Ashtanga - What is Ashtanga Yoga

Ashtanga Yoga is a set sequence of poses linked together with a dynamic movement called a ‘vinyasa’ and a strong breathing technique called ‘ujiya’.The first level of the Ashtanga practice is called the primary series.

This sequence realigns the spine, detoxifies the body, and builds strength, flexibility and stamina. The series of about 75 poses takes approximatley two hours to complete, beginning with sun salutations (surya namaskara A and surya namaskara B) and moving on to standing poses, seated poses, inversions and backbends before relaxation.

The teacher who first introduced this style of yoga to the wider world is Sri K Pattabhi Jois. Pattabhi started practicing yoga with his Guru, Krishnamachria when he was twelve years old. As a teenager he assisted his Guru in translating an ancient manuscript. This document contained the sequence of poses that is now called Primary Series and is the first level of the Ashtanga practice.

In 1958 Pattabhi Jois began to work on a book – Yoga Mala which describes the nature of the Ashtanga practise. This book was published in India in 1962 and in the UK thirty seven years later. In the 1960’s the first of Pattabhi’s European students travelled to India to see him. Soon his influence spread and students from all over the world came to learn from him.

This style of yoga is most suitable for anyone that is in good shape physically and have a good basic level of fitness.

Biography

My passion for Ashtanga yoga began when I was a student of Drama at RSAMD in Glasgow in 1997. I found that yoga helped me to develop focus and concentration as an actor and that it improved co-ordination and stamina in dance and movement classes. Not just that – it made me fully alive and energised in a way I had never been before. Enthused and curious to learn more I travelled to Mysore in India in 1999 to study more deeply the Ashtanga system with its founder Sri K. Pattabhi Jois and his grandson Sharath. This was to be the first of many subsequent journeys to train with my teachers.

Back in the UK from 2000 I assisted Alexander Medin at the ‘Yoga Place’ in east London. This gave me the opportunity to develop my understanding of Ashtanga practice and to explore physical adjusting skills.

In 2001 I travelled again to India and then on to Bali where I undertook an intensive teacher training with Louisa Sear at Yoga Arts. On that journey I also explored Vipassana meditation at the Blue Mountains Centre in Australia. I also studied at that time with Tim Miller in the USA and John Scott in the UK. Both of these courses led to teaching certification.

Feeling confident and strong in my practice I returned to my home town, Edinburgh, in 2002 where I set up my first Ashtanga classes. In 2006 I received certification from my teacher Patthabhi Jois. I am currently the only teacher in Scotland authorised by Patthabi Jois to teach the Ashtanga method.

Each year I return to Mysore to further my understanding of yoga with the help of my teachers – Pattabhi Jois and his grandson Sharath. This annual trip is imperative to my ongoing training and in order to deepen my understanding of the practice.

I am based in Edinburgh where I offer classes to all levels of yoga practitioner. My style of teaching is disciplined and informal, sincere and joyful. Whilst Ashtanga could be described as a dynamic and perhaps quite masculine form of yoga I believe that this style of yoga can also be feminine and my practise and teaching mirror this.

Other Teachers at the Yoga Room

Yvonne Austen

About me. I have been practising Yoga since I was 9 years old and have studied in many traditions. My early interest was in Pranayama, meditation and the impact of the breath on the state of the mind. During the early 1980’s I studied daily at the Sivananda Centre in London and this became my regular practice for many years. In 1995 I took up Ashtanga Yoga and began teaching in 1999.

I have since done a further three years of study at the Yoga Therapy Centre in London becoming a Yoga Therapist in 2009. I completed a 2 year Foundation in Buddhist Philosophy with the Jamyang Centre and studied with Swami Saradananda to teach meditation. My current teacher is Shrikrishna Bhushan Tengshe who was director of the Yoga Therapy Centre in Mumbai.

I currently teach on the Teacher Training Course for Yoga Scotland and for the Prison Phoenix Trust along with private classes and Yoga therapy sessions both 1:1 and in small groups.

I am very happy to be teaching for Rowena at her lovely studio in Edinburgh.