Hi Candice (and everyone),

Interestingly, my first thought while reading these posts was that quality Iyengar yoga teaching is the complete opposite of rigidity! Never have I experienced another form of yoga where the teachers are so knowledgable on how to use props to adapt poses to students' individual needs and injuries. I don't believe simply listening to your body or backing off are the best answers. Sometimes the body wants to stop when its capacity - and best course of action for progression in the practice - is to hold or even go deeper. And surely a student benefits more from doing a pose modified to his/her capacity than simply sitting one out. (By the way, I'm not claiming to speak for any Iyengar Yoga teacher or student here.)

On the other hand, I do understand what you are saying about rigidity. There is a certain sternness, even a fierceness, about many Iyengar Yoga teachers. I have thought about this over the years (and across the continents!) and I've come to the conclusion that this sternness is usually fastidiousness. Time is a precious resource in a yoga class and good teachers hate to waste it. I believe that lack of tact in expression (though annoying) can often be chalked up to frustration - if I've had the same student 10 times (or 10 years, like some do!) and s/he's still making the same basic mistakes due to poor attention, lack of effort, etc., I'd get frustrated too. I might even get fierce! ;-) I think students owe it to their instructors - and themselves - to give 100% of attention in effort in a class. When I do that, I don't get yelled at - not even by the most ferocious of Iyengar Yoga teachers. :) When I don't, sometimes I do - and I know I deserve it.

OK, perhaps this is going to raise some hackles, but I have to say that my time with Iyengar Yoga has led me to the conclusion that there are indeed RIGHT and WRONG ways to do asanas. RIGHT asanas bring strength, power, confidence, tranquility, physical health and spiritual uplift. I know it because I have experienced it. WRONG asanas cause injury at worst, or physical aggrivation of injuries. I know because I've experienced this too. But even a pose done in such a way that the student is not deriving any benefit from the pose is also wrong. And I also think that the more a teacher knows what's right and wrong in asanas, the more it pains them to see the wrongs happening in their very own classes!!! See what I mean? Ferocity of *most* of the Iyengar Yoga teachers I have known -- sure there are the odd egomaniacs, but in my experience they are rare -- is rooted in the fierce desire to impart correctness, because correctness leads to progress! They teach Iyengar Yoga because it is something that they love and believe in SO MUCH that they want others to share in its bounty as they do. The greater the love, the greater the desire to nurture and foster its growth in others. And perhaps this degree of devotion is a form of attachment in and of itself. That's why the best teachers I know also have a sense of humor and can laugh at themselves, viewing the shortcomings of their students with equanimity while simultaneously striving to give them what they need.

Whew, this got longer than I expected - probably because of my own love for, and attachment to, Iyengar Yoga. But enough typing, it's time for me to go practice! ;-)

Kimberly

P.S. In case you're wondering: I've been a student of Iyengar Yoga for nearly 10 years. I also teach (since 2000, when I got a Hatha cert.) and I've done 2/3 of an Iyengar Yoga teacher training program. I haven't gone up for cert. as an Iyengar teacher, or finished the training which I considered to be first-rate, because I travel too often (I move oveseas every two years or so). One day... :-)

Liz,
I really appreciate your comment from Oct. 17.

This is an interesting thread.
I will return in a couple hours and contribute more.

CAthy