HATHA YOGA MASTERS-- A HALL OF FAME

HATHAYOGAMASTERS-AHALLOFFAME

NKSrinivasan

Introduction

Ihavebeenayogapractitionerfrommy

schooldaysinIndia.Enteringtheseventh

decadeofmylife,IfeltthatIshouldpay

tributestovariousYogamasters.Oneway

istolisttheirnamesina"virtualHallof

Fame"withsomebio-dataabouteachone.

Inthistask,onehastoemploysome

criteriatoselectthosewhosenameswould

beincluded.AsetofcriteriaIhaveused

ismentionedinthenoteattheendofthis

article.

Thislistis,ofcourse,notcompletesince

therewouldbemanymoremasterswhosenames

couldbeconsideredforinclusion.Iusethe

term"Master"todenotefemaleyogateachers

oracharyasaswell.

Whileseveralofthesemastersarefrom

India,therearemanymasterswhowereborn

indifferentcountriesandthecountryof

originismentionedforreference.

Ihavehadtheprivilegeofinteractingwith

someofthesemastersovertheyears,

eitherdirectlyorindirectly,andhave

visitedtheInstitutes/ashramsrunbysome

ofthem.

HALLOFFAMEFORYOGAMASTERS

1ParamahansaMadhavdasji

[Livedupto123years;settledinGujarat

afterattainingtheageofeighty;bornin

westbengal,hemovedtoBaroda,Gujarat.He

inspiredmanyyogastalwarts,includingSri

Aurobindo.MostnotablestudentsareSwami

KuvalayanandaandYogendra.[seelater]

2ThirumalaiKrishnamachari

[Considered"FatherofModernYoga",TK

establishedthefirstformalYogaschoolin

MysoreunderthepatronageoflocalMaharaja

in1927;after1950,cametosettlein

Chennai;livedupto102years.Hetraveled

toTibetandAssamregiontolearntheyoga

techniqueswithhisguru.Hisnotable

studentsincludeBKSIyengar,Pattabhi

Jois,IndraDeviandhissonTKV

Desikachar.Manytraditionsofyogastarted

withhisteachings.]

3IndraDevi

[BorninRussia,thisaristocraticlady

cametoIndiaandstudiedwithTKunder

tryingcircumstances;later,theGuruTK

senthertoteachoutside;Shetaughtin

China,startingaschoolthere,andlater

movedtoHollywood,USAandlaterto

Argentina.Shelivedupto102years.Her

booksbecameextremelypopularinthewest.

AnotablestudentofIndraDeviisMichael

VolininAustralia.Severalwesternladies

learnedyogawithher.]

4BKSIyengar

[Iyengar,astudentofThirumalai

Krishnamachari,taughtyogatoYehudi

Menuhinwhopromotedhiminvariousways.

"IyengarYoga"hasbecomeabrandnamefor

histradition---emphasizingprecisionand

alignment.Hisbook"LightonYoga"became

aclassic---almosttheBibleofYoga.His

instituteinPune,India,hasattracted

thousandofstudentsfromvariouscountries

oftheworld.Iyengaralsoresearchedon

manyaspectsofyoga,withemphasisonyoga

cureformanyillnessesandailments.

Iyengar,94yearsnow,stillteachesyoga

andtaughttheChinesestudentslastyearin

Beijingandotherplaces.Hisearlystudents

inEuropeincludeDianaClifton,Dona

Holleman,VandaScaravalliandSylvaMehta.

Theseladiesbecameimportantyogateachers

inlateryears.

5PattabhiJois

{PattabhiJois,followedadifferent

traditionofYoga,withrhythmicflowor

vinyasaandestablishedaschoolinMysore

[nearBangalore]inIndia.Hisbrandofyoga

iscalled'AshtangaYoga",thoughallstyles

ofhathayogaarebasedonSagePatanjali's

Ashtanga[eight-parts]yogasystem.

PattabhiJoistaughthundredsof

students--especiallyyoungerpeople--from

differentpartsoftheworld.Hepassedaway

attheageof95.

6TKVDesikachar

[ThirumalaiKrishnamacharya'sson,

Desikacharstartedabitlateafterastint

ofworkasanengineer.HelearnedYoga

underhisfatherformanyyearsandstarted

teachingYogaafterhisfathersettledin

Chennai.His"TKYogaMandiram"isvery

popularinChennai[Madras],Indiaand

focusesonyogatherapy.

