Yesterday I posted 120 odd pictures of Krishnamacharya demonstrating asana from the 3rd edition of his second book Yogasanagalu, he was 84 at the time. The pictures were remarkable, how did he manage to stay that strong, that flexible, his eldest son Desikachar gives us a clue,
".....Of course, he was also doing Āsana for three to four hours daily in addition to his Prāṇāyāma. His practice was extremely rigorous and that may account for his being able to handle these large quantities of spicy and sweet foods.”
– TKV Desikachar answering questions on T Krishnamacharya. Originally published in KYM Darśanam November 1993
I was wondering if he was practicing three to four hours of asana in the morning or spread throughout the the the day, here's an account of his daily ritual from his daughter in law.
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So where did his 3-4 hours of asana a day come from, the pictures below are a clue perhaps, pictures of him teaching Yvonne Millerand in the 1960s. Krishnamacharya it seems practiced along with his students. It's good to know, I've found in my own workshops that I can't seem to teach or rather 'share the practice' any other way, nice to know I'm in good company. See my earlier post.
Yvonne Millerand student of Krishnamacharya in the 1960's inc. some excellent pictures.
"He was sitting on the stairs. He greeted us and then asked me to come to enter the classroom. After a short pause, sitting in a chair, he said: "Show me what you can do." I was very impressed, but managed to do all that came to my mind - the slopes, deflections, cords on both sides, twisting Pashchimottanasana, Ardha Padmasana, Sarvangasana, Shirshasana and many others. I sat down and looked at him. Suddenly he asked me, "Why did you leave your teacher?" Christine and I replied at once: "He's dead, sir." English, difficult for my understanding, he said: "You do not know anything. You do not know how to breathe and you just jump up and down like a sparrow! Come back on Friday at 5 pm, not before and not after. "
I arrived just in time. Giving me a few lessons a week, he started with a simple asana practice. I was to establish a link between breath and movement. Breathing should be controlled hand movements, slower breathing, the slower the movement. Each asana followed repeated at least four times. After one hour lesson in a sitting position, I learned the sound Udzhdzhayi and be able to distinguish it from the nasal sound. He allowed me to begin the simplest Pranayama - Udzhdzhayi Anuloma and Udzhdzhayi Viloma.
Krishnamacharya used to tell me, "lift up your chest," for the fact that, due to the rise of my chest, I could fill the air flow based on my lungs. After that, he insisted on the exhale with the abdominal muscles and the perineum. Breathe in and out - of course, but with the insertion of pauses, everything changes. Coached control is felt as an affirmation of life and gives a sense of a better life, by controlling breathing and blood circulation, which are interrelated. This is what I felt.
After a few asanas, he taught me the role of counter-poses, whose mission is to revert certain negative consequences. He taught me a variety of asanas that I never met. He never imposed me their names in Sanskrit and wherever possible used the English - "posture bed, mountain pose, stand on their shoulders, stand on your head, etc." On the other hand, he taught me all the names of Pranayam in Sanskrit. After a while he began to measure my heart rate before and after class. My heart rate should not exceed 65 beats per minute, that he was sure that my breath harmoniously followed the efforts during the practice of asanas".
Follow the link above for the full article
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Here's another account of Krishnamacharya teaching this time from Richard Schechner,
'Richard said K’s teaching methodology consisted of 4 steps. First, he would demonstrate. Then he would dictate the steps verbally and Richard would take notes and/or draw a picture. Then K had Richard do it while he dictated the steps. Lastly, Richard would do it on his own and K would watch without dictating'. p6
RICHARD SCHECHNER'S NOTEBOOK 42
by Daniel Dale
See my earlier post
Namarupa : Richard Schechner's notebook on his studies with KrishanamacharyaPhotographs by Eddie Stern
".....Of course, he was also doing Āsana for three to four hours daily in addition to his Prāṇāyāma. His practice was extremely rigorous and that may account for his being able to handle these large quantities of spicy and sweet foods.”
– TKV Desikachar answering questions on T Krishnamacharya. Originally published in KYM Darśanam November 1993
I was wondering if he was practicing three to four hours of asana in the morning or spread throughout the the the day, here's an account of his daily ritual from his daughter in law.
The daily life of my father-in-law, Sri T. Krishnamacharya
- Claire Sribhashyam
"When I started to visit my in-laws, my father-in-law was already very aged and yet lived to his own rhythms. He would wake up at 4 in the morning and would go to bed around 7 in the evening.
One of my best souvenirs was to be woken up every morning around four by the sound of the prayer bell announcing the beginning of his prayers. This daily morning ceremony that lasted an hour and a half was indeed a great feast for me. At times, I would wake up earlier and wait for the prayer bell to ring.
My mother-in-law would wake up a little later to open the door for the milk maid who brought us milk every morning shouting, below our windows, “pâl”, “pâl” (“pâl” in Tamil language means milk). Then she would prepare coffee for all of us and one by one we would all get up.
At the end of his long prayers, he would prepare his breakfast: wheat semolina roasted and cooked in water with some spices, coriander leaves and grated coconuts. He would share his preparation with children before sitting on the veranda to eat. He would spend some time reading the day’s newspapers while waiting for his students. At times, he would retire to his room to read or to give lessons. Once in a while, he would come to see me and talk or play with my daughter Sumitra or give me some advice on how to bring up young children.
