The living tradition of T. Krishnamacharya – Yoga that is universal, yet personal.
Open to believers of all faiths and non-believers; all that is required is faith in yoga.
Tirumalai Krishnacharya is considered to be the father of modern yoga. A yoga master and polymath, with degrees in six schools of Indian philosophy as well as Sanskrit and Ayurveda, he believed yoga to be India’s great gift to the world.
Krishnamacharya revolutionised yoga in the 19th century, making it available to all sincere seekers. He eliminated barriers that prevented women from undertaking various forms of study and worship, led the way in accepting Western women as students and opened up Vedic Chant to women, which had previously been the preserve of upper caste males.
He insisted on the absolute equality of anyone’s right to experience the fullness of yogic study – all he asked for was sincerity of purpose.
He was a path builder and his students – such as BKS Iyengar, Indra Devi and his son, TKV Desikachar – built on this tradition.
TKV Desikachar lived and studied with his father until his death and has continued his work in India and abroad. He founded the first Yoga Therapy clinic worldwide, Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandarim (KYM), which he established to offer Yoga Therapy and teaching. In 2006, with his son Kausthub Desikachar, he founded the Krishnamacharya Healing Yoga Foundation (KHYF) in Chennai, India,. KHYF’s mission is to share the teachings of T Krishnamacharya and TKV Desikachar in their purest form, including Vedic Chant taught by Menaka Desikachar.
Krishnamacharya did not believe in a ‘one size fits all’ approach to yoga; rather, that practices must be adapted to serve the changing needs of each individual student.
He understood yoga as being much more than physical postures, and adapted practices drawing on the wide range of tools yoga offers for healing the human system in a caring and holistic way.
‘I believe my father’s greatest contribution was his selfless devotion to the individual – to the possibility of unimaginable growth and freedom that is inborn in each of us. This, for Krishnamacharya, was the gift of Yoga and the hope of Mankind’
TKV Desikachar Health, Healing and Beyond
Useful links:
Krishnamacharya Healing & Yoga Foundation - www.khyf.net
Viniyoga Asia - www.viniyoga.com.sg
Kausthub Desikachar - www.kausthub.com
Monique Parker - https://www.taosyogatherapy.com/