Sri T. Krishnamacharya, one of the greatest masters of yoga, <\/strong>the light of his knowledge has profoundly influenced the whole world.<\/p>\n

He has never left anyone indifferent. In the course of a life that would easily fill several ordinary lives, he had many extraordinary encounters. A descendant of the great priests serving at the temple of the Lord of the Seven Hills, who in turn were descendants of N\u00e2thamuni, Sri Venkateshvara <\/strong>of Tirumalai<\/strong>, this teacher had been promised an exceptional destiny at his birth. Nothing commonplace could happen to him.<\/p>\n

Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya<\/strong> was born on 18 November 1888, the eldest of six children (four boys and two girls).<\/p>\n

His father, Sri Tirumalai Srinivasa Thathacharya<\/strong>, a great religious master teaching the knowledge of the holy books (the Vedas), takes charge of the child\u2019s education with his wife Shrimati Ranganayakamma.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The young Krishnamacharya is gifted with great physical force, coupled with extraordinary temperament and intelligence. He also suffused with an intense ardour to know and\u2026 to know how.<\/p>\n

Still an adolescent, Krishnamacharya sets off to discover his country, its sages, its scholars, its artists and its mystics.<\/p>\n

An incredible journey is the life of this young man who will by and by discover, then master, the most varied disciplines, from close-quarters combat to astrology to Vedic rituals.<\/p>\n

A well of sciences, fluent in seven languages, an eminent pundit, he will successively explore each of the classical viewpoints of Indian philosophical thought, obtaining the highest distinctions in the most celebrated traditional schools.<\/p>\n

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Benares, Varanasi, India in 1922<\/p><\/div>\n

Varanasi<\/strong><\/p>\n

When he left for Benares for the first time, around the age of 18, he was fortunate to be instructed in certain secrets of Sanskrit grammar in the course of a single night by a sort of genius, Shivakumar Sh\u00e2stri. <\/strong>Back in Mysore, he received an exhaustive three-year education in the philosophy of Ved\u00e2nta by the director of Parakala Mutt, Brahmatantra Sri Krishna Brahmatantra Sw\u00e2mi. <\/strong>Once again back to Benares, he found there a deeply enlightened tutor, Sri Vamacarana Bhatt\u00e2ch\u00e2rya<\/strong> who, while teaching him philosophy, alsohelped him for years giving him advice on how to live his life.<\/p>\n

The holy lake of M\u00e2nasarovar\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

As advised by his tutor at the University of Patna<\/strong>, he then set off on foot for the Himalayas. By difficult paths and rope bridges over spanning torrents, he arrived at the foot of Kailash, the mythical mountain considered to be the abode of Shiva and the axis of the universe, and at the holy lake of M\u00e2nasarovar.<\/p>\n

Yoga<\/strong><\/p>\n

He learns and practices intensively all the different aspects of yoga. Thus, in the second phase of his life, he will become one of the greatest (Maha) yogi (\u00e2charya) of his time.<\/p>\n

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Maharaja of Mysore, painting<\/p><\/div>\n

The maharajah of Mysore<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 1924, he is invited by the maharajah of Mysore who viened yoga as a help in treating his numerous physical ailments. He opened a yoga school in his palace in 1955.<\/p>\n

He established himself in Mysore<\/strong><\/p>\n

He is already in his forties when he established himself in Mysore, in the South of India, there he marries the very young Srimati<\/strong> Namaginammal<\/strong>. She will give him six children, three boys and three girls.<\/p>\n

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Srimati Namaginammal wife of Krishnamacharya<\/p><\/div>\n

Madras (Chennai)<\/strong><\/p>\n

When he established himself in Madras in the fifties, he once again had the opportunity to treat two men in very senior positions. Both suffered from paralysis: an eminent lawyer Sri T.R. Venkatar\u00e2ma Sh\u00e2str\u00ee <\/strong>and Sir Alladi Krishnasw\u00e2mi Iyer<\/strong>, the celebrated jurist who had participated in the drafting of the Indian constitution. Both, causing him stay Madras, added themselves to the long list of crucial encounters that influenced the course of his life. (Extract of N\u00b0 24 of Viniyoga<\/strong>, dedicated to the 100^{th<\/sup> anniversary of Sri T. Krishnamacharya).<\/em><\/p>\n}

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