales without music is boring. I still practice scales on the French horn daily and do some "Iyengar style" yoga daily as the attention to details is always important. I feel that with the attention to detail, one often misses the big picture. I also feel that yoga, like music or life, is movement or flow. I think that the principles of Iyengar yoga when applied to a more flowing style are the best of both worlds, the detail and the flow at the same time. Each by itself is missing an important component.
Namaste,
Jim |
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| Darling jimg: My Slapping term came in order to respond to Tourist stating coaxing the kids. Unfortunately, some or you might mix it with Slapping of Dry Nerves. Therefore, I explained. However, your usage of "Boring" was, in my opinion, not appropriate. Your current explanation is so good and I wish that is what you would have given then. When I make "Anti-Heat-Ed" arguments, I always show my respect to Bikram!!!
But, I have no hard feelings now, since anyone who reads "boring" post, also shall read your "sweet" post.
Love and Peace |
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Expert Yogi
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| jim - absolutely no offense taken.  I do always feel obligated to clarify things for the many lurkers we have here on the forums. Much like the Bikramites who feel people need the full picture, I like to dispel some of the myths around my chosen form of yoga.
I think your last music comments very much agree with my thoughts. Beethoven perhaps didn't have the "perfect" start to creating his own music but he did it the way he felt he needed to do it at the time. If he didn't take the path he took, he would not have been Beethoven. So people need to start yoga where they are with the understanding they have - dvd, book, maybe even a "bad" teacher or two. But most of us will not become yoga prodigies and will forever play scales and chords for our own small level of enlightenment and joy. And that is ok.
As for studying Iyengar for two years - that's great and I am sure it was useful to your understanding of your yoga. Though I will say that 2 years barely scratches the surface, really. Even BKS is still constantly learning and is still passing his learning on to us. Also, as the west becomes more and more receptive to the spiritual side of yoga, he has urged us to do deeper study and practice in that realm. For a very small example - we often chat the sutras as part of workshops now, which was certainly not done even 10 years ago.
As for being infallible - not even close and I believe he would agree. 
I may ocme back to this later but I have to go to the dentist now.  |
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| Iyengar teachers and practitioners practice vinyasa. it is just not EVERYDAY. many people who do power yoga and pattabhi jois style ashtanga go to iyengar classes to improve their alignment and to learn how to work in different ways in the pose.
it will not necessarily be detrimental to your alignment. that depends on you;) |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 574
| All this alignment stuff is pointless. Maybe some good short term benefits though. But everyone is made differently,of different shapes,sizes,weight etc. In the same way one cannot teach a baby to be properly aligned, he discovers it himself through experience. If you were to try to properly align a baby, you would do him more harm than good. So dont do it to adults!!! Its just as silly and limited. It is basically for people who have no understanding of the neuromuscularskeletal system and have a shallow understanding of man. In the same way when one sees an alopathic doctor for a headache, the doctor may reccomend pain killers, rather than dealing with the root cause of a headache. It is the same with alignment. poor posture or position cannot be curedby a tablet or correcting alignment. |
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| vibes - 2009-09-06 4:04 PM
poor posture or position cannot be curedby a tablet or correcting alignment.
posture=alignment
its a good thing you're here to tell us how it is |
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Vinyasa-detrimental?
