The Revival of Yoga in Contemporary India

T h e R evi val o f Yo g a i n Co n t em p o r ar y I n d i a
Oxfor d Resear ch Encyclopedia of Religion

Suzanne N ew com be
Subject : H induism , Jainism , M yst icism and Spir it ualit y, N ew Religions
Online Publicat ion Dat e: M ay 2017 DOI : 10.1093/acr efor e/9780199340378.013.253
Su m m ar y an d K eyw o r d s
The w or d yoga r efer s t o a m ult ifacet ed ar r ay of beliefs and pr act ices. Yoga is t w inned
w it h sāṃ k hya as one of t he six or t hodox dar shanas (w or ldview s) of H indu philosophy, w it h
Pat añjali’s Yogaśāst r a having been codified by ar ound t he 5t h cent ur y of t he Com m on
Er a. A dist inct body of t ext s k now n as t he haṭ hayoga cor pus appear s ar ound t he 11t h
cent ur y and em phasizes physical pr act ices m ost lik ely used by ascet ic com m unit ies. The
ult im at e aim of yoga is descr ibed by var ious w or ds (e.g., k aivalya, sam ādhi, m ok ṣa, et c.);
it is oft en descr ibed as an exper ience of an individual soul’s unit ing w it h t he divine, and/
or becom ing liber at ed fr om t he m at er ial w or ld. These hist or ical pr ecedent s have
cont inuit ies w it h cont em por ar y yoga pr act ices, and for m any I ndians t oday, yoga is
under st ood as t he essence of I ndian spir it ualit y.
Yoga, how ever, t ook on new m eanings in t he lat e colonial per iod, becom ing a m ent al,
physical, and et hical discipline t o aid in t he st r uggle for an independent I ndian nat ion
st at e; a scient ific, evidence-based pr act ice t o im pr ove healt h and w ell-being; and a
t em plat e for t he evolut ion of an individual as w ell as hum anit y as a w hole. At t he sam e
t im e, yoga k ept an associat ion w it h liber at ion and t he r ealizat ion of t he ult im at e nat ur e of
r ealit y.
I n t he ear ly 21st cent ur y, all t hese m eanings r em ain cur r ent in t he I ndian cont ext , w her e
yoga is cont inuing t o exper ience a r evival. I n I ndia, yoga is under st ood as a unique and
valuable cult ur al r esour ce t hat has t he pot ent ial t o r evit alize bot h an individual’s healt h
and t he I ndian nat ion-st at e, being an exem plar of t he unique insight s t hat I ndian
t r adit ions can give t o t he r est of t he w or ld. Despit e a not able shift in w hat is under st ood
by yoga in t he m oder n per iod, yoga cont inues t o be a m ult ivalent and incr easingly
popular pr act ice in cont em por ar y I ndia.
Keyw or ds: yoga, yog, asana, pr anayam a, AYU SH , nat ur opat hy, physical cult ur e, I ndian nat ionalism , sw adeshi,
sw ar aj
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Yo g a i n Pr em o d er n I n d i a
I n or der t o under st and t he idea of a yoga r evival in cont em por ar y I ndia, a br ief over view
of “ yoga” in t he pr em oder n and colonial per iods is im por t ant . M any of t he hist or ical
ant ecedent s have cont inuit ies w it h cont em por ar y pr act ices, and t he m ajor hist or ical t ext s
ar e fr equent ly r efer enced in or der t o aut hent icat e t hem .
