Renowned Indian Yoga master dies while hiking in Charlottesville, Virginia

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Fifty-three-year-old Sharath Jois, a celebrated yoga teacher from Mysore, India, and the grandson of legendary yoga guru K. Pattabhi Jois, tragically passed away from a heart attack on November 11, 2024, while  hiking near the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Jois was on a teaching tour across the United States and was scheduled to conduct a session in San Antonio as part of his itinerary. Reports indicate that he was hiking with approximately 50 students at Humpback Rocks when he became fatigued and collapsed. Despite his students’ efforts to administer CPR, he was pronounced dead upon the arrival of emergency responders.

Renowned for teaching Ashtanga yoga to global icons like Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Sting, Jois left an indelible mark on the yoga community.

Padma Shri awardee and former Director of India’s Central Bureau of Investigation, D.R. Kaarthikeyan, expressed his grief, stating, he was deeply shocked to learn of the untimely and sudden passing of the yoga master. Kaarthikeyan extended heartfelt condolences to Sharath’s family and to the countless teachers and practitioners privileged to have learned from him.

“It is with profound sadness that we share with you the news of the sudden passing of our beloved guru, Shri Sharath Jois. He passed away on November 11, 2024, in Virginia, US (US time). Sharath guruji was a benevolent teacher, a loving husband and father and above all, he was a kind-hearted human being,” noted a message on the Sharath Yoga Center website.

The message conveyed that his family, currently in the U.S., is working to bring his remains back to his hometown of Mysore, expressing, “This is an extremely difficult time for his family and students.”

(Used under special arrangement with South Asian Herald)