The Heart of Yoga: Developing a Personal Practice
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- Create Date：2021-07-24 08:53:30
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：T.K.V. Desikachar
- ISBN：089281764X
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Summary
The first yoga text to outline a step-by-step sequence for developing a complete practice according to viniyoga--yoga adapted to the needs of the individual。
• A contemporary classic by a world-renowned teacher。
• This new edition adds thirty-two poems by Krishnamacharya that capture the essence of his teachings。
Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya， who lived to be over 100 years old， was one of the greatest yogis of the modern era。 Elements of Krishnamacharya's teaching have become well known around the world through the work of B。 K。 S。 Iyengar， Pattabhi Jois， and Indra Devi， who all studied with Krishnamacharya。 Krishnamacharya's son T。 K。 V。 Desikachar lived and studied with his father all his life and now teaches the full spectrum of Krishnamacharya's yoga。 Desikachar has based his method on Krishnamacharya's fundamental concept of viniyoga， which maintains that practices must be continually adapted to the individual's changing needs to achieve the maximum therapeutic value。
In The Heart of Yoga Desikachar offers a distillation of his father's system as well as his own practical approach， which he describes as "a program for the spine at every level--physical， mental， and spiritual。" This is the first yoga text to outline a step-by-step sequence for developing a complete practice according to the age-old principles of yoga。 Desikachar discusses all the elements of yoga--poses and counterposes， conscious breathing， meditation， and philosophy--and shows how the yoga student may develop a practice tailored to his or her current state of health， age， occupation， and lifestyle。
This is a revised edition of The Heart of Yoga。
• A contemporary classic by a world-renowned teacher。
• This new edition adds thirty-two poems by Krishnamacharya that capture the essence of his teachings。
Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya， who lived to be over 100 years old， was one of the greatest yogis of the modern era。 Elements of Krishnamacharya's teaching have become well known around the world through the work of B。 K。 S。 Iyengar， Pattabhi Jois， and Indra Devi， who all studied with Krishnamacharya。 Krishnamacharya's son T。 K。 V。 Desikachar lived and studied with his father all his life and now teaches the full spectrum of Krishnamacharya's yoga。 Desikachar has based his method on Krishnamacharya's fundamental concept of viniyoga， which maintains that practices must be continually adapted to the individual's changing needs to achieve the maximum therapeutic value。
In The Heart of Yoga Desikachar offers a distillation of his father's system as well as his own practical approach， which he describes as "a program for the spine at every level--physical， mental， and spiritual。" This is the first yoga text to outline a step-by-step sequence for developing a complete practice according to the age-old principles of yoga。 Desikachar discusses all the elements of yoga--poses and counterposes， conscious breathing， meditation， and philosophy--and shows how the yoga student may develop a practice tailored to his or her current state of health， age， occupation， and lifestyle。
This is a revised edition of The Heart of Yoga。
Reviews
Jay Ridings
，
Great book for practicing yoga。
Júlia Pereira Barreto
，
Se alguém está interessado em começar a ler sobre Yoga， este é o livro número um que recomendo。 Aborda amplamente o Yoga e não afasta o leitor que não conhece a complexidade desta filosofia ou nunca teve contato com tantas expressões em sânscrito。 Lindo！ Poderoso。
Maej
，
A well written and wise book on the yoga path。 I’ve learned so much from this text。
Aslı Can
，
Yoga son zamanlarda daha çok karşımıza çıkan bir şey olmaya başladı。 Nasıl oluyorsa yoga ile ilgilendiğimi duyan birçok kişi kinayeli bir tonda ''aa sen de mi'' diye soruyor。 Evet， ben de; ve yogayla ilgilenen birisi olarak， yoga hakkında insanları isyan ettirecek denli yoğun bir akış varken， yogaya dair tatmin edici cevaplar bulmak pek kolay olmuyor。 Desikachar'ın bu kitabı bana ilaç gibi geldi。 Gerek yoganın tarihi ve felsefi kökenlerini anlamak; gerekse kendi yoga pratiğini nasıl tasarlayacağ Yoga son zamanlarda daha çok karşımıza çıkan bir şey olmaya başladı。 Nasıl oluyorsa yoga ile ilgilendiğimi duyan birçok kişi kinayeli bir tonda ''aa sen de mi'' diye soruyor。 