Evidence of ascet ic pr act ices for m edit at ion and concent r at ion, w hich ar e associat ed w it h
yoga in t he m oder n per iod, dat e t o t he per iod of t he Guat am a Buddha; var ious
under st andings of yoga ar e also pr esent ed in t he M ahābhār at a. 1 A var iet y of sim ilar
m edit at ive t echniques w er e developed am ong Jains, Buddhist s, and ot her non-Br ahm anic
m endicant gr oups w ell befor e t he com m on er a. 2 I n I ndia, ascet ics m ay hold a post ur e for
long per iods of t im e, for exam ple, holding an ar m up or st anding on one leg for year s,
hanging upside dow n on a t r ee, as t apas, a challenging pr act ice done t o achieve spir it ual
insight , gain super nat ur al pow er s, and/or as penance. These pr act ices of t apas
(som et im es associat ed w it h yoga) ar e docum ent ed in t he M ahābhār at a and in t he fir st
r epor t s of Eur opean t r aveler s t o I ndia, and cont inue t o be obser ved in cont em por ar y
I ndia. 3
Pat añjali’s Yogaśāst r a (t he sut r as and t heir com m ent ar y) is a w or k of Sansk r it aphor ism s
t hat w as codified bet w een 300 and 500 CE . This t ext has becom e a cent r al r efer ence point
for t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival, w it h m any cur r ent pr act it ioner s r efer r ing back t o it t o
explain t he nat ur e and goals of t heir pr act ice. 4 I n gener al, academ ic scholar ship closely
associat es Pat añjali w it h dualist ic sāṃ k hya philosophy, w hich holds t hat consciousness
(pur uṣa) can be exper ienced as unfet t er ed by t he em pir ical w or ld (pr ak ṛ t i). The
Yogaśāst r a out lines eight par t s of a pr act ice aṣṫ āṇgayoga (eight -lim bed yoga), w hich has
t he goal of exper iencing a com plet e cessat ion of t he fluct uat ions of t he m ind and t he
ult im at e nat ur e of r ealit y. The fir st “ lim b” is yam a, et hical disciplines, w hich include
specific dir ect ives t ow ar d nonviolence (ahim sā), t r ut hfulness (sat ya), not st ealing
(ast eya), celibacy/cont r olled sexualit y (br ahm achar ya), and not having m or e possessions
t han necessar y (apar igr aha). While t he yam as ar e concer ned w it h t he r elat ionship
bet w een individual and societ y, t he second “ lim b,” niyam a, consist s of inst r uct ions for an
individual’s self-discipline. The niyam a ar e br ok en dow n int o cleanliness (śauca),
cont ent m ent (sant oṣa), aust er it ies (t apas), st udy of t he self (svādhyāya), and
I śvar apr aṇidhāna, w hich is under st ood as a pr act ice of devot ion t o “ L or d,” or pur uṣa, and
lat er t ak ing t he m eaning “ God” (Br ahm an). The t hir d lim b is t hat of post ur e (āsana) and
t he four t h is of cont r olled br eat hing (pr āṇāyām a). The final “ lim bs” descr ibed by Pat añjali
ar e (5) w it hdr aw al of t he sense or gans fr om ext er nal object s (pr at yāhār a), (6)
concent r at ion on an object (dhār a), (7) concent r at ion w it hout an ext er nal object (dhyāṇa),
and (8) t he goal of yoga, t hat is, absor pt ion of t he individual w it h t he ult im at e r ealit y
(sam ādhi). This schem a is r efer enced cont inually in t he pr esent at ion of yoga in
cont em por ar y I ndia.
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M uch of Pat añjali’s t ext descr ibes and som et im es w ar ns against t he developm ent of
siddhis, or super nat ur al pow er s, w hich m ay develop w it h t he pr act ices, and could dist r act
t he pr act it ioner fr om t he ult im at e goal of sam ādhi. Possible siddhis include t he pow er of
changing size, becom ing invisible, levit at ing, ent er ing anot her ’s body, or becom ing
physically im m or t al. 5 Belief in t he possibilit y of yogis and ascet ics having access t o t hese
pow er s cont r ibut es t o a cont inuing social am biguit y t ow ar d t he figur e of t he t r adit ional
yogi. 6
Cont em por ar y t eacher s of yoga have select ively em phasized var ious aspect s descr ibed in
t he Yogaśāst r a, som et im es ar guing t hat t he ent ir e eight -lim bed pat h can be accessed by
an int ense focus on par t s of t he pat h. Addit ionally, m any cont em por ar y pr act it ioner s of
yoga have r ead t he Yogaśāst r a w it h lenses assum ing a nondual nat ur e t o r ealit y (based on
Advait a Vedānt a) and bhak t i (devot ion t o God), w hich becam e m or e dom inant
sot er iologies in I ndia aft er t he codificat ion of t he yogaśāst r a.
