How Temple Yoga Started - Words from Dr Char in early 2000

Yoga at Hindu Temple of Atlanta Exercise Schedule for a 10-Wk Session

Yoga Instruction is being imparted at the Hindu Temple of Atlanta, Riverdale, GA 30274 for the past twelve years. Yoga was then known by its generic name, plain vanilla Yoga. Yes, outstanding teachers such as Krisnamachar and his three students (brother-in-law) Sundaram Iyengar, Pattabhi Jois and (son) TKV Desikchar, and several others such as Swami Sivananda, Kripavalananda and others had established their own gharanas with distinct individualistic styles placing emphasis on different aspects of Yoga. There was, like at present, no plethora of brand names, with the obvious Mammon worship also being one of the considerations. Willy-nilly, the Yoga milieu has been transformed. Hopefully, the millennia-old values that underlie Yoga training have also not been modified.

While there is undoubtedly, merit in being specific about what type of Yoga is taught, there is lot more merit, especially to the beginner and to those looking to yoga for therapy, to call it by the generic name. At the more advanced or intermediate stage, it may serve a useful purpose to bring out the subtleties of each significant school. Even thereafter, it is sagacious to combine the best features of the major schools and offer what Temple Yoga instructors believe: Best Practices. Temple Yoga should be steeped in tradition like the very Temple gopurams (spires).

It is this basic philosophy that underlies Temple Yoga Instruction. The purpose is to -offer to the beginner as well as the advanced student the entire panorama of yoga starting with Yama and Niyama.. The drill would continue with the next logical steps of Asana and Pranayama. It would then conclude With the practice of Pratyahara. With these strong moorings in Yoga, the diligent student would Jollow up onhislher own oIJthe next three logical and somewhat intuitive steps of Dharana and Dhyana and ultimately Samadhi. If this is not Ashtanga Yoga. what is?

Yoga classes for beginners should invariably start with an introduction to what is Yoga, . how it is holistic and therefore from mere calorie-burning physical exercises such as aerobics. It is also emphasized that Yama and Niyama are prerequisites for Asana and Pranayama, like Math 101 is for Math 201. Sri Krishnamachar, the pater familias; of Yoga is adamant about this and has written that no one has any "adhikar" (permission) to go for Asana and other limbs of Yoga prior to observing Yama-Niyamas.

Keeping the foregoing detail in mind, Temple Yoga Instruction offers the following syllabus for its Yoga courses. It is expected that you become proficient in the listed asanas to qualify for the Temple' s Yoga Proficiency Certificate. Eventually, you should be able to claim a Health (and even Life) Insurance Rebate with the evidence of the Certificate. 

Yoga Sutras