Vanda Scaravelli discovered yoga later in life, finding in it a path to what she termed 'allegrezza,' the intelligent heart. Her teaching, deeply influenced by her studies with B. K. S. Iyengar and T. K. V. Desikachar, centered on the profound connection between breath, gravity, and the spine. Scaravelli developed a distinctive approach to yoga that emphasizes the natural intelligence of the body and effortless movement. Her seminal work, Awakening the Spine, continues to inspire practitioners and teachers globally.
The 83-year-old former teacher of J. Krishnamurti shares her revolutionary new yoga techniques for overall fitness. Based on the natural principles of gravity and breath, Scaravelli believes "if it hurts, it's wrong", and offers a gentle way to achieve and maintain overall health and a naturally supple spine--at any age. 150 black-and-white photographs.
For more than twenty-five years, until her death at the age of 91, Vanda Scaravelli was transforming bodies and lives with her innovative approach to yoga through the proper alignment of the spine. She listened to the body and worked with instead of against it. She used gravity, grounding, and breath to achieve dramatic improvements in health and well-being. Scaravelli reminds readers that: “if you are kind to your body, it will respond in an incredible way.” Awakening the Spine offers a gentle way to achieve and maintain overall health and a naturally supple spine – at any age. Lovingly revised by Vanda’s daughter Paola Scaravelli Cohen, based on the extensive notes Vanda left behind, Awakening the Spine is published for the first time as the author intended. With a new foreword by B.K.S. Iyengar, this is the definitive edition of one of yoga’s all-time classics. With photographs of Vanda Scaravelli by Rob Howard