Also in t he second half of t he fir st m illennium , yoga becam e associat ed w it h t ant r ic

sect ar ian gr oups, m ost oft en Śaivit e, but r elat ed pr act ices also can be found in Buddhist ,
Jain, and ot her t ext s. Tant r ic pr act ices ar e usually associat ed w it h a focus on self-
divinat ion t hr ough t he use of m ant r a, som et im es including a var iet y of deliber at ely
t r ansgr essive pr act ices and r it uals, w hich could help t he pr act it ioner t ow ar ds liber at ion
and develop occult pow er s. 7 Fr om t he 8t h t o 10t h cent ur ies, t ant r ic pr act ice incr easingly
focused on t echniques r elat ing t o achieving liber at ion (m ok ṣa) t hr ough act ivat ing a ser ies
of ener get ic cent er s (cak r as or padm a) and channels (nāḍī) w it hin t he body t hr ough a
ser ies of m edit at ion, br eat hing, and m ant r a pr act ices. 8 I n t his m ilieu, t her e begins t o
appear t he im age of t he goddess Kuṇḍalinī, im agined as a snak e dw elling in t he low est
chak r as, w ho m ust be induced t o clim b up t he spine t o t he highest chak r as t o facilit at e
liber at ion.
Fr om t he 7t h cent ur y onw ar d, sim ilar pr act ices, glossed as t ant r ic yoga, w er e pr om ot ed

am ongst bot h Śaivit es and Buddhist s w it h t he aim s of pr om ot ing healt h, longevit y, and
physical im m or t alit y in associat ion w it h t he aim s of spir it ual liber at ion. 9 Som et im es t hese
pr act ices involved sexual act ivit y and lat er t he use of m er cur y-based elixir s. I n t he Sout h
of I ndia, t ant r ic pr act ices ar e associat ed w it h t he Cit t ar /Siddha t eacher s of Tr ium ūlar and
Bogar, w hile in N or t h I ndia, t hey ar e associat ed w it h t he “ N āt h” t eacher s of M at syendr a
and Gor ak h. 10 Claim s for cont inuit y w it h t hese lineages and ideas r esur face in
cont em por ar y yoga m ilieus.
Tr ansgr essive t ant r ic pr act ices have alw ays been socially m ar ginal; w hile m any of t hose
cont r ibut ing t o t he r evival of yoga in m oder n I ndia sought t o m inim ize t he associat ions of
yoga w it h t ant r a, ot her s found t hem inspir ing. 11 The conflat ion of yoga w it h t ant r a has
cont r ibut ed t o w idespr ead I ndian associat ions of m or ally am bivalent and pot ent ially
danger ous yogis, w hich cont inues as a nar r at ive in cont em por ar y I ndia. 12
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Com plex physical post ur es (āsana) becam e associat ed w it h t echniques leading t o m ok ṣa

and siddhis in Sansk r it t ext s fr om t he 11t h cent ur y onw ar d; t his body of pr act ice is k now n
as haṭ ha yoga and is associat ed w it h a var iet y of populat ions and m et aphysical syst em s.
I n t his cor pus of t ext s, specific br eat hing t echniques (pr āṇāyām a) ar e associat ed w it h
“ lock s” in t he physical body (bandhas), “ seals” (m udr ās), and cleansing t echniques (k r iyā).