7SwamiKuvalayananda

[TrainedbyParamahansaMadhavdasji,

Kuvalayananda,bornin1883,established

theyogadhamoryogacenterinLonavla,near

Mumbai.Hedevelopedearlymethodsfor

scientificallystudyingtheeffectofhatha

yogaandfortreatingvariousillnessesor

yogatherapy.

Hebuiltcollegesandcreateduniversity

stylecoursesforyoga.Healsodidalot

foryogabeingintroducedinschoolsacross

thecountry.HehadbeeninspiredbySri

AurobindoinBaroda.

Hekeptclosecontactswithnationalleaders

intheirstruggleforfreedomfromthe

British.HewasvisitedbyMahatmaGandhiwho

soughthishelpforyogapracticeanddiet

andalsobymanyotherleaders.

Helaterexpandedhisyogadhaminother

cities--Mumbai,Bhopal,RajkotandDelhi.His

workhadbeencarriedonbyotheryoga

masterstoprovidethemuch-needed

medical/clinicalbasisforhealingthrough

yoga.SwamiKuvalayanadalivedupto85

years.OneofhischiefdisciplesisOm

PrakashTiwari.

8ShriYogedra

[ShriYogendra,ahouseholder,alsoa

studentofMadhavdasji,hastaughtyogato

thousandsofstudentsandtreatedpatients

inhisinstituteatSantaCruz,Mumbai.The

YogaInstituteisthefirstschoolforyoga

inmodernIndia,foundedin1918.Earlier

YogendraspentafewyearsinUSAstudying

thetherapeuticaspectsofhathayogaand

thenreturnedtoIndiain1922.Legendhas

itthatheestablishedtheInstitutewith

hisownincome,whichwasmainlyroyalties

fromhisinventionofanewbootpolish!

SwamiKuvalayanandaworkedwithYogendrafor

afewyearsbeforeheestablished

Kaivalyadham.

ShriYogendra'stechniqueshavebeenwidely

usedbyhisstudents,includingHansraj

Yadhavandhisfamilymembers.Heinteracted

withseveralforeignstudentsofyoga,

includingTheosBarnard.

TheYogaInstituteisalsowellknownfor

numerousbooksonyogaandforteaching

schoolandcollegestudentsinaformal

curriculum.

9MichaelVolin

[HelearnedyogawithIndraDeviwhile

shewasinChinaandlatermaintainedher

schoolinChina.Healsohadtrainingwith

IyengarandthensetupaschoolinSydney,

Australia.HisbookswerepopularinBritain

andAustralia.HealsoconductedaTVshow.

Amonghisseveralstudents,BetteCalman,

whoiscloseto90years,hasbeenawell

knownteacher.

10Swami(Dr)Gitananda

[SwamiGitananda[1907-1993]learnedyoga

inIndiaandservedasamedicaldoctor

forBritishRoyalNavyduringworldwarII

inEngland.HereturnedtoIndiain1968and

establishedtheAnandaAshraminPuducherry

nearChennaiin1972andtaughtthousandsof

students.Hisashram,ablyrunbyhiswife

SmtMeenakshiDevi,herselfayogastudent

withDrGitananda,hasattractedhundreds

ofstudentseveryyear.Hisseveralbookson

yogahavebeenverypopular.Heestablished

severalorganizationsinIndiatospreadthe

messageofyoga.

11SwamiSivananda

[SwamiSivananda[1887-1963]isthewell

knownmonkwhoestablishedDivineLife

SocietyinRishkesh.Trainedasamedical

doctor,heservedinMalayasiaplantations.

Laterherenouncedworldlylifeandbecamea

monkoftraditionalSankaramonasticorder.

Hewasdevotedtohathayoga,besidesJnana

andBhaktiyogas,andtrainedseveralyoung

monksinHathaYoga.

Manyofthesemonksbecamewellknownyoga

masterstospreadyogaindifferentpartsof

theworld.Thelistofhisdisciplesislong

,butincludesSwamiVishnudevananda

[Canada],SwamiSatyananda[Biharschoolof

yoga,India],SwamiVenkatesananda[south

Africa&Australia]andSwamiSatchdananda

[USA].

Thebrandofyoga,"SivanandaYoga"is

beingtaughtinseveralSivanandaYoga

centresinUSAandelsewhere,mainlydueto

thepioneeringeffortsofSwami

Vishnudevananda.

SwaminiSivanandaRadhawasafemale

discipleofSwamiSivanandawhoestablished

YashodaraAshraminCanadaandtaughtyoga

formanyyears.

