Ashtanga Yoga is a system of yoga that comes to us through a lineage originating in Mysore, India. Parampara is the direct flow of knowledge passed down from teacher to student. In the early 20th century, T. Krishnamacharya integrated various ancient teachings of yoga. One of his students, K. Pattabhi Jois, codified these teachings into what we now know as Ashtanga Yoga. His grandson, R. Sharath Jois, taught in this lineage in Mysore. Our lineage here in Arizona includes Lisa Schrempp, Karen Kelley, and AJ Frye, who each studied in Mysore with Pattabhi Jois and/or Sharath Jois.

Ashtanga can be translated as “eight limbs.” These limbs are yama (abstinences), niyama (observances), asana (postures), pranayama (breath control), pratyahara (sense withdrawal), dharana (concentration), dyana (meditation), and samadhi (absorption).  

All together, these limbs compromise our sadhana, a devoted daily practice. This is meant to be practical and sustainable within your life, and it does not look exactly the same for any two practitioners. Your individual practice starts small with a seed, slowly and naturally growing over time into a beautiful eight-limbed tree. 

The center of our asana practice as Ashtanga practitioners is trishtana: breathing, gazing point, and the posture itself.  We cultivate a steady quality in these fields over time, naturally developing qualities such as calmness, focus, strength, flexibility, and equanimity that we can apply on and off the mat.