I n t his lit er at ur e, t he cir ca 15t h-cent ur y H at ha Yoga Pr adīpik ā holds a cent r al r efer ence
place, codifying pr evious lit er at ur e on t hese subject s and ser ving as a point of r efer ence
for m any lat er t ext s. 13 M any cont em por ar y yoga pr act it ioner s also r efer back t o t he
t r anslat ed and r epr int ed haṭ ha yoga t ext s for aut hor it y. Over t he cent ur ies, fixed physical
post ur es (āsana) incr eased in im por t ance in t his lit er at ur e; by t he 19t h cent ur y, a
canonical num ber of 84 āsana had been est ablished. 14 Academ ic explor at ions of t hese
t ext s and t heir r elat ionship t o m or e cont em por ar y for m s of yoga is ongoing. 15
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Yo g i s i n M u g h al an d Co l o n i al I n d i a
A par t icular gr oup of ascet ics, claim ing lineage fr om t he figur e of Gor ak hnāt h, gained in
pr om inence in t his m ilieu and has becom e t he only gr oup of self-ident ifying yogis w it h a
cont inuous pr esence in I ndia fr om t he 12t h or 13t h cent ur ies t o t he 21st , t r ansm it t ing
t heir t r adit ion w it h a gur u-śiṣya init iat ion r it ual. Know n as yogis, N āt h Yogīs, or N āt h
Siddhas, t hey ar e found lar gely in nor t hw est er n I ndia and hist or ically had a r eput at ion
for super nat ur al pow er s and m ilit ar y abilit y. 16 They have hist or ically docum ent ed
r elat ionships w it h k ings and M ughal r uler s alik e; r uler s gr ant ed land t o N āt h or der s in
exchange for esot er ic k now ledge and m ilit ar y alliances. Fr om t he 14t h t o t he 16t h
cent ur ies, yogi w as also a t er m t hat could r efer t o any num ber of m ilit ar ized ascet ics or
m er cenar ies, as w ell as t o t he w ell-or ganized and pow er ful N āt h or ganizat ion. 17 Yogis
com pet ed in t he m yst ical m ar k et place w it h Sufi m yst ics, k now n as fak ir s, and t he t w o
t er m s becam e int er changeable in t r avelogues of t he ear ly m oder n per iod. These yogis ar e
oft en descr ibed as naga, or “ nak ed,” and ar e r eput ed t o possess super nat ur al pow er s of
alchem y and pr ophecy. 18
I t is clear t hat in t he colonial per iod, yoga and yogis w er e r egar ded w it h cont em pt by
colonial agent s and m issionar ies. N āt h alliances w it h pr incely st at es m ade it difficult for
t he Br it ish t r ade agent s and colonial adm inist r at ions t o est ablish successful t r ade
net w or k s and gover nance st r uct ur es. Ther efor e, t he Br it ish agent s enact ed bot h m ilit ar y
and pr opaganda at t ack s against t hese gr oups, br anding t hem “ vagr ant s and cr im inals.” 19
Sever al aut hor s have em phasized how t he Br it ish int er vent ion in t he social or der of I ndia
r em oved t hese ascet ic or der s fr om r oyal pat r onage, for cing t hese populat ions post hoc t o
becom e t he begging vagabonds descr ibed by colonial officials. 20 Eur opean t r avelogues
and m issionar y account s fur t her m ar ginalized t hese populat ions and br anded t heir
displays of physical t echniques as im m or al and t he pr act it ioner s t hus in need of Chr ist ian
salvat ion. 21 As M ar k Singlet on has explained, t he pioneer s of t he cont em por ar y yoga
r evival in I ndia “ had t o cont end w it h a deep-seat ed, inher it ed at t it ude of scor n and fear
t ow ar ds t hese physical pr act ices,” as w ell as t he am bivalent legacy of t he pr em oder n
yogis in popular I ndian im aginat ion. 22 H ow ever, it appear s t hat so-called fak ir s w er e st ill
pr esent in ear ly colonial cour t s, som et im es offer ing m edical advice. 23
As Eur opean I ndologist s sought t o under st and t he r eligions and cult ur es of t he I ndian
subcont inent , t hey pr ior it ized philosophical pr esent at ions of yoga and sāṃ k hya fr om
Sansk r it t ext s and fur t her m ar ginalized t he living pr act ices of ascet ics in t he eyes of bot h
Eur opeans and educat ed I ndians. 24 I n t he 19t h cent ur y, t her e w as a cont em por aneous
idealizat ion of t he scr ipt ur al t r adit ions of I ndian spir it ualit y in aspect s of popular cult ur e.
