Honouring the 97th birth anniversary of BKS Iyengar, who is considered to be one of the foremost Yoga teachers in India, Google Doodle pays a tribute to him by making an animated doodle of an old man who resembles him, performing different yoga asanas (postures).
According to Google, it has been said that BKS Iyengar could hold a headstand for nearly half an hour well into his eighties. He was instrumental in popularising yoga not only in India but also in the West and is beloved by followers on nearly every continent.
Along with being the author of many books on yoga practice and philosophy including Light on Yoga, Light on Pranayama, he’s also the founder of the ‘Iyengar Yoga’ that has been taught in more than 70 countries. It emphasis on detail, precision and alignment in the performance of asana and pranayama. The development of strength, mobility and stability is gained through the asanas. After meeting with an accident, Iyengar dislocated his spine which led to him exploring the use of props to help disabled people practice Yoga.
Born on 14 December 1918, Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja Iyengar passed away on 20 August 2014, due to heart and renal failure. Till date he has been honoured with India’s civilian awards like the Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan and the Padma Vibhushan. Last year, Iyengar was also in the 100 most influential people by Time Magazine’s list. The Father of Modern Yoga, Tirumalai Krishnamacharya, has also endorsed him for his teaching style and awarded him a gold medal known as Yoga Shikshaka Chakravarti, which means “Emperor of Yoga Teachers, Teacher of Teachers.”
In the doodle we can see him performing three different asanas for the letters, ‘O’ and ‘L’. All three letters witness him executing various asanas and this doodle has been designed by Kevin Laughlin who is an illustrator with experience in video game development and production design for animation. This animated doodle has managed to reach the web platforms across several countries.