Table of contents
In this post, I share recommended resources that I find on the net, which in my opinion are useful for the yoga student. From the classic ‘Yoga Sutras of Patanjali’ to modern videos and articles.
Philosophy & Research on Yoga
Videos
Prof. Edwin Bryant is a yoga practitioner and a scholar who studies the yoga sutras. Here is a recommended talk and an interview:
- The Yoga Sutras – a talk by Edwin Bryant (1:46:00) 2018
- An interview with Rosa Santana (22:25) 2015
Sat Bir S. Khalsa, Ph.D. is a yogi and a researcher who conducts studies about the physical and mental effects of yoga, here are three recommended video talks he posted on YouTube:
- Yoga for Stress and Resilience in a Modern Society, 57 min., 2016
- This Will Change Your Brain Structure, 10 min., 2019
- Biomedical Research on Yoga, 1:46:30, 2019
Recommend Articles
- Effectiveness of Iyengar yoga in treating spinal (back and neck) pain: A systematic review, an article from 2015
- Iyengar Yoga can help tremendously to recover from addictions. This is a movie that contains interviews with practitioners that recovered from addiction using yoga, and this is an article from Boca Recovery Center about it.
Demonstrations, Classes & Sequences
- Immune Sequence from RIMYI
- The classic demonstration of Iyengar from 1938
- Iyengar Practices on the roof of his Institute in Pune, 1975
- The Ultimate Freedom – 1976, Iyengar talks about yoga and demonstrates (it is remarkable to compare his talk before and after his practice)
- Yoga Demonstration in Ann-Atbur, BKS Iyengar (1976)
- Samadhi – BKS Iyengar teaching At his prime in 1977 (he was 59 then)
- BKS Iyengar – Barbican Demonstration 1984 – Iyengar Demonstrates and Explains
- A short video in which Guruji (BKS Iyengar) explains the importance of inversions, 1992
- A short Presentation about Iyengar and his Heritage, 8:22, 2011
- The Man Who Taught Yoga To The World | Documentary | Tirumalai Krishnamacharya | The Indian Mystics. Shows how Krishnamacharya was teaching yoga in the old days (the 1930s)
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Books
- Recommended books about Iyengar Yoga can be found at the bottom of my Books page.
- See also my recommendation on the 5 books that inspired me the most
Books by B.K.S. Iyengar
Click a title for a description and a link
Light on Yoga: The Classic Guide, by B.K.S. Iyengar
Light on Yoga is a definitive guide about Yoga, a rigorous discipline for attaining physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. It is aimed at beginners as well as advanced practitioners of Yoga.
Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health, by B.K.S. Iyengar
B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health covers the complete teachings of BKS Iyengar for mind, body, and health, and is suitable for every level of yoga ability, age, and physical condition.
Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, by B.K.S. Iyengar
B.K.S. Iyengar’s translation and commentary on these ancient yoga sutras have been described as the “bible” of yoga.
Light on Pranayama, by B.K.S. Iyengar
This authoritative and practical guide is an indispensable tool to the art and techniques of yogic breathing, for beginners and experienced yoga teachers alike.
Light on Life: The Yoga Journey to Wholeness, Inner Peace, and Ultimate Freedom, by B.K.S. Iyengar
In Light on Life, B.K.S. Iyengar brings readers this new and more complete understanding of the yogic journey.
The Tree of Yoga, by B.K.S. Iyengar
In The Tree of Yoga, Iyengar offers his thoughts on many practical and philosophical subjects including family life, love and sexuality, health and the healing arts, meditation, death, and Patañjali’s Yoga Sutras.
Books by more authors
Click a title for a description and a link
The Heart of Yoga: Developing a Personal Practice, by T.K.V. Desikachar
The first yoga text to outline a step-by-step sequence for developing a complete practice according to Viniyoga–Yoga adapted to the needs of the individual.
Health, Healing, and Beyond: Yoga and the Living Tradition of T. Krishnamacharya, by T.K.V. Desikachar & Cravens
The much-sought-after, greatly beloved exploration of the work of Krishnamacharya, teacher of many of twentieth-century yoga’s greatest and most influential exponents, Health, Healing, and Beyond is filled with deep wisdom―an indispensable guide to the philosophy, principles, and limitless possibilities of yoga.
