 |
| B.K.S. Iyengar & Judith Lasater |
Restorative
yoga originates from the teachings of master yoga teacher, B.K.S. Iyengar (1918-2014). Iyengar was "sickly" as a teenager and was taught yoga by his teacher and brother-in-law. Tirumalai Krishnamacharya. Restorative yoga developed from their need to find therapeutic poses that would help Iyengar to heal and restore his health. He soon became a "star" student.
When Iyengar was 18 years old, he began teaching yoga. He noticed students straining to come into poses causing or amplifying existing pain and injury. So he began using props with his students in order to support their bodies in poses which, in turn, helped his students to alleviate their symptoms of illness, injury, and stress. While a competitive, "no pain, no gain" mentality was (and still is!) commonplace, Iyangar developed a "no pain = gain" philosophy which is the foundation of Restorative yoga.
The development of Restorative yoga began with Iyengar but over the years the practice has been refined and expanded by his students. In the 1970’s, one of his students, Judith Lasater, brought the practice of Restorative yoga to the United States. Since then the practice has grown due to her efforts and other teachers’ including Cora Wen, Sudha Carolyn Lundeen, Jillian Pransky, Roger Cole and Bo Forbes.
While the practice of yoga is over 5,000 years old, Restorative yoga is a relatively new style. It addresses the needs of our fast-paced culture by focusing on the healing power of simply being still -- which is the heart of the practice of yoga and meditation.
"Learning to relax is at the heart of living well ... consider your practice an experiment which you carry out with the finest instruments at your command: your body, your breath, and your mind."
Judith Lasater, PhD, PT
When Iyengar was 18 years old, he began teaching yoga. He noticed students straining to come into poses causing or amplifying existing pain and injury. So he began using props with his students in order to support their bodies in poses which, in turn, helped his students to alleviate their symptoms of illness, injury, and stress. While a competitive, "no pain, no gain" mentality was (and still is!) commonplace, Iyangar developed a "no pain = gain" philosophy which is the foundation of Restorative yoga.
The development of Restorative yoga began with Iyengar but over the years the practice has been refined and expanded by his students. In the 1970’s, one of his students, Judith Lasater, brought the practice of Restorative yoga to the United States. Since then the practice has grown due to her efforts and other teachers’ including Cora Wen, Sudha Carolyn Lundeen, Jillian Pransky, Roger Cole and Bo Forbes.
While the practice of yoga is over 5,000 years old, Restorative yoga is a relatively new style. It addresses the needs of our fast-paced culture by focusing on the healing power of simply being still -- which is the heart of the practice of yoga and meditation.
"Learning to relax is at the heart of living well ... consider your practice an experiment which you carry out with the finest instruments at your command: your body, your breath, and your mind."
Judith Lasater, PhD, PT
No comments:
Post a Comment