The New Definitive Illustrated Guide - The Iyengar Way

This book that I bought was recommended by a teacher and it will take me a while, using it,to know if it's contents would be of help to me--
However I would like to comment on the service --I received a notice from USPS on the morning of delivery-stating that the package had been delivered about 20 minutes prior to my reading the Tracking Message-I looked outside all over for the package X3 and could not find it-I E-mailed the supplier and they responded Immediately with suggestions for trying to find the package--About 4 hours later the package arrived and was placed in front of the front door .
--I do appreciate the concern and the promptness in responding of the seller.

This was a required text for a yoga teacher training I took. I found it an nice introduction but compared to Iyengars light on yoga it is a brief overview. I'm going to give it to my Mom who has a bit of a yoga practice. It will be perfect for her.

The book was just fine and I really appreciate that you sent me another bonus book, as you thought that the book purchased was not the quality that you thought was acceptable, though I thought it was quite acceptable! Thank you very much.

The book was just as described on the store. My local Post Office out of no where decided my house was vacant. So I worked that out, meanwhile seller got the book returned to them. Anyway seller emailed me, and i said ship again sorry about everything. Soon the book arrived. Very happy with everything.

I wouldn't recommend this book for beginning yoga students. Most of the poses are way too difficult for beginners or seniors. You would look at it and get very discouraged. However, for a more advanced strudent, this book might be helpful because it gives very precise pictures of how to do the poses.

This book by Silva Mehta et al is well illustrated and gives great detail on all the major poses and other aspects of yoga. It has a forward from B K S Iyengar himself.
I still use Iyengar's classic book "Light on Yoga" as basic reference book. This book by Silva Mehta can serve as a quick reference book and a practice manual.
The book contains a brief account on "Surya Namaskar" and remedial program using yoga. These are valuable sections,in addition to brief write up on Pranayama, meditation and other yoga topics.

I have studied and used more than a dozen books on yoga over the past 50 years and my favorites are the Classic Iyengar's book and two others" 1 Completed Book of Yoga by Swami Vishnudevananda and 2 Indra devi's Yoga for you.
The present book by Silva Mehta , in comparison , is only a quick reference book and intermediate level text.
The excellent illustrations with several steps are helpful for home practice as well.

There are some limitations of this book: 1 the precautions and contra-indications are not well written ,compared to Iyengar's larger book; 2 the benefits of each asana are not clearly brought out, as the benefits with each asana could motivate a beginner to yoga.
In summary, this is an illustrated book in the line of Iyengar Yoga and could be useful for students and instructors in the West.

I recommend that anyone trying to establish a home-practice of yoga purchase this book, then immediately take it to a store such as Staples, have the binding replaced by a spiral binder and use this book open flat as a teacher right next to you on the floor or a table where you can reference it throughout your practice. This is truly a classic and when the student is rusty, it's a great place to 'begin again'. The correct action in each pose is clearly stated to help the student working on his or her own avoid injury. Modifications are included. You could spend your life with this book, though there are many others to add to your collection. This is an excellent introduction or reminder about the benefits and how-to's of yoga.

This book is beautifully designed with full-color pictures
throughout and a lot of insightful commentary indicating the
areas of each pose where the most challenging and rewarding
"work" will be done.

Many yoga postures are beneficial even when performed with
poor alignment. The most important thing is to TRY. I remember
starting out - my alignment and flexibility were poor - but
I improved and refined my Yoga over time.

Iyengar's "Light on Yoga" covers more postures and in more
depth - but it is not a practice manual like this one - meant
to be laid out on the floor while you practice.

If you are a beginner this is excellent. If you are more
than a beginner this will help you learn and refine your
understanding of the Iyengar approach - which is highly
influential for very good reasons.

I've been doing Yoga for several years (honestly, on and off) and recently I decided to Yoga sincerely to get rid of my backpain. My backpain vanished in 7 weeks completely and am feeling really vibrant! Earlier, I tried chiropractor / massages, it gave only temporary relief. Having realized that value of Yoga, I got interested in knowing the philosophy as well as other asanas. During my research, most of the books and dvds I looked into are junk as they have commercialized and giving some substandard yoga. This is a book on authentic Yoga (Iyengar) and this work was blessed by Iyengar himself.

Following book are recommended:
-The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali: A New Edition, Translation, and Commentary by Edwin F. Bryant (faithful & lucid)

If you are interested in Vedic knowledge, check out my profile for the hand-picked books.

I own several dozen wonderful yoga books and learn something new about the vast subject of yoga from all of them. However, Yoga: The Iyengar Way, is the timeless classic I turn back to over and over again when I feel the need for outside discipline to help me organize my personal home practice. On Sunday mornings, when I have the leisure to practice several hours, I make my way through all the catagories of poses, including all the Standing Poses, Inverted Poses and Backbends, by turning the pages of this book. The clear photographs continually inspire my practice and remind me not to skip more challenging poses I might otherwise be tempted to avoid. I highly recommend this book to students of all levels and their teachers. Namaste.

Suza Francina, yoga teacher and author, The New Yoga for People Over 50 and Yoga and the Wisdom of Menopause.

