I thought my life had already ended. I lived without hope, purpose and pleasure from then on. I had lived a hopeless life for three years. However, I hated that I couldn’t stop living hopelessly. Finally, one day, I decided to stop it by making major changes and doing something new.
That something new was just Iyengar Yoga.
Before, I only knew vaguely that yoga is very good for the body and mind, I wasn’t even aware of Iyengar Yoga at all. By coincidence, the nearest yoga class from my place was Iyengar Yoga.
I had a trial lesson. It was hard for me at first but I felt comfortable as the class ended. My yoga teacher listened to my problems kindly and advised me sincerely after the trial lesson. After that, I decided to join his yoga class.
Before I started yoga, I had suffered from depression, weight gain and stiff body due to lack of exercise but the lessons gradually improved me. I began to look forward to yoga lessons every time. In only 3 months, it changed me dramatically. I began to lose weight and became more flexible; moreover my mind felt more calm.
One day, a Russian friend of my teacher’s joined our yoga class. She is also a very good Iyengar Yoga teacher and we had to speak English to communicate with her. We hesitated to speak to her at first but I tried to talk to her. Luckily, she advised me during the class and I was very glad we could communicate in English.
Since Iyengar Yoga is international, many foreign visitors would also visit our yoga class. I had good opportunities to communicate with them in English.
These experiences inspired me. I decided to continue learning English again and I started international communication volunteer work, too. Likewise, I resumed to teaching as a volunteer English teacher once a week. Gradually I regained my self-confidence.
I believe Iyengar Yoga revived my life.
Unfortunately, Mr. Iyengar, the founder of Iyengar Yoga, passed away on August 20th, 2014. Mr. Iyengar is a worldwide yoga leader, and he’s especially well-known in India, Europe and America. However, his achievement isn’t well-known in Japan.
Famous foreign media reported his death widely. His close students and friends wrote about their memories of him. I translated four of their articles into Japanese and posted them online. I wanted to share these with my fellow Japanese who are also learning Iyengar Yoga. Even though my translation wasn’t really good, I am honored that I can contribute in informing people of Mr. Iyengar’s achievement.
Iyengar Yoga inspired and encouraged me to learn English again and in return, English helps me to inform people of Mr. Iyengar’s achievement. I’m happy that Iyengar Yoga and English both complement and work well with each other. Now I consider both Iyengar Yoga and English as my lifework.
