The Yoga of T Krishnamacharya

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Dr. Kausthub Desikachar is the successor and current lineage holder of the classical yoga tradition of T Krishnamacharya & TKV Desikachar. He is an acclaimed Yoga Teacher, Yoga Therapist, healer and spiritual adviser. His objectives include the sharing of the authentic teachings of Yoga in the modern era, as well as building bridges between different healing modalities to promote physical, emotional social and spiritual health.

For over two decades, Kausthub has been teaching a multitude of students and teachers around the globe and has conducted numerous teacher and therapist training programs. He began studying Yoga when he was nine years old under the guidance of his teacher and father TKV Desikachar and started teaching at the age of thirteen. After completing his dual Master’s degree from the renowned Birla Institute of Technology & Sciences, Pilani, he committed himself to becoming a full-time student and teacher of Yoga. In 2011 he concluded his doctoral studies from the Psychology Department at the University of Madras, where firs topic of research was “Effect of lndividualised Yoga Training on Quality of Life.' He has also recently completed his M.D in Alternate Medicine.

Dr. Kausthub Desikachar also works as a Yoga Therapist and offers clients astute and effective solutions for all sorts of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual illnesses. He combines his classical training in Yoga and Ayurveda, his modern education of psychology, and his Interactions with traditional healers worldwide, to offer optimum and effective synergetic solutions to alleviate a wide range of problems.

As a Yoga Educator, Dr. Kausthub Desikachar is known for his remarkable, deep and well versed knowledge and his ability to present the ancient teachings in a way that is profound as well as applicable for modern day practitioners. He treats each student with respect, compassion and dignity, and honours their capacity for growth and transformation. His teachings are especially beneficial for Yega Teachers and Yoga Therapists as he helps them grasp the fullness and deep insights of the ancient teachings so that they are able to apply them in a competent and sincere way.

He has also authored and co-authored numerous books on Yoga, such as "The Heart of Asana: A Comprehensive Manual On Classical Yoga Postures.' a biography of his grandfather, the great Yogacarya T Krishnamacharya, called "The Yoga of the Yogi" and "Hathayogapradipika Jyotsnayuta," a translation and commentary of this very classical Hathayoga text.

Kausthub is co-founder of the Krishnamacharya Healing and Yoga Foundation (KHYF) and for a long time was a senior Yoga Therapy Consultant at the Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram (KYM). He has been a patron of the British Wheel of Yoga, and an advisor to the International Association of Yoga Therapists. He is currently an advisor to the Korean Yoga Alliance, and a member of the American Psychological Association, International Positive Psychology Association and the Institute of Noetic Sciences.

Apart from Yoga Teaching, Dr. Kausthub Desikachar is also an avid photographer, inspirational writer and poet. He is the co-founder of "Synergies in Healing", an online journal that focuses on bridging ancient wisdom and modern day science.

He not only maintains his professional practice in India, but also travels extensively to teach and train people as yoga teachers and yoga therapists around the world. For more information on his teaching schedule or to be part of his training programs, please connect through the following channels.

For many years, students of Krishnamacharya, and others who owe him a lot of gratitude, have been requesting that an account of his life and teaching be made available for the benefit of everyone. I have been hesitating to do this, not only because much of his past is not documented, but also because of his reluctance to talk about himself.

This year, when an opportunity arose to address the annual congress of the Union European Des Federations Nationals de Yoga, I thought it was time to take the plunge. I gave three presentations covering the life of Krishnamacharya. The first part of this book is the edited version of these lectures.

Eminent masters of Yoga who have not been fortunate enough to study the classic of Yoga, the Yogasutra, with Krishnamacharya, have been requesting a version of my studies with him, on the basis that I have had the benefit of staying and studying with him for more than twenty years. Each time I considered this venture. I pulled back, because of the magnitude of the project as well as the fact that his teaching, orally transmitted in various languages, was very difficult to put in writing in English.

A thought came to me this year that perhaps the essence of his latest thinking (that the Yoga of Patanjali is the only means to develop Bhakti, or devotion) could be set down. Because of my regular exposure to his teaching and his willing agreement to respond immediately to any questions, it has been possible to bring out the present views of Krishnamacharya. These are presented in the second part of the book.

In the preparation of both these parts, my friend from Canada, Michael Smith, has been of great help, and I offer my gratitude to him.