Does Iyengar yoga have a philosophical basis?
Iyengar Yoga is firmly based in the Yoga Sutrasof Patanjali, an Indian sage who lived about 1700 years ago. The one-line statements of the Yoga Sutras guide the yoga practitioner towards peace of mind and harmony and ultimately to bliss (Samadhi). The philosophy is explained in several of Mr. Iyengar’s books. The simplest is perhaps in the introduction of Mr. Iyengar’s book “Light on Yoga”. However, other descriptions can be found,with different emphasis, in his other books such as “Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali”, his translation of the Yoga Sutras, “Tree of Yoga “, “Light on Ashtanga Yoga” and the latest publication “Light on Life” (please see the Merchandise page).Some writers and practitioners have split yoga into raja yoga, jnana yoga, bhakti yoga and hatha yoga. They consider each to be separate schools of practice. Mr. Iyengar follows the teaching of Patanjali in that he considers raja, jnana, bhakti and hatha to be constituent parts of the whole practise of yoga, not to