Evet， ben de; ve yogayla ilgilenen birisi olarak， yoga hakkında insanları isyan ettirecek denli yoğun bir akış varken， yogaya dair tatmin edici cevaplar bulmak pek kolay olmuyor。 Desikachar'ın bu kitabı bana ilaç gibi geldi。 Gerek yoganın tarihi ve felsefi kökenlerini anlamak; gerekse kendi yoga pratiğini nasıl tasarlayacağını öğrenmek adına gayet doyurucu bir kitaptı。 Bu yüzden hem yogayla ilgilenenlere， hem de yogaya şüphe ile yaklaşanlara bu kitabı edinip okumalarını tavsiye diyorum。 Güncel piskoloji kitaplarında aradığınızı， belki buralarda bulabilirsiniz。 Ben İngilizce baskısından okudum ama Yoganın Kalbi şeklinde bir Türkçe çevirisi de var kitabın。Bir yandan da sanki büyülü gerçeklik üzerine bir kuram kitabı okuyormuşum hissiyatı uyandırdı bende sık sık， çünkü gerçeğin nasıl da kolay biçim değiştiriveren， şakacı ve aslında itaatkar bir çocuk olduğunun başka dilde anlatılmış bir hikayesi gibi bu kitap。 Bu kitapta cevap bulabileceğiniz sorular: -Yoga nedir？ -Yoga ne değildir？ -Yoganın kökenleri nelerdir？-Yoganın gündelik yaşamla nasıl bir ilişkisi vardır？-Kim yoga yapabilir？ Kim yogadan fayda görebilir？ : ---bunu yapmaya gönüllü ve meraklı herkes :）-Yogaya nasıl başlamalıyım？-Yoga pratiğimi nasıl geliştirebilirim？-Yoga algı ve duyumlarımı ne şekilde etkiler？-Yoga， onu içten bir şekilde yapan kişilere neden iyi gelir？ -Yoga sadece bedensel bir pratik midir？-Yoga yaşadığım sıkıntılardan beni nasıl kurtarır？ Desikachar yogayı sadece pozların veya yoga pratiklerinin uygulanması olarak değil， gerçek bir dikkat ile anda olarak yapılan herhangi bir eylem; bir disiplin olarak tanımlıyor daha çok。 Yoganın sekiz kolu var ve bizim yoga olarak tanıdığımız yoga pozları -yani asanalar， bu sekiz koldan sadece birisi。 Yani bu pozlar birer amaç değil， araç aslında。 Desikachar， dış görünüşe， imaja odaklı yapılan; kendini dışarıdan izleyerek， iç farkındalığa odaklanmamış bedensel pratiklerin， yoga değil fiziksel egzersiz olduklarını söylüyor。 Peki nedir bu yoga derseniz， bir şekilde yersiz yurtsuz， sıkışmış， yanlış anlaşılmış hissettiğimiz ve hatta çoğunlukla ne istediğimizi bile bilmediğimiz dünyada esas mekanımız olan bedenimizi tanımak， anlamak， bedenle barışmak ve bedenin bilgeliğine güvenmek， anda olmak adına yapılan pratikler bütünü， bir disiplin diyebilirim。 Huzursuzluklarımızın kökenlerini anlamak için， huzursuzlukların barındığı yere， bedene dönmek。 Gözlerimi parlatan bir bilgelikle karşılaştığımı düşündüm sık sık okurken。 Üstelik bir felsefe ya da psikoloji kitabı okuyormuş gibi kavramlarda kaybolmadan。 Tavsiyemdir。 Nasıl ki kötü romanlar yazılıyor diye edebiyata küsmüyoruz， karşınıza yoga adı altında binbir şekilde çıkan şeyden dolayı da yogaya ve felsefesine küsmeyiniz， temennimdir :） 。。。more
Ashlee Wallis
，
If you’re a beginner to yoga， this book is a great place to start。 It gives an understanding of basic Sanskrit terms and yoga philosophy in general。
Leah
，
Great reference book。 Lots of information without being too heavy。 Will reach for it again。
Carla Chernencoff
，
This book is a must read for any serious yogi。 However， I strongly disagree with his translation of the Yoga Sutras。 For an authentic in-depth study of the Sutras I recommend the Edwin Bryant translation。
Michael Berens
，
An essential text for anyone serious about yoga。 Whether you practice yoga for exercise， stress or pain relief， or as a way of life， you will find something of value here。 Plus， it includes a good translation of the Yoga Sutras with very helpful commentary。
Carrie Ann
，
a must read for yoga instructors and serious practitioners， too
Vucus Ma
，
This is a basic literature for yoga practitioners。 Deśīkācār Sir and Tirumalai Kṛṣṇamācārya are the modernisers of yoga。 A whole generation of seekers has evolved following their noble teachings and humble footsteps。 They were teaching the whole complex system of áyurveda， yoga， vedánta， śāstra literature - without any hypocrisy or biased thinking， just purily following human nature。 In a sense it is a teaching following Pātañjalayogasūtra， but we cannot tell this only， as they were aware of all This is a basic literature for yoga practitioners。 Deśīkācār Sir and Tirumalai Kṛṣṇamācārya are the modernisers of yoga。 A whole generation of seekers has evolved following their noble teachings and humble footsteps。 They were teaching the whole complex system of áyurveda， yoga， vedánta， śāstra literature - without any hypocrisy or biased thinking， just purily following human nature。 In a sense it is a teaching following Pātañjalayogasūtra， but we cannot tell this only， as they were aware of all other existing knowledge system and the heterodox systems too。Although their heritage is based on personal transmission， what can be understood only by personal practice， it is a great help for that as a note and clarify basic things on this journey。 The original book of this text is "the Religiousness of yoga"。 。。。more
