Light on Iyengar

I've been doing yoga for most of my life, and most of my yoga friends are surprised or horrified that I have never read or studied BKS Iyengar. I decided to crack open my old copy of Iyengar's Light On Life in honor of his recent birthday. It is riveting, and I feel a little bit guilty (though with loving kindness and self-compassion) for not having read it before.

I tried reading Iyengar's Light On Yoga a few years ago and got about halfway through. I found that some of Iyengar's recommendations in that text did not resonate with me or work on my body at all. So I put the book - and Iyengar - down until now.

In Light On Life, Iyengar focuses more on the journey rather than on the specifics, and this I can appreciate. He is humble yet glowing, and his personality shines through as compassionate and inspirational. He promises that the yogic journey will "pay benefits commensurate to the time and effort we put in - the lowest being our ability to tie our own shoelaces when we are eighty and the highest being the opportunity to taste the essence of life itself." Both pretty good outcomes, so how can you lose?

Here is an extended excerpt for your perusal. There will be more talk of this Light On Life here in this blog, I reckon, as I haven't even gotten through the introduction, and I'm already moved to grab a highlighter and start blogging about it.

"I wanted to live as an ordinary householder with all the trials and tribulations of life and to take my yoga practice to average people who share with me the common life of work, marriage, and children...the life of a householder is difficult, and it always has been. Most of us encounter hardship and suffering, and many are plagued by physical and emotional pain, stress, sadness, loneliness, and anxiety. While we often think of these as the problems caused by the demands of modern life, human life has always had the same hardships and the same challenges - making a living, raising a family, and finding meaning and purpose. These have always and will always be the challenges that we humans face. As animals, we walk the earth. As bearers of a divine essence, we are among the stars. As human beings, we are caught in the middle, seeking to reconcile the paradox of how to make our way upon the earth while striving for something more permanent and more profound. So many seek this greater Truth in the heavens, but it lies much closer than the clouds. It sits within us and can be found by anyone on the Inward Journey."