Keywords
decolonizing yoga; cultural appropriation; social justice; premodern yoga; Orientalism; inclusivity and diversity
Abstract
Over the last few decades, yoga has become a multi-billion-dollar industry in the West. This industry is typically represented by glossy photographs of thin white women in physical postures. Given its religious origins in South Asia, this mass marketing of yoga has raised important questions about Western commodification and cultural appropriation. As a result, counter-movements have emerged to “Take Back Yoga” and “Honor the Cultural Roots of Yoga.” This thesis analyzes a range of critical-constructive responses to the commodification and colonization of yoga. It focuses on two case studies: Susanna Barkataki, an American yoga teacher of Indian descent, and Kallie Schut, a British yoga teacher of Indian descent, both of whom combine yoga within wider decolonial and social justice contexts. It argues that Barkataki and Schut are best framed within a decolonial framework distinct from both modern colonial and contemporary postcolonial approaches to yoga.
Thesis Completion Year
2024
Thesis Completion Semester
Fall
Thesis Chair
Gleig, Ann
College
College of Arts and Humanities
Department
Department of Philosophy
Thesis Discipline
Philosophy
Language
English
Access Status
Open Access
Length of Campus Access
None
Campus Location
Orlando (Main) Campus
Subjects
Yoga--History; Decolonization--Social aspects; Yoga--Study and teaching; Postcolonialism--Historiography; Yoga teachers
STARS Citation
Ram, Archana, "Decolonizing Yoga: Historical Perspectives And Contemporary Practices" (2024). Honors Undergraduate Theses. 181.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/hut2024/181
Included in
History Commons, Philosophy Commons, Race, Ethnicity and Post-Colonial Studies Commons, Religion Commons, Social Justice Commons
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