At the bottom of this page you can watch some of the leading teachers of Ashtanga yoga
(e. g., Manju Pattabhi Jois, David Williams, David Swenson, Richard Freeman, Tim Miller,
Chuck Miller, Maty Ezraty and Sharath Rangaswamy) during their practice (this is not how
you will have to look! Cf. also Modifications and Contortionism).

The Ashtanga yoga discussed here does not so much refer to Patanjali´s philosophy but
rather to an Indian hatha yoga system (yoga postures/asanas and breath
control/pranayama) as taught today, e. g., at the Ashtanga Yoga Nilaya in Mysore,
India, by the daughter and grandson of the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute´s founder
(Shri K. Pattabhi Jois), Saraswathi and Sharath Rangaswamy.

This method of yoga involves synchronizing the breath with defined series of asanas. It
may look quite athletic and body-focused to an observer. However, central to Ashtanga
yoga is actually the use of the bandhas, the breath and the focussing of the gaze
(drishti), whereas the asanas themselves are less so. According to our understanding,
Ashtanga yoga was developed to keep people physically and mentally fit (or to heal
them). The most important elements (the Primary and Intermediate Series) are "Disease
Treatment" (Roga Chikitsa) and "Nerve Cleansing" (Nadi Shodana). The regular practice
of these two series will keep the practitioners young and healthy. It strenghtens muscles
und circulation, maintains flexibility, releases tension, helps with the elimination of
toxins, as well as improves concentration, stress resistance, intuition and the ability to
distinguish between the important and the unimportant.

The method has perhaps been passed on orally over many centuries. Shri K.P. Jois who
retired from teaching in 2006 at the age of 91 and was still considered the foremost
authority in Ashtanga yoga until 2009 did not invent Ashtanga yoga but rather learned it
from Shri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, originally in Hassan, then at his yoga school Sri
Patanjala Yogashala at the Jaganmohan Palace in Mysore. Krishnamacharya (who also
taught famous yogis B.K.S. Iyengar, T.K.V. Desikachar and Indra Devi) taught this
yoga system there not only to K.P. Jois but to others as well, e.g. to B.N.S. Iyengar, the
present head of the Sri Patanjala Yogashala (the school was closed in the 1940s and
re-opened only a few years ago). Although the style taught by B.N.S. Iyengar varies
slightly from that of K.P. Jois, it is nevertheless Ashtanga yoga. The oldest known written
source for this yoga system is (according to Krishnamacharya) the manuscript "Yoga
Korunta" ("Yoga Groups") by Vamana Rishi who is said to have described the system on
palm leaves. This manuscript has not been preserved - "Ants were eating it!" (K.P. Jois).















The first westerner to learn Ashtanga yoga (the Primary and Intermediate Series of
asanas) from K.P. Jois was the Belgian André van Lysebeth in 1964, the first westerner to
learn the complete system (i. e., the entire Ashtanga yoga asana syllabus and
pranayama) from K. Pattabhi Jois, Manju Pattabhi Jois und Ramesh Jois was the
US-American David Williams starting in 1973. David was subsequently the teacher of,
e.g., David Swenson, Danny Paradise and Bryan Kest and brought K. Pattabhi Jois and
Manju Pattabhi Jois to the USA for their first time in 1975.














It is out of respect for a tradition that may have been handed down over many centuries
that Ashtanga yoga teachers do not change the sequence of the series.

Many modern hatha yoga styles (all "dynamic", "power", "vinyasa", "flow" etc. styles) are
derived from Ashtanga yoga. These styles, however, are not identical with Ashtanga
yoga. In many studios there are classes called "Ashtanga yoga" that do not, however,
have a lot in common with it. Unfortunately, through mass marketing and
commercialization the now "official" Ashtanga yoga less and less resembles that which
was still to be found in the 1970s. Even if the differences may not at first be obvious, we
recommend the original of Mysore even if it does require more determination from its
practitioners.
Shri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya,
circa 1966
The Yoga School at the Jaganmohan Palace in Mysore,
circa 1934
Videos and Slideshow:

Shri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya Practises Asana and
Pranayama (1938, Silent)

Shri K. Pattabhi Jois on Ashtanga Yoga

Shri K. Pattabhi Jois Teaches the Primary Series (Extracts)

Shri K. Pattabhi Jois Teaches the Intermediate Series
(Extracts)

Shri K. Pattabhi Jois Teaches the Advanced Series (Extracts)
Don´t try this at home!

Shri Manju Pattabhi Jois Conducts a Mysore Style Class

David Williams Practises Sun Salutations, Primary,
Intermediate, Advanced Series and Finishing Postures
(Complete, Slideshow)

David Swenson Practises Sun Salutations, Primary,
Intermediate, Advanced Series and Finishing Postures
(Extracts)

Shri Sharath Rangaswamy Practises Backbends

Shri B.K.S. Iyengar Practises Ashtanga Yoga (sic!), Part 1
(1938, silent)

Shri B.K.S. Iyengar Practises Ashtanga Yoga (sic!), Part 2
(1938, silent)

Shri B.K.S. Iyengar Practises Ashtanga Yoga (sic!), Part 3
(1938, silent)

==> Free Bonus Track ! <==
David Williams, Shri K. Pattabhi Jois, Nancy Gilgoff,
circa 1975
Talks and Articles:

Shri K.P. Jois, Questions and Answers   Yes, you take!

Power Yoga and Ashtanga Mysore-Style

Krishnamacharya´s Legacy

Interview with Manju Pattabhi Jois

Interview with David Williams

Interview with Danny Paradise