Sparks of Divinity is a collection of the teachings of yoga master B.
K. S. Iyengar first published in a French-English bilingual edition in
1976. The material for this book was gathered and compiled by Noëlle
Perez-Christiaens from class notes and correspondence during the
formative years of Iyengar's international career. The entries cover the
period from the late 1950s, when Iyengar was invited by Yehudi Menuin to
teach in Gstaad, Switzerland, to the year following the death of
Iyengar's wife and the opening of the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga
Institute in Pune, India.
When Noëlle first studied with Iyengar in Pune in 1959, Iyengar was
still teaching his pupils one-on-one at his home. During her stay in
India, Noëlle was regarded virtually as one of the household, and this
intimacy continued in their subsequent letters, where Iyengar wrote to
her more as a colleague and friend than as a teacher. We are fortunate
to include Noëlle's Indian Journal for 1959 and her Early Life of B. K.
S. Iyengar, translated into English especially for this edition, for
the intimate glimpses they give of Iyengar's personal life and family.
Sparks of Divinity is also a testament to the deep bond between
teacher and student. In an afterword about Noëlle, we learn how an early
suggestion from Iyengar moved her in a completely new direction, and how
she attributes her discoveries about Aplomb (natural balance) to
Iyengar's ongoing inspiration.
