Every year, on June 21st, International Yoga Day is observed all over the world. Yoga is a workout form that has touched millions of life since ancient times & has become the modern-day solution for many things health, physical and mental. For Yoga to have reached this milestone, and for being responsible to put India on the global map, here are 10 Yogis that India is proud of:
Jagadish Vasudev
The founder of Isha Yoga Foundation, Jagadish Vasudev is one of the most popular yogis, nationally & internationally. He is fondly known as ‘Sadhguru’ by his followers & believes in incorporating & presenting the most suitable yogic sciences & practices for contemporary life. He believes in bridging the gap between the known & unknown aspects of life & helping people experience their deepest emotions with Yoga & yogic sciences.
Sri Sri Ravishankar
The founder of The Art Of Living Foundation, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar has been able to create a large spiritual family by uniting people from across the globe, irrespective of race, gender or caste. He believes that the art of living lies in being in the present moment.
Baba Ramdev
Baba Ramdev is an Indian Yoga teacher who has a big role in popularising Yoga in modern times. He is known for making anulom-vilom & kapalbhati popular as a good breathing exercise among Indians.
Tirumalai Krishnamacharya Yogi
Known as the ‘Father of Modern Day Yoga’, T Krishnamacharya Yogi directly or indirectly connected to every form of Yoga that is practiced in modern times. He believed that a healthy body free of illness is the only way a mind can transcend & focus inwards. He is known to have invented Hatha Yoga as we know it today.
Maharshi Mahesh Yogi
An Indian Yogi, Maharishi Mahesh, is a physics graduate. However, after his academics, he started practicing meditation and yoga and was a well-known disciple of Guru Dev Yogi. After attending his session in London, The Beatles interacted with him and ended up learning meditation from him. He is also well-known for the transcendental meditation techniques that he invented.
Hansaji Yogendra
The Director of The Yoga Institute, Dr. Hansaji Yogendra, has dedicated her life to teaching yoga as a way of life in a completely practical manner. Transforming millions of lives worldwide through Yoga, she is actively involved in spreading the awareness of Yoga to every corner of the world and her presence can be strongly felt around the globe.
B K S Iyengar
The inventor of Iyengar Yoga, BKS Iyengar was a student of T Krishnamacharya and has a big role in making Yoga well-known in the west. He lived to be 95 years old & has achieved the feat of holding a headstand for 30 minutes. He dedicated his life to Yoga & its practices.
Paramahansa Yogananda
He is known to have introduced Kriya Yoga to the west. He is the author of the well-known spiritual book - Autobiography of a Yogi. His teachings on the art of balanced health and well-being in body, mind, and soul impacted many individuals around the world.
K Pattabhi Jois
A dedicated practitioner of Yoga, he was mentored by T Krishnamacharya, whom he helped spread awareness about Ashtanga Yoga and its benefits around the world. He dedicated his life to teaching Ashtanga Yoga. He has taught celebrities like Madonna & Gwenyth Paltrow.
Swami Sivananda
A medical doctor by academics, Swami Sivananda was a well-known & respected saint. He served his early years as a doctor before he renounced his worldly life and moved to Rishikesh, where he set up an ashram as his mission to serve humanity through Yoga. His teachings are popular across the globe.
Now that you know all the Yogis who have helped us practice Yoga as we know it today, you can aim to practice at least an hour of Yoga in a week for your mental & physical well-being.
Would you like to read more about Yoga? Here are some interesting topics:
International Yoga Day is celebrated on 21st June every year. This year, Fitternity is celebrating Yogafest by offering complimentary yoga sessions by Anindita Singhvi & Manish Pole on 20th & 21st June at 5PM. You can sign up for the sessions here and be a part of a life-changing experience.
Check out the Yoga classes near you:
Mumbai | Delhi | Bangalore | Pune | Gurgaon | Hyderabad | Kolkata | Noida | Ahmedabad | Jaipur | Chandigarh | Faridabad | Goa
