Yoga is an ancient practice is has been known for thousands of years for healing people. India is a country where this ancient practice was born 5000 years ago and a place where lord Adiyogi shiva has started this practice and later on our great Indian masters has kept the lineages of traditional yoga alive and passed to their students and the rest of the world. Those were the yoga teacher who has kept the tradition of yoga alive and spread the light of this ancient art and transformed the whole dimension of yoga teacher training courses in India with their teachings. All of these yoga gurus has followed the path of yoga but it all lead to one goal that was to spread the light of traditional yoga and connect them with their inner consciousness through the practice of yoga.
Infamous as father of modern yoga T. krishnamacharya was a prominent ayurvedic scholar, a yoga teacher and healer who revived the traditional art of hatha yoga. He was born on 18 November 1888 in Karnataka he developed the form of vinyasa yoga by combining breath and movement into the traditional hatha yoga. His teaching styles were based on patanjali yoga sutra and his disciples later on went on become some really influential yoga teachers.
2. Swami Sivananda SaraswatiBorn in tamil Nadu sivananda saraswati is prominently known for combining karma yoga, bhakti yoga, jnana yoga and raja yoga. At the age of 40 sivananda saraswati came to rishikesh in the search of self realization with the rigorous practice of yoga and meditation. Later on he established siavananda ashram that follows the path of swami sivananda saraswati. He went on to spread the teaching of yoga all over the world and dedicated his life towards the learning scriptures, teaching yoga and spirituality.
3. Maharishi Mahesh YogiMaharshi Mahesh yogi was born in 12 January 1918 is famous to develop a deeper form of meditation that is known as transcendental meditation technique. It is a type of mantra meditation that produces deeper state of relaxation and promote a sense of sprirituality . He was later on become a spiritual guru of Beatles, beach boys and various celebrities. He encourages the studies to prove the benefits of yoga and meditation on the brain.
4. Swami RamaBorn in 1925 was the first Indian born yogi that was studied by the group of western scientist. He was born in Garhwal Himalaya and brought under the guidance of various sages. He later on established Himalayan International institute of yogic science and philosophy and become the yogi who claims to control his body process and become a holder of sakhya yoga tradition.
5. B.K.S IyengarBKS Iyengar or Bellur Krishnamacharya Sundararaja Iyengar was the founder of the famous Iyengar Yoga. He started on the path of yoga after suffering from various diseases throughout the childhood that made him very weak. He started his yogic journey under his brother in law T Krishnamacharya and played a pivotal role in spreading the teaching of hatha yoga in the west.
Later on, he started experimenting with this ancient art and develop a new form that is what we have known today as Iyengar Yoga and turned into a popular international yoga teacher. Later on, in 1975, he established the Ramamani Iyengar yoga memorial institute.
6. Swami KavalayanandaSwami Kuvalayananda was born on 30 August 1883 was a prominent researcher and a yoga teacher, known for his research work in the yoga and its practices. He started working on yoga Mimansa that was his first scientific journal.
7. Krishna Pattabhi JoisA Sanskrit scholar and a great Indian yoga master K Pattabhi Jois is one of the prominent names in the niche of yoga. Born in the Brahmin family he learned Sanskrit, Vedas and the art of yoga from childhood. A prominent disciple of T Krishnamacharya that later on developed Ashtanga yoga or ashtanga vinyasa yoga that was based on the teachings of ancient scripture yoga korunta.
8. Jaggi VasudevA mystic personality and popularly known as Sadhguru is a founder of Isha yoga; a foundation that provides various yoga programs all over the globe. He is well versed yogi and philanthropist that has spent his whole life in delivering the knowledge of yoga to the people and helps people through his foundation.
9. Paramahansa YoganandaYogananda was a first Indian yogi who is famous for introducing the teaching of kriya yoga to the west. He was the first yogi to teach yoga in the west and the author of the Autobiography of a yogi. A first yogi to settle in the west he travelled to spread the teaching of yoga and spirituality to the west.
10. Dhirendra BrahmachariAlso known as a controversial yoga guru; he was the yoga teacher of Indira Gandhi. He was a published author and the first one to use television to popularize yoga in India.
See also Yoga Teacher Training in India