The colonial Asiat ic Societ y (founded in 1784) published an English t r anslat ion of t he
Bhagavad Gīt ā (a sect ion of t he M ahābhār at a) and select ed U panishads, w hich w er e w ell
r eceived by t he educat ed public. M any Ger m an I ndologist s t r anslat ed Sansk r it t ext s in
t he 19t h cent ur y. Ger m an Rom ant ics and Am er ican Tr anscendent alist s w er e inspir ed by
I ndian t ext s in t r anslat ion, cr eat ing w hat Raym ond Sw ab t er m ed t he “ Or ient al
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Renaissance,” an idealizat ion and celebr at ion of I ndian spir it ualit y in Eur opean and
Am er ican int ellect ual cir cles. 25 The poet Edw in Ar nold’s English t r anslat ion of t he
Bhagavad Gīt ā, The Song Celest ial (1885), w as successful am ong t he w ider lit er ar y
public. 26
The est eem in w hich t hese t r anslat ions w er e held on t he w or ld st age filt er ed back int o
t he I ndian discour ses. 27 The Bhagavad Gīt ā offer s m any differ ent pat hs t o k now ing God
(in t he for m of Kṛ ṣṇa) and living in accor dance w it h dhar m a. The t hr ee definit ions of yoga
found in t he Gīt ā becam e par t icular ly popular in t he m oder n per iod: (1) “ k ar m a yoga,” or
t he idea of union w it h t he absolut e t hr ough act ion w it hout at t achm ent t o t he r esult s; (2)
“ bhak t i yoga,” or unceasing loving r em em br ance of God, and (3) “ jñana yoga,” or a dir ect
per cept ion of t he ult im at e nat ur e of r ealit y t hr ough w isdom and insight . Readings of t he
Bhagavad Gīt ā have been subject t o ext ensive int er pr et at ion and innovat ion, but it s place
as a cent r al t ext of t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival is based on it s cur r ency am ong t he
lit er at e public in t he 19t h cent ur y. I t has also been one of t he m ost fr equent ly r ead t ext s
for t hose involved in t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival dur ing t he 20t h and ear ly 21st
cent ur ies. 28
Tow ar d t he end of t he 19t h cent ur y, t he Theosophical Societ y exalt ed t he Bhagavad Gīt ā

as a “ Bible” of I ndia. I n 1975 founder s of t he Theosophical Societ y m et in N ew Yor k Cit y
t o cr eat e a m or e univer sal, scient ific r eligion, and t he net w or k of t he societ y at t r act ed
m any in Eur ope, I ndia, and t he Anglophile w or ld w ho w er e disillusioned w it h inst it ut ional
Chr ist ianit y and int er est ed in lear ning about ot her for m s of r eligiosit y and spir it ualit y. 29
Aft er an init ial focus on spir it ualism , t he Theosophical Societ y r elocat ed it s headquar t er s
t o a subur b of M adr as/Chennai in 1879 and published t r anslat ions of select Sansk r it t ext s
t hat becam e available for global Anglophile r eader s. The Theosophical t r anslat ions
ident ified t he yogi w it h t he Gīt ā’s descr ipt ion of one achieving r ealizat ion of and “ union
w it h” God, as being super ior t o, and oddly divor ced fr om t he living yogis, sādhus, and
fak ir s w ho could be found in I ndia. 30
T h e R o o t s o f t h e Yo g a R en ai ssan c e: T h e
B r ah m o Sam aj an d Sw am i Vi vek an an d a
The concept ual r oot s of t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival appear in t he r easser t ion or
cr eat ion of a H indu ident it y in t he face of colonialism dur ing t he second half of t he 19t h
cent ur y. Ar guably, t he m ost significant ar chit ect of r evivalist yoga philosophy w as Sw am i
Vivek ananda (1863–1902), w ho w as pr ofoundly influenced by t he Br ahm o Sam aj, a 19t h-
cent ur y Bengali m ovem ent t hat sought t o r e-pr esent I ndian r eligious t r adit ions in a m or e
m oder n for m .
