A celebrated yoga guru who taught celebrities including Madonna and Gwyneth Paltrow has died at the age of 53 after reportedly suffering a heart attack while hiking in the US.
Sharath Jois died suddenly on Monday while hiking near the University of Virginia, and his death has prompted an outpouring of shock and grief from across the world.
Jois was the grandson of yoga guru K Pattabhi Jois, who developed and popularised the ashtanga vinyasa yoga style and established the renowned K Pattabhi Jois Ashtanga Yoga Institute in Mysore, India, in 1948.
Jois took over as head of the institute and leader of the ashtanga tradition following his grandfather’s death, and travelled the world teaching the practice.
He died on Monday after suffering a heart attack near University of Virginia in Charlottesville, where he had been visiting, the head of the university’s yoga programme John Bultman told the New York Times.
On Monday he held a seminar at the university, where he taught instructors a low-intensity version of ashtanga yoga, said Mr Bultman.
That afternoon he set off on a walk with a group of around 50 students at Humpback Rocks hiking trail in the Blue Ridge Mountains, around a 20-minute drive from the campus.
Jois appeared to be tired and trailed behind the group, Mr Bultman told the New York Times.
Less than a mile into the hike he sat down on a bench, before falling off it.
Students attempted to give him CPR but he was pronounced dead after medics arrived, said Mr Bultman.
Jois’ thousands of global followers have paid tribute to him following his “shocking” death, describing him as “a rare and great teacher with deep devotion to the tradition of yoga” who taught with “energy, strength, courage, wisdom and love”.
Jois led classes both in India and around the world, gaining a huge, devoted following that included some of the biggest celebrities on the planet.
He shared his experience in a 2006 interview with Times of India, saying: "Whether it's Madonna, Sting or Gywneth, once they enrolled in the classes they’ve been very disciplined.
“In the class, they’re like any student, minus stardom and celeb status.”
Jois described Madonna as “very dedicated”, and said she had by that time been learning ashtanga yoga for 12 years from one of his certified UK teachers. The pop superstar previously been taught by his grandfather K Pattabhi Jois, prior to his death in 2009.
“Her lifestyle and diet too have changed a great deal,” he said. “She's off junk food, for instance.”
He said Paltrow “got hooked” on ashtanga yoga after walking into one of his classes in New York, adding: “It’s a different matter that most students - especially the men - kept staring at her.”
Born in Mysore, Jois began practising yoga at the age of just seven, under his grandfather’s guidance, says Ashtanga Yoga London, which tells how he would wake at 3.30am each day to travel to his grandfather’s yoga institute.
It is a sad day for the yoga community worldwide. We mourn the loss of Sharath Jois, a revered teacher and custodian of the Ashtanga tradition. His teachings touched countless lives, inspiring practitioners globally with his dedication, wisdom, and deep connection to the roots of… pic.twitter.com/NqQvzHA8Mi
— Nouf Almarwaai (@NoufMarwaai) November 12, 2024
He went on to study electrical engineering, but gave up his vocation at 17 and focus fully on yoga, Times of India reported, later taking over his grandfather’s legacy.
Jois lived in Mysore, in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. He is reportedly survived by his mother, wife, two children, sister and brother.
Rebecca Loos, the Dutch former glamour model and former personal assistant to David Beckham, is among worldwide yoga practitioners who have paid tribute to him.
Sharing a video of a red sunrise over an alpine scene, she wrote on Instagram: “Fire sky this morning. Ashtanga Community is in mourning.
“RIP Sharath Jois.” In a second post, she wrote: “Appreciate every little moment life gives you.”
Saudi yoga teacher Nouf Almarwaai said: “It is a sad day for the yoga community worldwide.”
She described Jois as “a revered teacher and custodian of the ashtanga tradition”, adding: “His teachings touched countless lives, inspiring practitioners globally with his dedication, wisdom, and deep connection to the roots of yoga.”
Rajashree Choudhury described him as “a guiding light for practitioners worldwide”.