In the afternoon, he would stay in the veranda to eat a fruit, often an orange or some grapes. He would never eat anything without first giving to children, young or elderly.
In the late afternoon, around 6 p.m., he would sit on the swing in the garden and watch the street life. Then, he would retire to bed after having drunk a glass of milk prepared with sugar, saffron and some cardamom. Everyone was attentive in not making too much of noise so as not to disturb him. And, next day at 4 in the morning, it was he who would give the departure sign for the new day by his prayer bell.
Ever since, I visit my in-laws, he had always had the same punctual rhythm. If, I did not hear the prayer bell at 4 in the morning, I was overcome by a slight anxiety! I would come out of the bed to see what he was doing. Felling that I was worried, he would say, with a smile, that he was late that morning".
- Claire Sribhashyam
"When I started to visit my in-laws, my father-in-law was already very aged and yet lived to his own rhythms. He would wake up at 4 in the morning and would go to bed around 7 in the evening.
One of my best souvenirs was to be woken up every morning around four by the sound of the prayer bell announcing the beginning of his prayers. This daily morning ceremony that lasted an hour and a half was indeed a great feast for me. At times, I would wake up earlier and wait for the prayer bell to ring.
My mother-in-law would wake up a little later to open the door for the milk maid who brought us milk every morning shouting, below our windows, “pâl”, “pâl” (“pâl” in Tamil language means milk). Then she would prepare coffee for all of us and one by one we would all get up.
At the end of his long prayers, he would prepare his breakfast: wheat semolina roasted and cooked in water with some spices, coriander leaves and grated coconuts. He would share his preparation with children before sitting on the veranda to eat. He would spend some time reading the day’s newspapers while waiting for his students. At times, he would retire to his room to read or to give lessons. Once in a while, he would come to see me and talk or play with my daughter Sumitra or give me some advice on how to bring up young children.
In the afternoon, he would stay in the veranda to eat a fruit, often an orange or some grapes. He would never eat anything without first giving to children, young or elderly.
In the late afternoon, around 6 p.m., he would sit on the swing in the garden and watch the street life. Then, he would retire to bed after having drunk a glass of milk prepared with sugar, saffron and some cardamom. Everyone was attentive in not making too much of noise so as not to disturb him. And, next day at 4 in the morning, it was he who would give the departure sign for the new day by his prayer bell.
Ever since, I visit my in-laws, he had always had the same punctual rhythm. If, I did not hear the prayer bell at 4 in the morning, I was overcome by a slight anxiety! I would come out of the bed to see what he was doing. Felling that I was worried, he would say, with a smile, that he was late that morning".
Yvonne Millerand student of Krishnamacharya in the 1960's inc. some excellent pictures.
"He was sitting on the stairs. He greeted us and then asked me to come to enter the classroom. After a short pause, sitting in a chair, he said: "Show me what you can do." I was very impressed, but managed to do all that came to my mind - the slopes, deflections, cords on both sides, twisting Pashchimottanasana, Ardha Padmasana, Sarvangasana, Shirshasana and many others. I sat down and looked at him. Suddenly he asked me, "Why did you leave your teacher?" Christine and I replied at once: "He's dead, sir." English, difficult for my understanding, he said: "You do not know anything. You do not know how to breathe and you just jump up and down like a sparrow! Come back on Friday at 5 pm, not before and not after. "
I arrived just in time. Giving me a few lessons a week, he started with a simple asana practice. I was to establish a link between breath and movement. Breathing should be controlled hand movements, slower breathing, the slower the movement. Each asana followed repeated at least four times. After one hour lesson in a sitting position, I learned the sound Udzhdzhayi and be able to distinguish it from the nasal sound. He allowed me to begin the simplest Pranayama - Udzhdzhayi Anuloma and Udzhdzhayi Viloma.
Krishnamacharya used to tell me, "lift up your chest," for the fact that, due to the rise of my chest, I could fill the air flow based on my lungs. After that, he insisted on the exhale with the abdominal muscles and the perineum. Breathe in and out - of course, but with the insertion of pauses, everything changes. Coached control is felt as an affirmation of life and gives a sense of a better life, by controlling breathing and blood circulation, which are interrelated. This is what I felt.
After a few asanas, he taught me the role of counter-poses, whose mission is to revert certain negative consequences. He taught me a variety of asanas that I never met. He never imposed me their names in Sanskrit and wherever possible used the English - "posture bed, mountain pose, stand on their shoulders, stand on your head, etc." On the other hand, he taught me all the names of Pranayam in Sanskrit. After a while he began to measure my heart rate before and after class. My heart rate should not exceed 65 beats per minute, that he was sure that my breath harmoniously followed the efforts during the practice of asanas".
Follow the link above for the full article
'Richard said K’s teaching methodology consisted of 4 steps. First, he would demonstrate. Then he would dictate the steps verbally and Richard would take notes and/or draw a picture. Then K had Richard do it while he dictated the steps. Lastly, Richard would do it on his own and K would watch without dictating'. p6
RICHARD SCHECHNER'S NOTEBOOK 42
by Daniel Dale
See my earlier post
Namarupa : Richard Schechner's notebook on his studies with KrishanamacharyaPhotographs by Eddie Stern