A biography for Bikram Choudhuryhasn’t been written yet.
“One student was mixing my yoga up with other kinds, and I said, 'No, you cannot do that.' You cannot put calamari in the sushi and call it sushi.”
“If you don't suffer, you don't get anything. Nothing easy in life.”
“Indians do not like Indian teachers; they prefer foreigners, but there is a huge demand for Indian teachers around the world.”
“The meaning of yoga is connection of mind, body and spirit. If you have a bad telecommunication system, your body gets sick. Yoga helps fix that.”
“There's nothing wrong with material things as long as you don't lie, cheat and steal.”
“Before me, there was no money, no business with yoga.”
“Movie stars, rich people - oh, they have so many beautiful cars!”
“Any kind of problem you have in your life, you come to Bikram. Your life becomes the best in the world.”
“Maintaining spirituality and humanism are the keys to success. It's a balance.”
“Since my asana techniques increase circulation to all organs in the body and increase lung efficiency, I recommend Bikram Balance natural whole food beverage as a way to provide all the critical nutrients to oxygenate the blood and restore the acid/alkaline balance.”
“You use the body as a medium to bring the mind back to the brain. Perfect married between body and mind. Then, you can knock the door to the spirit.”
“Yoga in America is a joke.”
“Yoga competition is an old Indian tradition.”
“Yoga only works one way.”
“I like money. You like money. We need the money. But, money is not going to bring humanity and spiritualism into your life.”
“Natural hydration is a key factor in any type of sports performance.”
“In America, they say, you can take a horse to the pond, but you can't make him drink. My way is different. I only take the horse to the pond to make him drink. If he doesn't, I'll cut his head off.”
“I have both English bulldog determination and Bengal tiger strength.”
“It wasn't easy in the 1970s when I initially started on my mission - to take yoga to the world. Nobody knew what it was in Japan. When I met Bill Clinton for the first time, he asked me if it was a form of yogurt that you eat! But I kept my faith and never gave up on my quest.”
“I always forgave my students, like Jesus.”