Great for flexibility, concentration, balance and stamina, the Iyengar yoga has numerous health benefits.
Iyengar Yoga is a discipline that has not only been
developed by the well-known B.K.S. Iyengar, but also named after
him. This type of yoga highly emphasizes alignment, precision and
detail in relation with breath control and posture performance. All
in all, it aims at developing the practitioner’s strength,
stability and mobility.
What is Iyengar Yoga?
Iyengar Yoga centers on the fundamental alignment of the
human body through the improvement of its asanas. By practicing a
certain asana system, this type of yoga means to unite the spirit,
mind and body into a whole well-being. This very powerful
discipline is highly different from other yoga styles, as it uses a
whole new timing, technique and sequence.
In addition, this kind of yoga is described as paying a lot of
attention to props, like sand bags, cushions, straps, benches and
blocks. By allowing beginner practitioners to use them, people get
to experience and understand asanas easier. Moreover, what is most
important is that ill, elderly and even injured people can practice
this kind of yoga with the help of the props that it offers.
Iyengar Yoga principles
Iyengar Yoga is mainly based on the principles of the
Ashtanga Yoga. Therefore, it emphasizes the improvement of
flexibility, concentration, balance and stamina.
The first principle is named Yama. This concentrates on violence
abstinence which in turn helps the body in resisting materialistic
desires and other kinds of cravings. The second principle is Niyama
which concentrates on the body and the mind’s cleansing. The third
one helps the human body improve its flexibility and strength,
while the fourth principle which is known under the name of
Pranayama is meant to emphasize slow and deep breathing. The last
two principles named Dhyana and Pratyahara emphasize a mind
quieting that can lead to a unification with the divine.
Benefits of Iyengar Yoga
Iyengar Yoga has numerous health benefits for those
practicing it. Various ailments, disorders and diseases can be
treated through this kind of yoga, among which the best known are
menopause, chronic back pain, depression, insomnia,
immunodeficiency and high blood pressure.
It is a very well-known fact that Iyengar Yoga has also
managed to help people who had suffered from myocardial
infarctions. Nonetheless, regardless of the affections they suffer
from, by practicing this discipline, people can recover quicker,
especially since they can follow special programs designed for
their individual needs.
Basic Iyengar Yoga poses
Iyengar Yoga teaches its practitioners seven main poses.
These are represented by the Mountain, Triangle and Side-Angle
poses, two Warrior poses, one Side Stretch pose and a Wide Legged
Forward pose. All of these are meant to help practitioners develop
whole control over the bodies, plus a physical and spiritual
awareness.
Through these poses, students learn how to correctly move their
legs and arms, their toes and their fingers, their head and their
spine in order to correct any structural problems that their bodies
might suffer from, and to also develop a better posture. In
addition, these poses teach them how to contract, extend, rotate
and expand their body parts in order for them to find their own
balance which in turn can lead to the solving of other
difficulties.
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