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| The Best Movie About Yoga Ever!I do yoga 7 days a week.This documentary makes every yoga instructional video pale by comparison. This is not your how to do yoga video. It is living yoga! If you combine the 9/11 disaster in N.Y.C. with the 30 day instructional pilgrimage of 100's of yogis and N.Y.C. yoga zealots to learn from one of the greatest yoga gurus of all times, Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, you have the rare opportunity to experience what yoga is all about. Here you have the greatest yoga story of its kind. Guru Jois and his family are a treasure. His grandson, Sarath, is so gifted at yoga even the very youngest viewer will be amazed! I let a school teacher who is also a Pilates instructor borrow the DVD and show it to her high school class. They were so entralled with this video that yoga has taken on a new meaning to these young people. After the World Trade Center disaster, the religious ceremony by the Guru and his Hindu colleagues was so necessary to bring closure to those attending. An amazing documentary told by a very talented and gifted group of devoted professionals and yoga devotees including Gwyneth Paltrow and Willem Defoe. Everyone who has been caught up in 9/11, not just the yoga community, should view this award winning video!
YesI was there and witness these things. It is a simple yet wonderful depiction of what happened. Whenever I need a lift or a reminder of what my practice is, I put on this video.
Inspiring and motivatingI agree wholeheartedly with each of the beautifully written 5 star reviews here. For myself, I am an aging baby boomer who has been practicing yoga off and on since my high school days in the early 70s. I am far from being the accomplished yogini such as is seen in this documentary but now with serious health issues I have returned to a more dedicated practice, doing what I can to self-heal and turn my chronic illnesses around. I find this captivating film to be very inspiring and motivating. It's calming and reassuring when I'm in despair and want to give up my daily practice. I just wish it were longer.
Not the most enlightening intro to the disciplineThis film is a short 41 minutes. It should have been called "Why Ashtanga?". It does not go deep enough into the discipline of Ashtanga yoga to really want you to practice it. It is very daunting, the poses are extremely difficult and fast paced. If someone has already been introduced to this style of yoga then this will certainly offer a little more info. But nothing really informs a viewer as to why one should adopt this style of yoga, especially when there are so many other styles that are just as important and maybe even more appropriate for a new student of the discipline.
The most interesting info is that the creator of the style K. Pattabhi Jois has a cult like following. You can't understand the language he is speaking when he directs the students(several hundred of them) from one pose to the next. The people interviewed are in such bad lighting, some you can't even see their faces. There is a very strange scene where his students at the end of the session come up to him and kneel before him and kiss his feet. This is totally strange, but some of them do it willingly while others shake his hand or kiss him on the cheek. It's fine to revere someone, but he is a man, not a God.
His grandson is interesting to watch, being the only one who does the most advanced series of poses. You could call him a human rubber band, his flexibilty is unbelievabe. The film was shot during the tragedy of 9/11 and his entire family was there to continue classes and offer prayer to the students who clearly needed something to help them through the moment.
I can honestly say I can do without celebrity endorsements for the philosophy. I could care less that Willem Dafoe or Gweneth Paltrow are followers. I don't practice yoga because some pretentious celebrity is involved. I practice because it helps my physical and mental state. I distrust celebrities who boast about this like it's a fad such as former Catholics who practice Kabballah, or driving hybirds, or adopting children that are constantly photographed in the media. Nothing these two talked about enlighten the viewer as to why again, one should try Ashtanga yoga. My suggestion, don't buy this dvd. Rent it from Netflix. If you are really interested in trying or extending you knowledge of the Mysore style, take a local class or attend a workshop. You'll get a great deal more from that than you will from this film.
worth watching i thought it sort of missed the point of yoga by focusing so much on famous people who didnt really have a lot to say - i would have loved more of the actual practice - it would have been interesting to have followed a beginner and see how they changed over the course of the month - it is still definitely worth watching - its great to see such a wonderful family and how they work together
DescriptionAshtanga, NY was originally intended as a concert film celebrating the Ashtanga style of yoga, now wildly popular in the United States and around the world. It follows the aging yoga guru Sri K. Pattabhi Jois as he gives his final North American workshop in New York City in September 2001. Devotees were arriving from all over the world to partake in a rare opportunity to practice with the 86 year-old Jois. The 9/11 terrorist attacks took place in the midst of this celebration, and dramatically changed the meaning and purpose of this yoga gathering. In the difficult weeks that followed, Jois used the Ashtanga practice to help heal and fortify his diverse followers. This is no intructional video, and these are not your garden-variety contortionists. Ashtanga, NY is a real look into the intersection of ancient practice and modern life, New York-style.
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