Renaud Vincent
，
Has to be the clearest and most pragmatic book on the different aspects of Yoga （not just asanas and pranayama）。 The commentary on the Yoga Sutras are also quite helpful。 I will definitely be going back to this book to checkup in my practice！
Jara Fernández
，
I have enjoyed very much this book; the way that many aspects of Yoga are addressed and explained in a very easy manner to follow， this is been a great source of knowledge that has helped me to understand many things and to feel more close to what Yoga is than any other book about Yoga that I have ever read before， I will highly recommend to anyone who is looking to understand what Yoga is and to widen knowledge about it， maybe even better after doing a Yoga Teacher training as you have more que I have enjoyed very much this book; the way that many aspects of Yoga are addressed and explained in a very easy manner to follow， this is been a great source of knowledge that has helped me to understand many things and to feel more close to what Yoga is than any other book about Yoga that I have ever read before， I will highly recommend to anyone who is looking to understand what Yoga is and to widen knowledge about it， maybe even better after doing a Yoga Teacher training as you have more questions but even to find out what Yoga is about 💕 。。。more
Tibairé Useche
，
Hermoso libro！ Un libro que lleva la experiencia yóguica de lo físico a lo emocional y humano。
Marcela
，
Buyer beware: this book's the size of a textbook。Great read！ As a yogi that went into the practice not knowing the technicality of things such as the breath and so forth， this book really went in depth to make sure beginners， and even experts， understood the importance of such things。Photos and drawings were helpful along the way and this book really does what it says， helps you develop a personal practice。 Read it for a yoga book club so most of it felt a little repetitive since we all take the Buyer beware: this book's the size of a textbook。Great read！ As a yogi that went into the practice not knowing the technicality of things such as the breath and so forth， this book really went in depth to make sure beginners， and even experts， understood the importance of such things。Photos and drawings were helpful along the way and this book really does what it says， helps you develop a personal practice。 Read it for a yoga book club so most of it felt a little repetitive since we all take the same class， but nonetheless it wasn't a bad read！Highly recommend if you're starting to practice yoga。 。。。more
Octothorpe Reader Leora K
，
###/5MY PERSONAL IMPRESSION: I am not 100% sure which type of student this book is aimed at。 If it’s aim was to provide the beginner for the history and basic understanding of the practice， I would not recommend it。If the aim were to provide in-depth reading material to the highly experienced teacher or practitioner; maybe。As a yoga teacher beginner student， this book made me feel yoga is not for anyone and everyone。 That you need to already know and understand the deep， meaningful， and intense ###/5MY PERSONAL IMPRESSION: I am not 100% sure which type of student this book is aimed at。 If it’s aim was to provide the beginner for the history and basic understanding of the practice， I would not recommend it。If the aim were to provide in-depth reading material to the highly experienced teacher or practitioner; maybe。As a yoga teacher beginner student， this book made me feel yoga is not for anyone and everyone。 That you need to already know and understand the deep， meaningful， and intensely psychological side of yourself AND should already be familiar with the basic concepts of the 8 limbs of yoga， to be able to practice yoga。 It’s “heavy” – heavy with big， complicated words and phrases， and concepts and you need to really concentrate on the information for it to make sense。 It made it hard to continue reading or feel motivated to pick it up and finish。 Most of the concepts in the book are summarized in our YTT manuals and they are more “understandable”， A more theory and philosophy based read， than actual practice。 As a visual person， I prefer a more practiced based guide。THE MOST VALUABLE COMPONENT FOR ME“The Many Paths of Yoga” was my favorite chapter。I also enjoyed the Pranayama chapter， but again I think it is better summarized in our YTT manual。