On the surface, Yoga and feminism go together like bread and butter.
As an inclusive form of holistic exercise that incorporates
self-reflection, Yoga is extremely popular with women. Yoga, like
feminism, stresses self-actualization and reclaiming one's own power.
Yet, upon further reflection, there are notes of discord within the two
camps.
The Yoga in America 2008 survey found that just 28 percent
of yoga practitioners in the U.S. are men, but male Yogis are
disproportionally represented among instructors, especially famous
instructors. Consider Max Strom, Rodney Yee, John Friend, Rolf Gates,
Johnny Kest, Baron Baptiste, and Bikram Choudhury, as well as the
celebrated patrons of contemporary Yoga like Sri K. Pattabhi Jois,
B.K.S. Iyengar, Sri T. Krishnamacharya, and Sri Swami Satchidananda.
Some
find that the goals of Yoga and the goals of feminism are in
opposition. Women's Studies researcher and Yoga instructor Dr. Beth
Berila writes on her Yoga blog, "On our mats, we have the opportunity to
cultivate a witness to how things are. We can learn to accept reality
as it is, without judgment, and notice our patterns. But as a feminist, I
am not accustomed to accepting things as they are."
New York
Times Magazine in January 2011 published an article called "Fear (Again)
of Flying," by Judith Warner, highlighting women who are rejecting the
notion that "personal liberation is to be found in taking an active role
in the public world." Instead of fighting for change, women are looking
for their "own quiet center" in Yoga and a return to traditional
"feminine" activities like cleaning and childcare.
Finally, the
relationship between sex and Yoga, which has risen in proportion to the
commercialization of the practice, has hit women harder than men.
Increasingly body-baring fashions like the Yoga Tart clothing line and
books and DVDs like "Better Sex Through Yoga," both developed by New
York based Yogi and entrepreneur Garvey Rich, can make women feel as if a
last refuge from body image fears has been removed.
In September
2010, Judith Hanson Lasater, one of the founding editors of Yoga Journal
more than 35 years ago, wrote a letter to the magazine expressing her
sadness and confusion over the "photos of naked or half-naked women,"
and how they relate to the actual practice of Yoga. The letter sparked
an outcry on message boards and websites, many echoing her sentiments.
Fortunately,
these divergences need not condone Yoga to the scrap heap for true
feminists. Celebrate female instructors and request that they be given
equal time at conferences, workshops and events. Finding strength and
acceptance in oneself does not mean ignoring realities that need
transformation. Reject the idea that Yoga requires a sexy, scantily clad
body to be acceptable, and contact advertisers who promote images that
oppress. Taking these steps will make Utkata Konasana, or Goddess pose,
that much more valid when performed.
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