The Tree of Yoga (Shambhala Classics)

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Iyengar is a major yogi and it's nice to read his thoughts - but I only bought this as it is required reading for teacher training. I thought "The Heart of Yoga" explains the limbs of yoga in a way that is much more clear.

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This book is great for those who want to learn more about the spiritual application of yoga.

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Doing yoga is not just for the sake of doing the asanas, but a way of getting deeper in perfectioning the movement through being in a process of discovery your innerself soul and body. Who reads The Tree of Yoga will be able to understand better what I am trying to share with you.

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After more than 30 years of yoga practice and classes from expert teachers, I continue to look for the lessons that will take me beyond where I am today. I have read this book so many times and always find new lessons in it. The first time, I probably read it through in a couple of hours. Now, I keep it on top of a stack of frequently consulted works. Most mornings, here in Brooklyn (NY) in a winter that seems an object lesson in global warming, I turn to The Tree of Yoga in the first hour after wakening. This practice reminds me to consider the important lessons I might forget: my stage in life, the stages that came before, how short life is, what is happening today, the tendency of memory to distract the mind, the power of attention, the value of self-study, etc. And tomorrow, a new lesson, a new understanding, with the next passage read carefully in the pale light of a winter morning. This is a book that keeps on giving.

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This is a great book for the new and the familiar to yoga. This compilation of lectures is a more philosophical look at his yoga, unlike the more technical books Light on Yoga and Light on Pranayama. Although these last two are indispensible, in this book, Iyengar's love of yoga shines through his words. He develops the analogy of the eight limbs of yoga as a tree skillfully and beautifully. Really excellent!