Yoga is a 5000-year old cultural practice that originated in the Indian subcontinent as a philosophy of discipline and control. The practice of yoga includes an entire lifestyle and mindset that involves raising the consciousness and calming the mind. Along with postures or asanas, the practitioners of yoga also engage themselves in breathing techniques, a strict diet as well as a particular lifestyle of simplicity. However, somehow, the image of ascetics and yogis that used to be associated with this tradition are slowly being replaced by that of women in tight pants and perfect bodies, stretching in a picturesque and flattering pose. The waves of Western yoga have swept through countries like the USA and Britain rapidly, and their ripples have made their way to reach India as well; an ironic occurrence, since yoga is a centuries-old tradition that was birthed and developed within our subcontinent.
Certainly, there can never be any problem with spreading knowledge to a greater audience, especially when the knowledge in question is such an important and enriching one. This was undoubtedly the intention with which Swami Vivekananda introduced the practice to the United States in the 1890s. Swami Vivekananda believed that all the different religions of the world “are but various phases of one eternal religion”, and this is the mindset which he had when he gave his famous speech in Chicago. Later, in 1950, Richard Hittleman came from studying under Ramana Maharshi in India to pioneer the study of yoga in New York and the American public in general. Although he did believe in the spirituality that is inevitably associated with yoga, he decided to present a very ‘secular’ version of yoga to the masses, perhaps heralding the form of Western yoga.
Restricting any kind of knowledge in the name of preserving culture is never acceptable. How freely any information can be disseminated is often one of the benchmarks of how progressive a society is. As Sadhguru, a famous yogi says, “Yoga is not an Indian thing. Yoga is a gift from India to the world, but it cannot belong to India.” However, it is reasonable to ensure that the way in which such information is presented should be agreeable to the origin of it. The recent commoditization of this sacred form is certainly a bone of contention, especially to those aware of the rich background it comes from. Yoga is now stripped of all religious associations to steer clear of any hurt sensibilities, and marketed purely as a form of exercise. In doing so, the core aspect of spirituality that yoga should be is lost and it takes on another, altered form altogether. This is completely contrary to the glaring truth that traditional yoga is completely above the concept of religion or Hinduism and is rather secular in itself, focusing merely on the self and the consciousness. In doing so, the lines between religion and spirituality are blurred even further, something which can be harmful for those who wish to lead a life where they are at peace with themselves without having to turn to one particular religion or the other. Large apparel companies, based in countries outside of India, reap the profits of their highly successful lines of ‘yoga gear’ that include form hugging yoga pants and tank tops that sport puns on the Sanskrit word Namaste. Again, this strays from the ideal that yoga advocates wherein one tries to stay away from material wants, desires and such distracting ideas such as commercial competition. Westerners decide to quit their boring jobs and chase their passions by getting 300-hour yoga certifications from other Westerners who have done the same before them, learning the asanas and their English names, diluting the essence of the practice more with every iteration.
The one aspect that seems missing from this movement is the presence of Indians anywhere. It is reasonable to suggest that the people from whom a culture originated should be present to decide what becomes of it. Yet, in the growing industry of Western yoga, the percentage of Indians reaping any benefit is abysmally small. Yoga classes and workshops try harder and harder to remove even a whiff of religion from yoga, scrapping any chanting or Sanskrit from the equation- even going so far as to rename it into terms like “mindful stretching”- and there remains no one with knowledge of the real origins of yoga to educate them about the importance of spirituality in one’s life, regardless of religion or lack of it. Instead, some ignorant Christian groups have begun labelling the practice of yoga as ‘sinful’ or rebranding it as their own in the form of ‘Christian Yoga’. Recently, a yoga teacher was banned from the premises of a church in the UK, for the reason that yoga does not acknowledge that “there is only one God and that…Jesus Christ is God himself”. Ironically, even the conversation that has started recently, regarding the appreciation versus appropriation of the practice of yoga, seems to be predominantly white. When people of a particular cultural background do not have any say in the propagation of their own culture, some questions must be raised.
An even more troubling phenomenon is the fact that this image of yoga seems to be circling back and colouring the Indian consciousness as well. The number of classes that have cropped up teaching a more ‘secular’, fancy, and hence Western form of yoga is surprising. Indians have always been susceptible to Western suggestion, a problem that has perhaps stemmed from the days of colonialism. This reclamation and rebranding of yoga can be considered a less aggressive and yet still concerning form of the same. Why can’t we, as a community and a nation with a staggeringly rich history backing us, stand up for our own culture and recognize it for what it is? Do all aspects of our culture need to go through a Western ‘cleansing’ for us to feel pride in them? It’s about time for India as a whole to repossess the beautiful culture that we have; one that advocates peace, oneness, inclusivity, and helps us lead a much better life as a whole.