Light on Yoga: The Bible of Modern Yoga...

For years, I have heard reviews and raves about this book, referred to as the Yoga Bible. I finally set out to read it. The first chapter, the overture to the book, is very deep - B.K.S. Iyengar's view into enlightenment and freedom of all earthly possessions and desires. It certainly is not something I plan to pursue or practice any time soon, but it is good knowledge to have. He then proceeds to break down every yoga pose - or as many as can fit in this book - describing the technique, the benefits, and a rating of easy-difficult (1 to 60). Most semi-difficult poses are about an 8 so he is very ambitious. I do disagree with him on no inversions during menstruation, esp. when he provides absolutely no proof or reason. For a long time, I observed this as most yoga teachers preach it too but without any reason. My current teacher told me simply that it was a chauvinistic idea and to disregard it altogether. Inversions during menstruation are just fine, and unless proven or advised otherwise for a reason, I plan to do them. I am still plowing through rest of this book, and for now, it is at best a 3-star rating.

Amazing book!! There are pictures showing each pose and a written description as well. It tells how long to hold each pose and the effect you should have. My only complaint is that the poses aren't also listed with thier common name as well as the Hindu names.

I look at this book every day. Perfect condition, early delivery, could not be happier!

Excellent book on yoga practice - the physical side of things to include asanas, bandhas, kriyas and pranayamas. I especially like the section that relates practice to diseases. There a hundreds of book on yoga and this book is definitely one of the best on the topic, if not best. Yoga is also a way of life, the basis of all religions. For adopting yoga in one's life I'll recommend Mylife Framework: A Model For A Successful Life Based On The Yoga Principles by Sunil Sheoran. This book provides a structure of life which is truly universal and explains how to use it for a yoga way of life.

The "bible" for serious hatha yoga practitioners, although you probably will never be able to achieve a large percentage of the postures illustrated. At least, I won't! It is still the authoritative source for performing each posture correctly. One of his later books, "Yoga, the Path to Holistic Health," has wonderful 360-degree views of the "classic" postures, but it's a huge hardback that is impossible to carry with you.