SwamiSivanandawrotemorethan100small

booksandpublishedthematlowcostin

RishikeshandfoundedtheYoga-Vedanta

ForestUniversityforseveraltraining

programsandcourses.Hisbooksarewidely

readeventoday.

12SelvarajanYesudian

Yesudian,bornin1897,wasasicklyboy

andstudiedmedicineinChennai,India.

Meanwhilehepractisedyogatostrengthen

hisbody.Hebecameconvincedofthe

enormousbenefitofyogaonbodyandmind.He

cametoBudapest,Hungaryforgraduate

studiesinmedicine,onlytofindthe

gatheringstormofWorldWarIIin1936,

whenhewasarrestedbytheRussianarmy.He

startedteachingyogatoafewstudents.

Later,akindlady,ElizabethHaichfounda

placeforhiminZurichandthetwotogether

startedthefirstyogaschoolinEurope

there.Itisstillthelargestschoolin

Europe.

Yesudian'syogabookandhisbookon"Sports

andYoga"becamefamousinEuropeandhe

couldteachthousandstheyogatechniques

forhealingandcuringdiseases.Hediedin

1994.

13SwamiVishnudevananda

AnillustriousdiscipleofSwami

Sivananda,hejoinedtheashraminRishkesh

atayoungageof20years.Laterswami

SivanandasenthimawaytoCanadatoteach

yogawithjustrupeesten.[Rupeestenwas

clsoetotwoUSDollarsatthattime.]He

developedseveralSivanandaYogaCenters

acrossCanadaandUSAandintheBahamas,

teachingtheyogatraditionthatbearsthe

nameof"Sivananda"anddevelopedteacher

trainingprograms.

Thischarismaticyogiwasapeaceactivist

andwouldflyhisownplaneacrossthe

BerlinwallandovertheMiddleEastand

showerflowersandpeacepamphlets,chanting

themantra"OmNamoNarayana"!

HisbookonYogabecameastandardtextfor

manyyearsinYoga--"TheComplete

IllustratedBookofYoga".Hisbookon

"mantras'iswidelyused.

Inlateryears,hereturnedtohisnative

stateofKeralaandestablishedayoga

schoolnearNayyardam.Hebuiltasmall

cottageforhimselfinUttarkashionthe

banksoftheGangeswherehehadhismortal

endbydrowningintheholyriver{Jala

Samadhi}---in1993--attheageof65.

14SwamiSatyananda

[OneoftheforemostdiscipleofSwami

Sivananda,Satyananda,bornin1923,joined

hisGuru'sashraminRishikeshattheageof

20andworkedhardtodevelopthejungle

retreat.From1959,hewanderedtomany

landsinSouthAsia,Tibetandlaterto

severalcountriesintheWest,LatinAmerica

andAfrica.In1963,heestablishedtheYoga

school,'BiharSchoolofYoga',inMunger.

Hetaughtseveralyogatechniquesand

focusedonyoganidra,tantraandkundalini

yoga.Hewrotenearly80booksandhisbook

"Asana,Mudra,PranayamaandKriyas"has

becomeaclassictextbook.

In1988,hechangedhimselfintoasecluded

hermit,leavinghisinstitutions,andwent

toRikhia,Jharkahandtofoundasmall

ashramandthe"SivanadaMath"devotedto

socialserviceforthevillagers.Heleft

hismortalbodyin2009.

15YogiGupta[SwamiKailashananda]

YogiGuptawasasuccessfullawyeranda

friendofMahatmaGandhi.Heleftsecular

life,wenttoBenaras[Varanasi]tobe

initiatedasamonk.Laterheservedasan

ayurvedicdoctorwithSwamiSivanandain

Rishikesh.InspiredbySwamiSivananda,he

startedhisownmissionandayurvedicclinic

inRishikesh.Hedidmeditationsandyoga

practicefor10yearsthere.

HecametoNewYorkin1954andfounded

"YogiGuptaAshram"inQueens,NY--thefirst

fullfledgedashramintheUSA.Countless

Americansweretrainedbyhim.Beinga

traditionalist,heemphasizedyogicdietand

strictritualstopracticewithyoga.He

traveledbetweenNewYorkandRishikeshover

theyears,teachinghathayogaandayurvedic

medicine.

Nowonefindsmanyofhisstudentswith

KailashanadaAshrams.[Hischiefdisciple,

DharmaMittracompiledtheyogachartwith

908poses.]YogiGupta'stwobooks"Yoga

andLonglife"and"YogicPowers"havebeen

verypopular.Truetohiswritings,indeedhe

livedalonglifeandattainedmortalend

[mahasamadhi]atthatageof98inhis

cottageinRishikeshon6thMay2011.

