From the Iyengar Yoga National Association of the United States (IYNAUS):
This post was originally published in September 2019.
A year ago, our community and the larger US yoga community were roiled by allegations of sexual misconduct and other abuses in the teaching of yoga.
The past year has been challenging for IYNAUS and our members. We have devoted untold hours to addressing specific allegations and formulating policies and practices to assure the safety of our students. We have released several reports and other documents over the past 12 months. Today, we release two more:
The first is entitled Progress Report on Prevention of Verbal, Sexual, And Other Physical Abuses. It summarizes our reforms and their effects, and it addresses allegations that have been made about Iyengar Yoga and IYNAUS in social and other media. Please click here to read the report.
The second is entitled “Ethical Guidelines to Prevent Verbal Abuse, Sexual Harassment, and Physical Abuse.” It sets forth new rules and guidelines to assure that U.S. CIYTs adhere to the highest ethical standards. Please click here to read it.
We thank the committee for their strong leadership in developing the new guidelines. We are also grateful to those U.S. CIYTs who have been vigilant in protecting the safety, autonomy, and dignity of their students for many decades. Their practices and integrity have given us models for the rules, guidelines, and other policies that we have adopted.
Together, we can move forward as a community, united in the teachings of BKS Iyengar and in the spirit of kindness.
Yours in yoga,
IYNAUS Board of Directors