Yoga Anatomy, by Leslie Kaminoff
From breathing to inversions to standing poses, see how specific muscles respond to the movements of the joints; how alterations of a pose can enhance or reduce effectiveness; and how the spine, breathing, and body position are all fundamentally linked.
Yoga and Scoliosis: A Journey to Health and Healing, by Marcia Monroe
Yoga and Scoliosis: A Journey to Health and Healing is a deeply soothing form of moving meditation and physical activity. It is a safe way to rebuild strength, stamina, and flexibility, and to address the spinal curvature of scoliosis without surgery.
The Key Poses of Yoga: Scientific Keys, Volume II, by Ray Long
This book offers a scientific approach to understanding the practice of hatha yoga. Through four-color, three-dimensional illustrations of major muscles, tendons, and ligaments, Ray Long describes the practice and benefits of hatha yoga.
The Woman’s Yoga Book: Asana and Pranayama for all Phases of the Menstrual Cycle, by Bobby Clennell
Senior Iyengar Yoga teacher Bobby Clennell brings decades of yoga study and teaching experience to The Woman’s Yoga Book. She offers a comprehensive program of asana (yoga poses) and pranayama (breathing exercises) designed to support menstrual health from menarche to menopause, along with nutritional and lifestyle information for those times off the yoga mat.
Yoga for Breast Care: What Every Woman Needs to Know (Yoga Shorts), Bobby Clennell
In Yoga for Breast Care, senior yoga teacher Bobby Clennell offers a comprehensive program of asana (yoga poses) and pranayama (breathing techniques) designed to support breast health.
Hero’s Contemplation: Yoga in the Light of the Teachings of Yogacarya SRI B.K.S. Iyengar and Non-Dual Kashmir Saivism, by Christian Pisano
A comprehensive and remarkable account of teachings inspired by BKS Iyengar (who wrote the preface) and Kashmir Saivism.
Yoga Sutras of Patañjali, by Edwin F. Bryant
Written almost two millennia ago, Patañjali’s work focuses on how to attain the direct experience and realization of the Purusa: the innermost individual self, or soul.
Krishnamacharya: His Life and Teachings, by A.G. Mohan
Here is a personal tribute to “the father of modern yoga” Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya (1888-1989), written by one of his longtime disciples.
Books About Yoga Practice for Women
An excellent and recommended book about practice during and after pregnancy:
- Iyengar Yoga for Motherhood, Geeta Iyengar, Rita Keller & K. Khattab, Sterling 2010
Practice during and after Menopause:
- German Edition: Iyengar Yoga in der Menopause, Geeta Iyengar, Rita Keller & Kerstin Kattab
- For the English version contact: [email protected]
In this book, there’s all you ever wanted to know about practicing during menstruation:
- Geeta’s Iyengar Guide to a Woman’s Yoga Practice, Vol I, Lois Steinberg
A General book about Woman’s health:
- The Woman’s Book of Yoga & Health, L. Sparrowe & Patricia Walden
Books About the Yoga Sutras
The classic interpretation of BKS Iyengar:
1. Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, B.K.S. Iyengar
A more thorough commentary. Organized by themes, rather than sequentially:
2. Core of the Yoga Sutras, B.K.S. Iyengar
A very comprehensive and knowledgeable commentary surveying the classic commentators:
3. The Yoga Sutras of Patañjali: A New Edition, Translation, and Commentary, Edwin Bryant
Two interesting interpretations-
4. The Wisdom of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra, Ravi Ravindra
5. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Swami Venkatesanada
Swami Hariarananada Aranya brings Vyasa’s commentary and adds his interpretation:
6. Yoga Philosophy of Patanjali, Swami Hariarananada Aranya
7. Yoga: Discipline of Freedom: The Yoga Sutra Attributed to Patanjali, Barbara Miller
Books about the Bhagavad Gita
- The Bhagvadgita by S. Radhakrishnan
- The Bhagvadgita by Eliot Deutsch
- The Bhagvadgita by Juan Mascaro (Penguin books)
- Bhagvadgita by M. K. Gandhi – An inspiration from Gandhi
- The Bhagvad Gita by Sri Aurobindo
Chanting
- Beautiful rendering of classic Indian chant by Ravi Shankar, produced by George Harrison
- A nice chanting of the yoga sutras with English translation.
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