The World Yoga Day is being celebrated today. People have started to include this ancient science in their daily routine as they see the change it brings. This International Yoga Day, let us talk about the six yoga gurus who paved the way for yoga on an international level and made it popular.
BKS Iyengar:
Iyenger is considered one of the greatest yoga gurus in the world and the father of modern yoga. As a child, he suffered from illnesses. He turned to yoga to find relief for his body. He is also known for creating the style of yoga known as Iyengar Yoga. He is the author of many books on yoga.
Swami Vivekananda:
Monk, philosopher, author, and teacher Swami Vivekananda made yoga popular during his visits to Europe and America in the 1890s. Four types of yoga were introduced by him: Bhakti, karma, jnana and raj yoga. According to him, to attain the ultimate goal of life which is salvation one should meticulously practice yoga.
Krishna Pattabhi Jois:
He is also known as one of the most famous yoga gurus and also the creator of Ashtanga Yoga, practised by millions of people from the West. He founded the Ashtanga Research Institute in Mysore in 1948.
Paramahansa Yogananda:
He was a monk, who popularised meditation and kriya yoga in the West. He is the founder of the Self-realisation fellowship through which he popularised Kriya yoga and meditation.
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi:
He is famous for teaching The Beatles yoga. He is famous for popularising Transcendental Meditation. TM yoga uses silent sounds called mantras for its meditation.
Shri Yogendra:
He was a writer, poet, and researcher who revived hatha yoga and popularised it in India and the United States. In 1918, he founded the Yoga Institute which is the world’s oldest organised yoga centre. He is known as the father of modern yoga renaissance.