An elaboration on how this material could be useful for a yoga teacherThis book does have several valuable components for Yoga teachers – I just think that it should be recommended after Yoga Teacher Training。 Then you will be more familiar with the basic concepts and understand them better。As a newbie， this book was very overwhelming and I felt better about the material after we had specific classes about the bandhas， pranayama and the many practices of yoga。 This is the type of book that I want to come back during teaching practice。 To review asanas and add breathing techniques for classes。My favorite quote:“Yoga attempts to create a state in which we are always present—really present—in every action， in every moment。” 。。。more
Taya Lorenzo
，
yoga is a practice of observing yourself without judgment。
Taisia Backer
，
The first yoga text to outline a step-by-step sequence for developing a complete practice according to viniyoga--yoga adapted to the needs of the individual。
Ami Mcgrath
，
Enlightening。 Such a beautiful approach to yoga。
Jen Bickford
，
Great textbook for yoga training- some things went over my head may need to re-read ☺️☺️
Marina
，
Extensive overview on all sorts of yoga-relevant topics such as poses， sutras， 。。。 - amazing book to start learning more about yoga！
Anna Vislobokov
，
One of the greatest read if you want to know more about yoga but not only the asanas。 I read it twice and every time i found something new and understood better。 There some concepts that take time to understand so be patient with yourself。
Charlotte Carpenter
，
A clear and insightful intro to yogic philosophy that lays a solid foundation for further study and practice。
Natalie
，
Yoga underground YTT reading
LICIA DANTAS
，
Foi o primeiro livro de yoga que li 。 Achei fácil de entender， explicativo e incentivador。
Gabrielle
，
“Remember that yoga is a practice of observing yourself without judgment。” In this very difficult period， I have to say that one of my life lines is my yoga practice。 After I turn off my laptop at the end of the work day， I roll out my mat， put on some good music and for about 45 minutes， I practice a series of asanas， and， linking movement and breath， I bring myself to a steady and calm place （and yes， I know that is a luxury， and I am very， very grateful for it）。 Over the past few months， I ha “Remember that yoga is a practice of observing yourself without judgment。” In this very difficult period， I have to say that one of my life lines is my yoga practice。 After I turn off my laptop at the end of the work day， I roll out my mat， put on some good music and for about 45 minutes， I practice a series of asanas， and， linking movement and breath， I bring myself to a steady and calm place （and yes， I know that is a luxury， and I am very， very grateful for it）。 Over the past few months， I had grown to really love my daily yoga， even when it felt like a bit of a chore; now I am so glad to have developed this habit， as it is proving helpful on so many levels。 There are tons of books on yoga out there， and it can definitely be tricky to pick the good ones from those that are vacuous and silly。 My dad had recommended a few， but he has a bias for books published thirty or even forty years ago （around the time he started getting into yoga）， and that now feel painfully dated。 Don’t get me wrong: there is still some good stuff to be found in books like “Light on Yoga” （https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。）， but they show their age。 “The Heart of Yoga” was on my father’s recommendation list， but this one is far from outdated。If you want to truly understand yoga， and not just the inexplicably well-coiffed yoga influencers on Instagram， you should read this book。 Desikachar offers a clear， approachable text on yoga as much more than a fitness regimen – and how to approach it in a way that fits each individual practitioner。 Even if I am not new to yoga， I learned so much about its nature and how to enrich and deepen my practice with this book。 The fact that it's written in an open-minded and very down-to-earth way is wonderful: there isn’t an ounce of preachiness or judgmental attitude in Desikachar’s writing， which makes this book perfect for anyone interested in yoga， no matter what they experience and background is。 “We begin where we are and how we are， and whatever happens， happens。”I was very interested by the section on how to build an asana practice: I practice yoga at home， and I enjoy taking yoga flows apart and see why the sequences are constructed the way they are。 