David Swenson began practicing yoga in 1969 at the age of 13. His older brother Doug was his first teacher. They practiced hatha yoga from whatever books they could find. David's introduction to Ashtanga came in 1973 when he met David Williams and Nancy Gilgoff in Encinitas, California. In 1975 David and Nancy brought K. Pattabhi Jois to the U.S. for the first time and Swenson was fortunate enough to be there. Swenson made his first trip to Mysore in 1977. He is one of a very small number of people that have learned the full Ashtanga system as it was originally taught by K. Pattabhi Jois. David Swenson is recognized today as one of the world’s foremost practitioners and instructors of Ashtanga Yoga. David has produced 5 DVD’s and is the author of the highly popular and bestselling yoga book: Ashtanga Yoga “The Practice Manual” that has been printed in 10 different languages and sold internationally.

In Janauary 2025, he was invited to join the Asian Art Association Singapore (Yoga).

Ashtanga means eight-limbs, and it’s a philosophical way of viewing life. It’s also a method of yoga practice that involves five things: Ujjayi breath, which means sound-breathing—it sounds a bit like Darth Vader. It keeps you focused. We listen to our own breath as a barometer of how our practice is going. If it’s shallow I know I’m distracted. If it’s harsh I’m pushing too hard.

We also have a visual point we look at. If you do meditation usually there is a visual point to look at that grounds you, like a candle or a bowl or something. Sort of like a distraction filtration system. There is also an element of moving energy through your body which you could liken to Tai Chi.

Then there’s the poses, the asanas themselves. Ashtanga is a specific arrangement of the poses, which I also liken to Tai Chi, because you do the same sequences over and over for your whole life, so it becomes a meditation in motion over the course of your whole life. And there are 6 different levels that we practice with and use these repeated sequences. People say that when you do these six sequences, it’s like spinning the numbers on a safe and the door opens. You methodically open through the muscles of the body. Then there’s the linking of the postures with the breath. This is called vinyasa. Ashtanga has gotten pretty big over the years. Athletes started doing it, celebrities started doing it. Sting, Madonna, Paul Simon, Eddie Vedder. One of the great athletes of all time, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, used to come to my classes in Los Angeles, and he said that it helped him have a greater longevity in his basketball career. It’s funny because I grew up in Texas where sports and jock culture is obviously so important and I never fit in with any of that, but I have a great respect for it.

Any yoga that uses the word “power” or “vinyasa” or “flow” has a root from Ashtanga. It doesn’t mean Ashtanga’s better, but it’s the root. Other yoga people used to moving slowly would get very upset by Ashtanga, and say that’s not yoga, you don’t huff and puff and sweat like that.

——《GQ》（January 5, 2023）

Ashtanga Yoga - The Practice Manual (Book)
Ashtanga Yoga: The Practice with David Swenson (DVD)