"Yoga: the Iyengar Way" suceeds where other yoga books fail because of its superior pictures, which give extreme detail to all of the asanas (poses). It's always better to get guidance from a good teacher, but for home practice, this is one of the best books out there and is a great supplement to group practice. As its title implies, Iyengar yoga is taught in the book, and thus the use of props and alternative poses allows for those of different levels of experience to do as much of the asana as they can.
In short, if you're going to own one yoga book, make this the one -- its pictures are MUCH better than either "Yoga for Dummies" or the "Complete Idiot's Guide to Yoga." In fact, if there's a yoga book with better photography and presentation, I haven't seen it.

The combination of photos and focus point in this book are fantastic. It was the only and only yoga book I have purchased, and I go back to it time and time again for references. The models are inspiring in their form, and you can really see the points of alignment highlighted in the brief text. I'm disappointed this book seems to no longer be in print: I've seen nothing which approaches it since.

This book provides excellent information on a wide variety of yoga poses, or asanas. Each asana is clearly illustrated and accompanied by step-by-step instructions on how to complete the pose; the information provided is detailed and straight-forward. The asasas are broken up into groups--standing poses, seated poses, etc.--and each individual pose is clearly labelled for level of difficulty, from one star (beginners) to four stars (advanced). At the end of the book, suggestions for various yoga practices are provided based on the the four levels of difficulty.
Although the information contained in this book is exemplary, there are several reasons why I do not feel it would be appropriate for beginners. First of all, I found the tone to be somewhat snobbish at times, such as when it suggested that if you have difficulties in a pose, you might need to go to a yoga teacher for "correction." Secondly, I have been practicing yoga for two years, and many of the poses labeled as either appropriate for "beginners" or "general practice" are still quite challenging to me. Third, throughout the book, poses are referred to by their traditional Indian names rather than the common names which are used today--ie, Tadasena rather than Mountain Pose. This is not a problem when you're looking at the actual pose, but the practices at the end of the book refer to the Indian name only and without photographs, which necessitates flipping back and forth through the book in order to attempt a practice. Finally, although modifications are suggested for each pose, many of these are not illustrated, which would make it difficult for beginners to follow along.
I think this book would probably be most appropriate for intermediates looking to further their practice. For beginners, I would recommend Rodney Yee's "Yoga: The Poetry of the Body" as an alternate yoga book, or Patrica Walden's video "Yoga Practice for Beginners," which also closely follows the Iyengar method.

A lovely formatted book that has clear photographs. It is useful for the student at home to develop a personal home practice aswell as the teacher for a 'flash card' inspiration for a class. I like the diamond guide that indicates the degree of difficulty of the pose. It is also wonderful to have the asana name in devanagari, sanskrit and english. This is a classic hatha book that is a 'must have'. Camella Nair - author of "Aqua Kriya Yoga".

Great book! Bought this for my yoga teacher training and love it, definitely recommend to anyone wanting to know more about the asanas. The detail for the poses is great and the photos are wonderful. Great book,

This book is great for anyone who is interested in learning yoga. I have been doing yoga for a couple of years now, and this was the first yoga book that I bought. The book is well illustrated and contains more poses than any other yoga book that I have seen. Each illustration shows the correct form for each pose and also gives modifications for those who are not quite as flexible as the people in the illustrations. The book also contains a section with over 60 different yoga routines from begining levels to advanced, so you don't have to try to plan out which poses to do in what order. For those of you who are more interested in a "Power Yoga" routine, I have also found that adding a sun salutation as a transition between the standing poses in the routines adds a little more spice to the practice.

This is one of my favorite Iyengar books. THe illustrations and descriptions of the poses are very clear and easy to follow. Good for any begginer or more seasoned person.

It also tells you how each Asana benefits asn stimulates different organs- I find this very helpful and I can find even greater motivation to practice.

Highly recommend. A must have in any yoga library.

I looked for this book in my neighborhood bookstore but this was even easier. I could choose the book I needed, look inside and then it arrived within a few days. It's a great supplement to my classes -- especially for the poses that I just can't get!

This is a wonderful book based on the teachings of B.K.S. Iyengar. The poses are explained in an easy-to-understand way, with large, color pictures. Highly recommended, especially for beginners who may be intimidated by Mr. Iyengar's more comprehensive book "Light On Yoga."
Buy both books. Study them daily, do the poses, and in every way your life will begin changing for the better.

This is the book that my yoga instructor refers to as her favorite. I looked through it and decided that if I were to buy one yoga book, this would be it. The steps are detailed and the pictures are wonderful. I'm very happy with it.

Great book for beginners to advanced. It is a work at your own pace book and provides lesson/session outlines for you to follow to get the most our of your yoga experience. Don't be intimidated by the photos of the people who wrote the book, they have been practicing yoga for a lifetime.

I bought this book for my Yoga Teacher Training course. It is a must-have for all yogis, beginner to advanced. The pictures and explanations on how to practice each asana are very helpful and easy to follow.

I purchased this book for teacher training class and I am pleased to say that it is very helpful to me. It would also come in very handy for someone new to Yoga because it has history, philosophy, and examples of every move all in one book. Easy to read and understand.

This book gives you easily digestable information of the Iyengar yoga. Very clear instructions and steps how to work into the posture. I have recommended this book to my students since it gives you a solid support for the home practise.

This is the book that my yoga instructor refers to as her favorite. I looked through it and decided that if I were to buy one yoga book, this would be it. The steps are detailed and the pictures are wonderful. I'm very happy with it.