Most of us came upon the blessing of Iyengar Yoga in a class or workshop, and,
with time and practice, our lives transform. Few of us have had the burning
quest to travel in our own countries and in India to find our Guru. Faeq Biria had
that burning zeal to experience and search the truth in yoga which led him to
Guruji Iyengar.

That quest itself is full of stories and experiences to fill a book, never mind what
transpired after the Guru came into his life. If one had the opportunity to listen to
Faeq’s encounters with the yogis of the day, his words of yogic truths and guidance
would fill one’s being. Faeq, a person of grand experience, joy, and wisdom,
illustrated his humbleness. He arranged his life’s service in yoga as per
Guruji’s prompts. From accompanying Guruji as part of the entourage all over
the world, to driving Guruji on road trips in Europe in the old days, Guruji sent
Faeq as an envoi to teach Iyengar Yoga throughout Europe, Africa, South America
and Asia. In some countries he was sent to train teachers and offer guidance
to start associations. His summer Intensives in the south of France were started
thanks to Guruji’s idea.

Faeq never wrote that book some of his students had pleaded for him to do. As
he told us, he was blessed to be of assistance to Guruji as he wrote his books.
Early on with Tree of Yoga, then from Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali,
through all eight Astadala Yoga Malas, Faeq could be seen at Guruji’s right in the
RIMYI library. In Asthadala Yoga Mala vol 8, Guruji acknowledges Faeq’s service
by saying: “ Faeq Biria - Who with dedication to the subject and to me, came to
India every year specifically to help me, lending his unimaginable memory power
which was a great help for me to rebuild the subject from his constructive
thoughts which guided me to remove those repetitions that non deliberately appeared
in the volumes. With his memory power he has made the reader free
from boredom. ” This memory power has served us all.

My first taste of experience with tapas took place in classes, workshops, and in
intensives with Faeq. He guided us to experience our bodies like clay pots in the
kiln of Iyengar Yoga and to witness the effects of the cleansing and resulting
mental clarity. It was like a measuring stick, to see where one could go on the
mat at home, then to make it one’s own. To say the understanding of Guruji’s
teachings was deeply rooted in him, is not sufficient to express the depth of the
well of understanding from the source. For his students, what he brought to
teaching, was awe inspiring, wether that was in teacher training or in classes of
asana, pranayama and meditation There were always further layers waiting to be
discovered. One could only imagine the breadth of his sadhana to bring so
much forth to us. In all his expansive light, he always left us with the imprint that what we experienced with him was but a glimpse of the vastness of Guruji’s
teaching: our shared beacon of the light.

Faeq emanated a contagious joy and enthusiasm for Iyengar Yoga and towards
people who sincerely approached him to learn the subject. To say he offered
generously of his time and energy to others is an understatement. Those of us
near him would often ask how does he do it? His attitude brought us beyond
one’s self. He once said Guruji could see the positive potential for transformation
through yoga practice in everyone who took to the practice. Faeq offered
this message doing his utmost to aid seekers, making sure they had all the tools
he could fathom to construct a steady Iyengar Yoga Practice.

One would look with wonder at his knowledge of books on the Indian Schools of
Thought. Always during his travels, he found gems to add to his library or share
with others. His delivery of his understanding of the vast yoga philosophical
concepts and beliefs, gave us transformative reflections on and off the mat.
Faeq’s in-exhaustive studies of Santana Dharma offered us a clear and accessible
spiritual window to view living yoga as a path and all in the light of Guruji’s
works.

Words can not describe the life of exceptional souls. Faeq’s quest in Yoga, devotional
love for Guruji and the subject, combined with incredible will and insight
brought an exceptional teacher to us. At his final intensive in the USA, in Colorado
in 2019, Faeq told me one of his simplistic truths with his contagious enthusiasm:
“Guruji’s teachings contains all of what one may find in Yoga, one is to
delve in and discover.”

This is not the first time a great teacher passes. With Faeq as the mentor and
teacher for so many, we thought of him as a firm foundation, one who would always
be here. Since his passing forward, I bear witness to him in my life. I view
these times in practice, teaching and lifestyle as empowerments. I feel humbled
and blessed all at once to be one of the many to have learned with such a great
soul.

Carolyn Belko started the study of Iyengar Yoga with Faeq and Corine Biria in 1990 at
the Iyengar Yoga Center of Paris, where she trained with them and became a CIYT. She
presently teaches at The Iyengar Yoga Source in San Diego.​​