yogakshemam

 Sri T. Krishnamacharya, emblematic figure of the Indian cultural tradition, is the founding father of Yoga teaching to Europeans. Born in South India in 1888, Sri T. Krishnamacharya belonged to a family of philosophers and spiritual masters. He was the eldest of five children.

He completed most of his studies in Varanasi (Benares) and Calcutta, the two strongholds of the philosophical tradition of India, where he quickly obtained the highest honors in all branches of Indian Philosophy. He deepened his knowledge of Hindu Yoga in the Himalayas and Buddhist Yoga in Burma, which was part of India at that time. He then went to Kashmir to study Sufism. He worked for some time as Professor of Philosophy at the University of Benares and at the University of Calcutta before accepting the invitation of the King of Mysore to teach Indian Philosophy at Mysore Sanskrit College. Like his ancestors before him, he was the King's teacher and was appointed to the Royal Court as Philosopher.

While applying himself to this task, he was the guest of honor of several Royal Courts, throughout India, as well as of Spiritual Monasteries to participate in "philosophical contests", according to a custom established in India for centuries. immemorial time: not only did he emerge victorious, but he managed to explain in a simple and convincing manner to the public who attended these debates, the practical aspects of the philosophical and religious disciplines. He mastered about fifteen Indian languages. He was also an astrologer, musician, sportsman and fine cook ...

In the twenties, Sri T. Krishnamacharya began to teach Yoga to the Royal Family, as well as to the people of Mysore. Over the years, he gave increasing importance to teaching Yoga. His practice and teaching of Yoga have never separated from the Philosophy of Yoga. By 1935, his first non-Indian students were Europeans. As more and more Europeans came to study under his direction, he learned English alone to be able to teach in that language. He remained in Mysore until 1954 and settled in Madras where he lived until his death in 1989.

Sri T. Krishnamacharya had six children, three boys and three girls. His wife, Srimathi Namagiriammal and his six children received his teaching. His eldest son Sri T.K. Srinivasan, though fully trained in Yoga teaching, preferred to specialize in Indian Philosophy; he is currently the authority on Nyaya and Mimamsa, two of the most important philosophical currents in the Indian tradition. His two other sons, Sri T.K.V. Desikachar and Sri T.K. Sribhashyam, left their professions to devote themselves entirely to teaching Yoga. The second daughter of Sri T. Krishnamacharya, Srimathi Alamelu, is one of the first women to whom he taught the Vedas.

Sri T. Krishnamacharya began to teach Yoga to the brother of his wife, Sri B.K.S. Iyengar (born in 1918), while he was still a young child. Sri B.K.S. Iyengar was living at his teacher's house, according to ancestral tradition. At the age of fifteen he made his Yoga teaching debut. Sri T.K. Sribhashyam received instruction from his father from an early age, and it was in 1956 that he began teaching Yoga in Madras while pursuing his university studies. Sri T.K.V. Desikachar benefited from the teaching of his father in the sixties, after his university studies. He continued to teach them until his death.

Sri T. Krishnamacharya has always refused the royal fees that the Royal Courts offered him. He never benefited from his situation. He lived on his modest personal income by working as a foreman in a coffee plantation, carrying stones and sandbags for buildings, practicing Indian medicine (Ayurveda). He even gave an important legacy to his brothers and sisters to stay in accord with his philosophical principles.
He also refused the honorary situations proposed to him in the Royal Courts and Monasteries in order to remain free and truthful in his teaching. His wife Srimathi Namagiriammal followed his example and shared his simple life. As much for him as for his children, she represented the living example of philosophy.

In his daily life, Sri T. Krishnamacharya practiced the Hindu religion rigorously, but he was very respectful of all other religious ideas, traditional or contemporary.

His openness even led him to meet spiritual leaders from other faiths. He even gave lessons to religious leaders, heads of state, masters of Yoga and Philosophers.