Iyengar Yoga for beginners
 “Yoga is for everyone. You need not be an expert or at the peak of physical fitness to practice the asanas I describe in this latest book*. The strain of modern life can lead to physical pain and illness, as we neglect our bodies in the race for material success.
The stress of modern life can also lead to mental suffering: feelings of inadequacy, isolation or powerlessness. Yoga helps to integrate the mental and the physical plane, bringing about a sense of inner and outer balance, or what I term ‘alignment’. True alignment means that the inner mind reaches every cell and fibre of the body.
During my 70 years of teaching and practising, I have observed that some
students pay attention only to the physical aspect of Yoga. Their practice is a fast flowing stream, tumbling and falling, which lacks depth and direction. By attending to the mental and spiritual side, a sincere student of Yoga becomes like a smoothly flowing river which helps to irrigate and fertilise the land around it. Just as one cannot dip into the same river twice, so each and every asana refreshes your life force with new energy...
 ...The great advantage of Yoga is that it can be practised by anyone, irrespective of age, sex and physical condition. In fact, Yoga is particularly beneficial in middle age and after. Yoga is a gift to older people when the recuperative power of the body is declining
and resistance to illness is weakening. Yoga generates energy and does not dissipate it. With Yoga one can look forward to a satisfying, healthier future, rather than reflecting on one’s youthful past...”
Written by BSK Iyengar, the article outlines the stages of learning Yoga, followed by a detailed description of the Utthita Trikonasana or extended triangle pose, suitable for new students.
*Taken from the book
IYENGAR YOGA FOR BEGINNERS by BKS Iyengar which is published by Dorling Kindersley. SPECIAL READER OFFER
See page 8 of the August 2006 issue of Yoga & Health magazine for full details. top of page | 