Desikachar gives a very comprehensible explanation on the mechanics of combining asanas into a smooth flow， starting with “warm up” poses， combining poses with the proper counterpose， how to sequence them and select them based on the effect hey have on the body， and so on。 This is especially helpful， as I dislike formal yoga classes at the best of time – and seeing how we aren’t allowed to go to yoga class anymore anyway， people looking to practice on their own can use this section along with a guide such as “Hatha Yoga Illustrated” （https://www。goodreads。com/review/show。。。） to build their own custom sequence for their personal practice。Desikachar’s approach is flexible， but not sloppy: he wants to give aspiring yogis a strong， traditional base that they should explore thoroughly and carefully before letting their creativity run amok， but he clearly understands the fact that different bodies have different needs and different limitations。 A section of the book is dedicated to variations on asanas to help people reach certain yoga goals my making changes and adjustments to make their practice truly their own。The final section is Desikachar's translation of and commentary on the Yoga Sutras， the foundation text that yogis base their practice on。 It is a great and concise introduction to the Yoga Sutra， and the commentary makes clear links between the scared texts and the teachings discussed in the first parts of the books。You will not learn how to do asanas with this book， but you will gain a very important insight on how to turn a physical practice into a balanced practice that involves body as much as breath and mind。 I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in yoga （though the liberal use of sanskrit terms might confuse beginners a bit: but fear not， there is an index at the end of the book）。“In yoga we are not creating something for others to look at。 As we perform the various asanas we observe what we are doing and how we are doing it。 We do it only for ourselves。 We are both observer and what is observed at the same time。 If we do not pay attention to ourselves in our practice， we cannot call it yoga。” 。。。more
Y
，
Too much hype not much insight。。。 He does not really explain reasons only recommendations/ suggestions from what he had learned。 The chapter on yoga sutra is imprecise。 I do not believe this book helped me develop my practice。
Danial Kalbasi
，
I read mostly the first few chapters that I was interested and I love the simplicity in the wisdom！ Here a couple of the short quotes from the book: - Yoga attempts to create a state in which we are always present—really present—in every action， in every moment。- When we are attentive to our actions we are not prisoners to our habits; we do not need to do something today simply because we did it yesterday。 Instead there is the possibility of considering our actions fresh and so avoiding thoughtl I read mostly the first few chapters that I was interested and I love the simplicity in the wisdom！ Here a couple of the short quotes from the book: - Yoga attempts to create a state in which we are always present—really present—in every action， in every moment。- When we are attentive to our actions we are not prisoners to our habits; we do not need to do something today simply because we did it yesterday。 Instead there is the possibility of considering our actions fresh and so avoiding thoughtless repetition。- We begin where we are and how we are， and whatever happens， happens。- The more we progress， the more we become aware of the holistic nature of our being， realizing that we are made of body， breath， mind， and more。- Yoga is primarily a practice intended to make someone wiser， more able to understand things than they were before。 If āsanas help in this， terrific！- I think that we do not necessarily have to live with a teacher nowadays。 We should rather work in our own environment and then meet our teacher from time to time in order to find a point of reference。 Having a point of reference is absolutely necessary。 We need somebody who can hold a mirror in front of us。 Otherwise we very quickly begin to imagine that we are perfect and know it all。- Avidyā is the root cause of the obstacles that prevent us from recognizing things as they really are。 The obstacles are asmitā （ego）， rāga （attachment）， dveṣa （refusal）， and abhiniveśa （fear）。 。。。more
Ashwini
，
Best Book for all who follow the path of yoga。 Beautifully Written。 Hard to finish it。 One book I go back and read again and again。
Heidi Mair
，
A book I return to over and over from my Yoga teacher training。
Daniel Bacer
，