Free yoga classes on National Iyengar Yoga Day
On Saturday, January 18 yoga teachers across the UK and Ireland will be holding free taster classes and events to celebrate National Iyengar Yoga Day and are encouraging people who are completely new to Iyengar yoga to give it a try.
Local teachers Claire Ferry, Rachel Overton and Annamarie McCausland will be offering classes at Maitri Studio in East Belfast on Friday 17th and Saturday 18th January.
Online searches for yoga classes surge in January as many of us try to stick to our New Year resolutions to get fitter, healthier and happier. In the UK statistics show that almost three quarters of us are overweight or obese, whilst one in six adults experience mental health problems.
Studies have shown that yoga can have many physical and mental health benefits, boosting our mood and leading to positive changes in our life - which can in turn lead to long term weight loss and improved mental health.
What is National Iyengar Yoga Day?
Named after B.K.S. Iyengar (14th December 1918 – 20th August 2014), one of the key figures credited with bringing yoga to the West, the Iyengar method is known for focussing on correct alignment and safety. In a typical beginners class simple poses or ‘asanas’ are taught, and as students progress teachers dive deeper into the detail of the poses as well as other traditional aspects of yoga including breathing, pranayama, and yoga philosophy.
Iyengar was a visionary Indian teacher who recognised the benefits of yoga and determined to make it widely accessible. His international bestseller ‘Light On Yoga’, published in 1966, is still considered an essential guide to yoga postures today.
BKS Iyengar’s legacy is Iyengar yoga, an internationally standardised method of teaching popular with students everywhere. Characterised by precision, teachers of Iyengar yoga practice and study for a minimum of six years before they can instruct students. This high level of training has made Iyengar yoga one of the most trusted and widely practised forms of yoga in the world.
In the words of B.K.S. Iyengar in his bestseller Light on Life: "Yoga can be practised by anyone, whatever one's state of mind or health. It is through practice that the scattered mind is brought to a focal point (knee, chest, etc.). This is a training regimen that moves us toward direct perception. Humour helps people move from fragmentation to wholeness too. It lightens the mind and makes it easier to guide and focus. A stable mind is like the hub of a wheel. The world may spin around you, but the mind is steady."
Find out more about classes in Belfast at https://maitristudio.net/events/national-iyengar-yoga-day-2025
Look further afield for classes elsewhere in Northern Ireland and beyond on Iyengar Yoga Ireland https://www.iyengaryogaireland.ie/national-iyengar-yoga-day or on the Iyengar Yoga (UK) website https://iyengaryoga.org.uk/national-iyengar-yoga-day/.