About Ashtanga Yoga

Sri K Pattabhi Jois (Guruji)
The home of Ashtanga Yoga is the South Indian city of Mysore, where Sri K Pattabhi Jois founded his Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute in 1948. Pattabhi Jois (Guruji) passed away at the age of 93 in May 2009 but his teachings are kept alive in Mysore by Guruji’s grandson Sharath and Guruji’s daughter Saraswathi. The institute is now called the Shri K Pattabhi Jois Ashtanga Yoga Institute (KJPAYI). The KPJAYI in Mysore is the only institute in the world that authorizes or certifies Ashtanga teachers.

The traditional way of learning yoga is parampara. Guruji himself studied with the famous South Indian yoga teacher T. Krishnamacharya, who also taught other prominent Indian yoga teachers including B.K.S. Iyengar, the founder of the Iyengar yoga system. Krishnamacharya’s own teacher was guru Rama Mohan Brahmachari. The vinyasa system in Ashtanga Yoga, as it is still taught in the KPJAYI, is believed to have been described in an ancient text called Yoga Korunta, written by the Indian sage Vamana.  

The Practice of Ashtanga Yoga

“Ashtanga” means, literally, “eight limbs”. These eight limbs were described by the Indian sage Patanjali in his Yoga Sutras, written two thousand years ago:

  • Yama or abstinences: ahimsa (non-harmfulness), satya (truthfulness), asteya (non-stealing), brahmacharya (rules concerning sexual behaviour; celibacy or being faithful to your partner in marriage), aparigraha (non-covetousness or non-possessiveness) 
  • Niyama or observances: saucha (cleanliness and purity in the body and the mind), santosha (contentment), tapas (austerity), svadhyaya (self-study, the studying of spiritual texts), and ishwarapranidhana (surrender to God) 
  • Asana (physical postures) 
  • Pranayama (breath control)
  • Pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses) 
  • Dharana (concentration)
  • Dhyana (meditation) 
  • Samadhi (self-realization)

Important parts of the Ashtanga Yoga practice are the Vinyasa system, the system that links each breath with a movement; the gazing points (dristi) and the bandhas (locks or “seals”). The deep breathing, the vinyasa method and the bandhas together create internal heat. The heat is believed to purify the body, the nervous system and eventually also the mind, and to remove the six poisons: kama, krodha, moha, lobha, matsarya, and mada, or desire, anger, delusion, greed, envy and sloth, which prevent us from realizing our true, divine nature.

The Six Series in Ashtanga Yoga

There are six series of postures in Ashtanga Yoga, and the postures are always done in the same sequence. In Mysore, new postures are taught to a student only when s/he can do the previous ones correctly (which does not mean perfectly). The postures in the Primary Series (Yoga Chikitsa, or yoga therapy) purify the physical body. The Intermediate Series (Nadi Shodhana) purifies the nervous system. The Advanced A, B, C and D Series (Sthira Bhaga) develop a high level of flexibility, strength and concentration. The Primary Series alone can take several years to learn.

Mysore Style Classes

The traditional way of practicing Ashtanga is “Mysore Style”, or “self-practice”. This means that each student learns the practice step by step, posture by posture, and is taught a new posture only when s/he can do the previous ones and remembers the sequence. In a Mysore Style class each student can practice according to his or her own abilities, and can get one-to-one instruction and adjustments from the teacher in a supportive group environment.
  
Led Classes and the Vinyasa Count

Ashtanga Yoga is traditionally practiced six days a week, from Sunday to Friday, with rest days on Saturdays and Moon Days. In Mysore, led classes are taught on Sundays and Fridays, and Mysore Style self-practice classes from Monday to Thursday.

A led class means a class that is counted in Sanskrit according to the traditional Vinyasa method, as taught by Guruji in Mysore.In a traditional led class in the KPJAYI, if you cannot do all the postures in the sequence, you will practice as far as you have learned. You will then stop (or be stopped!) and join the rest of the class for backbending and the finishing sequence.


Read more about the tradition: Annie Pace: Ashtanga Yoga in the Tradition of Sri K. Pattabhi Jois on ashtanga.com

 Ladies' Holiday and Pregnancy

Women are advised to take a break from practice during the first three days of their menstruation ("ladies' holiday"). If you're wondering why, check out this short youtube video: Ashtanga Yoga Ladies Holiday by authorized ashtanga teacher and advanced practitioner Kiki Flynn.

Pregnant women generally take a break from practice for the first trimester, and there are some asana that should be avoided during the later trimesters. On the other hand some asana can be very helpful in preparing for delivery. This interview with Saraswathi has loads of information about practicing during pregnancy and other tips for women practicing ashtanga: Interview with Saraswathi Rangaswamy, Guruji's daughter - by Lisa Lalér & Bill Brundell 


Opening & Closing Prayers

The practice starts with the opening prayer and finishes with the closing prayer.


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