Patricia Walden

Patricia came to yoga in her early 20s, as a spiritual calling. In 1976, she met B.K.S Iyengar and was immediately struck by his light, energy, insight, and genius, as well as by his joy in yoga and delightful humor. She became his devoted student and has traveled to Pune, India, to study with him (and his daughter Geeta) every year since. Under Guruji’s guidance, she has developed her own methodical and inspirational approach to practice and teaching.

Patricia has been a prominent figure in the evolution of yoga in the United States and has played an active role in the Iyengar Yoga community since the mid-1980s. She co-founded the B.K.S Iyengar Center of Cambridge, served as president of the B.K.S Iyengar Association of Massachusetts, and co-chaired the 1987 B.K.S Iyengar Yoga Convention. She helped start the National Certification Committee and has served on it for more than 23 years.

Currently, she is vice president of the B.K.S. Iyengar Regional Association of New England. Along with her teaching, Patricia is known for her yoga videos and writings. Her DVDs, including Yoga for Beginners, were tremendously influential in the popularization of yoga worldwide. She has co-authored three books, including The Women’s Book of Yoga and Health, and a booklet on yoga for depression (“Take an Action, No Matter How Small”).

In 2004, she was cited by Yoga Journal as one of “25 American yoga originals who are shaping yoga today.” Patricia’s classes are infused with wisdom, humor, and the philosophy of yoga. Her aspiration is that students leave class seated in their hearts with fearlessness, having touched the deeper levels of their being. In addition to teaching at Down Under School of Yoga and in Cambridge, Patricia conducts workshops, retreats and teacher trainings both nationally and internationally.