Reclaiming Yoga: Ancestral Wisdom Beyond Western Illusions
When most of us think about yoga, we often associate it with hippie influencers, upper-class housewives, and maybe even pricey athleisure wear.
The truth is that yoga is more than a health and wellness bandwagon. It is a long-standing practice with a complex history that has been culturally appropriated for consumers.
Cultural appropriation is the taking, diluting, and marketing of cultural practices from historically oppressed communities. When it comes to yoga, this often transpires on a scale of two opposing ends.
The first is the sterilization of yoga by removing traces of its Eastern roots so that it doesn’t “offend” Western practitioners. The opposite end involves sensationalized ads of South Asia and yoga, often encountered within health and lifestyle marketing. From sacred symbols plastered on t-shirts and walls to idols of deities used as decor.
The distortion of yoga's essence extends beyond European colonialism. It also involves deeply embedded systems of oppression like Hindu nationalism, Brahmanical patriarchy, and Islamophobia, which often go unnoticed.
Finding a balance between appreciation and appropriation begins with a profound understanding of yoga's history and intentions. This approach demands a commitment to reflect upon, challenge, and evolve our diverse perspectives of yoga
With the support and work written by activist Dr. Sheena Sood, Nous has provided an outline as to what an informed and decolonized yoga practice entails.
We hope to educate, inspire reflection, and evoke meaningful change.
Land and Ancestry
Decolonized and informed yoga acknowledges the land on which we practice and honors the Indigenous caretakers and tribes who have faced and continue to face displacement and violence due to colonial structures.
Ancestral Lineage
Decolonized and informed yoga critically examines yoga’s ancestral lineage, honoring the contributions of Indigenous and globally diverse cultures, including ancient African civilizations, to yoga’s evolution and preservation.
Historical Integrity
Decolonized and informed yoga rejects ethno-nationalistic frameworks and critically engages with classical Indian and Hindu philosophical texts, rather than accepting them as just and liberatory.
Challenging Narratives
Decolonized and informed yoga disrupts dominant cultural narratives by resisting the use of yoga as a tool for spiritual bypass and rejects whitewashed explanations and appropriations of yoga culture and history. It also considers the appropriateness of using Sanskrit, chants, clothing, and rituals not rooted in one's cultural lineage.
Justice and Equity
Decolonized and infromed yoga understands the experiences of poverty, suffering, and oppression as products of settler colonialism, racial capitalism, casteism, neocolonialism, and imperialism. It seeks to dismantle exploitative economic and social systems to eliminate suffering.
Holistic Connection
Decolonized and informed yoga honors the interconnectedness of humanity, all living beings, and nature, both on and off the mat. This includes recognizing nature and its elements—earth, water, air, and fire—and viewing Mother Earth as the ultimate guru of spiritual liberation.
Institutional Critique
Decolonized and informed yoga challenges the weaponization of yoga within modern institutions (e.g., yoga programs for police officers and militaries) and popular culture. It uses yoga and meditation to cultivate compassion, balance, and joy, striving for liberation and transformation within both self and society.
Empowering Marginalized Bodies
Decolonized and informed yoga centers the experiences of marginalized bodies, voices, and groups—particularly Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)—in accessing healing and recognizing the healer within, disrupting the competitive and commodified nature of modern yoga.
Universal Gift
Decolonized and informed yoga views yoga, our bodies, breath, and spirit as gifts from the universe, transcending any nation, religion, ethnic, or social group.
Resources we recommend: https://www.yogis4palestine.com/
ReferencesSood, S. (2020). Towards a Critical Embodiment of Decolonizing Yoga. Race and Yoga, 5(1). http://dx.doi.org/10.5070/R351049160 Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9bx1x7wc