I relate to the concepts of ego among practitioners in the yoga ashram, despite being there to rise above ego, still it creeps in, since we bring it with us to the yoga school.
Difficult teachers who sometimes deviated from the high standards and the path also arose occasionally, again victims of human nature. The standards of renunciation were high, like strict celibacy, no intoxication, no meat, fish or eggs; and no gambling or philosophical speculation. Sometimes one went too far trying to deny the body and it backfired.
But the worst is the leaders who become corrupted by desire for sex and money, or name and fame. Those are the pitfalls on any yoga path it seems, yoga being the path to transcendence, as you say. Yours was Bikram and mine was Bhakti.
Even the Buddha went through an austere attempt at awakening but then eventually preferred the middle way.