The vision of Maa Hansaji Yogendra

Maa Hansaji Yogendra in India

Yoga guru Hansaji Yogendra shares traditional yoga philosophy with millions of people worldwide: ”Every person should learn how to live a good life”

From healthy eating, to morning rituals and breathing exercises, yoga is more than that hour a week you spend on the mat. For Indian yoga guru Maa Hansaji Yogendra (b. 1947), yoga is actually present in almost every aspect of her life. As director of The Yoga Institute in Mumbai, she has made yoga much more accessible over the past 25 years, especially to housewives. In the West, yoga has now gained a lot of popularity as well, but in doing so it sometimes focuses more on its benefits to appearance. Maa Hansaji’s mission is to share the traditional, Indian philosophy of yoga with the world in order to help as many people as possible become better versions of themselves.

Traditional yoga

Traditional yoga is about the default values of life. How do you fulfil your role in the family? How do you interact with other people? What is a healthy diet? How do you take care of your body? How do you deal with complaints and illness? And how do you stay mentally healthy? These are questions that are addressed within the philosophy of yoga and the daily practice of yoga. In the end, it’s all about balance. ”Yoga can help people of all ages,” Hansaji explains. ”From young children to adults. We also talk about yoga from womb to tomb. Or in other words from birth to death, yoga is good for everyone. Yoga is essentially education, we want to understand life better. If your lifestyle, your perspective on the world, your way of thinking and your diet is not balanced, then you will suffer from physical and mental problems. Once you understand the connection between those different aspects, you can work in a targeted way to find balance and your blockages will be removed.”

”Teach children how to be in life, how to deal with ups and downs and how to deal with other people.”

 Hansaji Yogendra her youth with yoga

Hansaji Yogendra herself was born in Mumbai and grew up with yoga. Her father went to the Yoga Institute to learn about yoga and brought that knowledge home with him. ”As young children, we were taught by him. At the age of two we were already doing asanas and breathing exercises. He was very determined to give us something from yoga and actually we had no choice, as a child you listen to your father. Besides that, I was also very flexible and could do all kinds of asanas.” Despite the large presence of yoga in her childhood, Hansaji initially chose a different path. She completed a law degree, but continued practicing yoga and experienced how yoga and natural medicine helped her with various health problems. She later completed Yoga Teacher Training at the Yoga Institute and also earned a PhD from The Open International University for Complementary Medicines.

Starting early

According to Hansaji, children benefit greatly from yoga. ”Teach children how to be in life, how to deal with ups and downs and how to deal with other people. After all, every person is different and has different needs. It is good to realize at an early age that not everyone will like you or want to work with you, it is simply not possible. We teach them how to deal with that and you really notice that it makes a difference in the way they see the world and interact with others. Ultimately, it’s about going through a self-development that makes you a better person.”

Connection mind and body

”During my training, I learned about the connection between the mind and the body. If something is not right mentally, it also affects the rest of your system. Your body suffers when you have to deal with grief or pain. This was an eye-opener for me. I worked hard on my mental fitness so that that couldn’t get in my way anymore. When I took actions in my life at the right time and in the right way, I noticed that all my health problems disappeared.”

How do you live a good life?

”It’s so important within yoga to pay attention to human psychology, how the mind works and how it should work, and to philosophy, what is the purpose of the actions in your life. How do you live a good life? That’s really what every human being should learn. How you implement this in your life differs from person to person.” Currently, this approach that is the foundation of yoga is not as central in many yoga practices. A shame, according to Hansaji, because this is precisely what yoga is all about.

Lectures, discussions and regular reflection on life are very important in this regard. ”When you regularly reflect on the patterns in your life, you can come to the conclusion that thinking before you act is incredibly important. Plan your days, live in harmony with nature, prioritize proper nutrition, get enough sleep and approach life in a positive way.”

The importance of balance

”Every thought you have is sent out into the world. If you think about life in a better way then you have a different vibration and you attract what suits you. The first thing we tell people who come with a problem is to look at themselves. What can you do yourself to solve it? You also have a responsibility to the rest of the world to make a positive contribution. That responsibility starts with yourself and you also have it to the people around you. Do what you can to help others. When you start doing that, you can feel the difference. Real happiness comes from being useful to others, rather than living only for yourself.”

”We have to maintain a certain standard and make sure that yoga is taught in the right way, in its purest form.”

 

 Purest form of yoga

In the West, there are now so many variations on yoga that some types of yoga can be far removed from the original form. ”It has become too much about the money and the physical benefits. Nowadays people who only know a few asanas and have done a few yoga classes in their lives are suddenly teacher. That’s the problem. The right teacher and education makes the biggest difference.”

For that reason, the Yoga Institute has several centres worldwide. ”We have to maintain a certain standard and make sure that yoga is taught in the right way, in its purest form.” As many as 3,000 students, of all ages and backgrounds, attend the Yoga Institute in Mumbai every day. Hansaji has been instrumental in making yoga accessible. Previously, yoga was mainly taught from guru to disciple, but now it is possible for people of all ages and backgrounds to take classes. In addition, Hansaji has written many books about how yoga can help in your life and she also has a large reach on social media.

 

With videos about the right lifestyle and mindset, she reaches almost 2.3 million people worldwide. This year Hansaji became President of the Indian Yoga Association. In that role, she hopes to recruit more members to the Indian Yoga Association so that more people can give yoga direction in the world. ”We want to be recognized worldwide as the institute so that we can spread yoga in the right way with our knowledge and experience.”

Foto of Maa Hansaji Yogendra and Pinky More in France

Once you start following the path of Yoga and apply it to your actions you can become a Yogi. Also read our article:  Are you a Yogi? Check these 8 points to find out if you are!

Hansaji Yogendra visits France in August 2025

Do you want to have the chance to meet Maa hansaji in person and learn from her? In August 2025 she comes to Centre Lothlorien for the One Planet – One People Yogafestival. Click on the link or contact us for more information!

Do you need Personal advice?

Which Asana suits you? What is your Ayurvedic constitution? Which food and lifestyle will return your health? What do you need to change to find happiness?

Contact us for advice and private consultations