16SwaminiSivanandaRadha

[SivanandaRadha(SylviaHellman)was

borninGermanyin1911,wentthrough

horrifyingexperiences--lostherparents

duringtheworldWarII,lostherfirst

husbandwhowaskilledinBuchenwald

concentrationcampwhiletryingtohelpJews

tofleeGermany,losthersecondhusbanda

yearaftermarriageduetoillness---and

turnedtospiritualpursuits.Shewentto

Rishikeshtostudyyogaunderthe

illustriousmaster,SwamiSivananda.The

guruordainedherasasannyasini[nun]of

thetraditionalHinduorderwiththe

monasticnameof"SivanandaRadha"andsent

hertotheWesttoteach.Besidesyoga,

SivanandaRadhalearnedimportantlessonsin

Karmayogaorselflessservicefromher

master.

SivanandaRadhasettledinBritish

Columbia,Canadaandbuiltthefirstyoga

ashramin1957,called"Yashodara

Ashram"....[afittingname,Yashodarawas

thefostermotherofLordKrishnainHindu

mythologywhileRadhawasthemystical

discipleofLordKrishna.]

Latershefoundedseveral'RadhaAshrams'to

teachyogaandtrainnunsinherlineage.

Shewroteseveralbooksonhathayoga.Her

book"Kundaliniyogaforthewest"has

becomeaclassic.Shealsodeveloped

institutionsfortrans-personalpsychology.

Onewouldfind'RadhaAshrams'inNorth

America,Mexico,Germany,Englandand

elsewhere.Shediedpeacefullyin1995,at

theageof85years.

17SwamiYogeswaranandaSaraswati

SwamiYogeshwarananda(1887-1985)wasa

yogamasterwhoremainedintheupper

reachesoftheHimalayasandisthefounder

of"YogaNiketan"inRishikesh.A

contemporaryofSwamiSivananda,helearned

yogafromhisGuruSwamiAtmanandinUttar

KashiandGangotri.SwamiYogeshwarananda

wroteabouthisexperiencesandabookon

asanasandpranyams,detailing400asanas

and40pranayamsin"BahirangaYoga".He

touredtheworldmanytimesbutsettledin

Rishikesh.YogaNiketancenterswerestarted

inseveralcities:Delhi,Pahalgamin

Kashmir,Manali(HP).HisdiscipleKazu

Kimuraranseveral'yoganiketan'centersin

Japan.Themasterattainedsamadhi

peacefullyin1985-attheageof98.His

booksarefullofesotericwisdomand

experiences.

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BasiccriteriaforthisHallofFame:

Idevelopedasimplesetofcriteriafor

selectionofyogisforthisHallofFame:

1TheYogimusthavepracticedyogahimself

orherselfandtaughtyogatoalargenumber

ofstudentsoverseveraldecades.

2Theyogimusthavefoundedorhelpedto

foundayogaschoolorinstituteorashram

forproperteachingofyoga;the

institutionmusthaveendured[functioned

smoothly]forafewdecades.

3Theyogimusthaveundertakenor

encouragedresearchandinnovative

approachestoteachyogatechniquesandfor

yogatherapy.

4Theyogimusthavecontributedtowards

disseminationofyogaamongthepublicat

largethroughbooks,training

courses,retreatsandconferencesorother

meansoverseveraldecades.

5Theyogimusthavehadanimpeccable

characterandintegrity,withoutanyalleged

orreportedscandals--offinancialnature

orofsexualmisconductorofcommunity

affairs.

6Theyogimusthavelivedlongerthan60

years,sinceyogaensuresalonglifeand

anyseriousyogamastershouldhaveenjoyed

longevity.

7Theyogimusthaveexhibitedandupheld

respectandreverenceforhisGuruor

teacherthroughoutlife,sincethisquality

isanessentialmarkofanyYogateacherof

Indiantradition.

[Furthermyselectionisindeedbiasedwith

certaintraditionalIndianvalues.]

Idonotincludethoseyogis,severalof

theminIndia,whohadlivedasecludedlife

inpilgrimageplaces[likevaranasi,

Haridwar,RishikeshorUttarkashior

elsewhere]doingtheirownsadhana.

Idonotincludenumerousphilosophers,

professorsandwritersonyogaorvedantaor

thosewhoteachinsomeinstitutionsof

yogapractice.

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