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The Br ahm o pr oject , founded by Ram m ohan Roy (1772–1833) as t he Br ahm o Sabha in
Calcut t a in 1828, w as cr eat ed in dialogue w it h “ w est er n cult ur al m odels and values,”
par t icular ly a hum anist ic U nit ar ian Chr ist ianit y, m onot heist ic t heology, and a select ive
r eading of t he U paniṣads t hr ough a lens of Vedānt ic philosophy. 31 The Sam aj em phasized
an ideal of act ive social ser vice par t ially m odeled on, and also as a local challenge t o,
Chr ist ian m issionar y act ivit y. This new ideology w as pejor at ively descr ibed as “ N eo-
Vedant a” by Chr ist ian m issionar ies cr it ical of t he H indu r evival pr oject . 32 Alt hough t he
descr ipt ive t er m of choice is cont est ed, t he ideals of I ndian r eligiosit y ar t iculat ed by t he
Sam aj and it s offshoot s have been highly influent ial for t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival in
I ndia and beyond. 33
Significant ly for t he hist or y of yoga, Keshubchandr a Sen (1838–1884) founded t he

splint er gr oup “ The Br ahm o Sam aj of I ndia” in 1866 and began t o r eappr opr iat e t he idea
of yoga int o t his influent ial new pr esent at ion of H induism . Sen w as inspir ed by his
encount er s w it h t he I ndian m yst ic Ram ak r ishna Par am aham sa (1836–1886), w ho w as
w idely consider ed t o have a per iodic absor pt ion w it h t he divine (sam adhi). Sen pr om ot ed
t he idea t hat H indus possessed a unique “ yoga facult y,” or a “ pow er of spir it ual
com m union and absor pt ion.” 34 I t w as t hr ough Sen’s Br ahm o Sam aj t hat N ar endr anat h
Dat t a, t he fut ur e Sw am i Vivek ananda, fir st encount er ed bot h yoga and Ram ak r ishna
Par am aham sa. I t is clear t hat t he ar t iculat ion of t he I ndian t r adit ions cr eat ed by t hese
lat e 19t h-cent ur y Bengalis dr am at ically influenced w hat w e can now ident ify as a yoga
r evival.
Sw am i Vivek ananda has been ar guably t he nam e m ost associat ed w it h t he cont em por ar y
yoga r evival. 35 H e w as one of t he fir st H indu “ m issionar ies” t o t he West w ho achieved a
last ing legacy bot h in I ndia and abr oad. An upper -m iddle-class Bengali, t he young Dat t a
w as educat ed by bot h a pr ogr essive West er n-facing fat her and a r epor t edly pious H indu
m ot her. H e w as educat ed t o be fam iliar w it h m uch of Eur opean philosophical t hink ing
and spok e English w ell. As a young m an, he w as act ive w it h t he Br ahm o Sam aj, and aft er
t he deat h of Sen in 1884 becam e incr easing involved w it h Ram ak r ishna, w hom he cam e
t o r egar d as his gur u. Aft er Ram ak r ishna’s deat h in 1886, Vivek ananda w ander ed I ndia as
a sannyasin (m onast ic r enunciat e) and event ually t r aveled t o t he U nit ed St at es in 1893.
I n Am er ica, Vivek ananda becam e connect ed w it h w ell-posit ioned int ellect uals w ho
sponsor ed him w hile he gave t alk s on philosophy and spir it ualit y. Aft er a successful
r ecept ion at t he Chicago Par liam ent of Religions (1893), w hich w as cover ed in t he
nat ional and int er nat ional pr ess, Vivek ananda pr om ot ed I ndian r eligiosit y—and yoga
m or e specifically—as a r espect able ar ea of per sonal int er est for t he m iddle classes of
Eur ope and Am er ica. The int er nat ional success of Vivek ananda as a r epr esent at ive of
I ndia and H induism abr oad led t o nat ional success and adm ir at ion w it hin I ndia.
Pat añjali’s Yoga Sūt r as (w it hout com m ent ar y) w er e pr esent ed by Vivek ananda as t he
scr ipt ur al basis of yoga, alt hough academ ic com par ison bet w een Vivek ananda's
explanat ions and hist or ical yoga t r adit ions has r evealed as m uch innovat ion as
cont inuit y. 36 Vivek ananda adjust ed Sen’s “ four fold classificat ion of devot ees” int o a “ four
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yogas” schem e, pr esent ing yoga as a for m of H induism t hat w as univer salist ic and
accessible for t he spir it ual im pr ovem ent of all m ank ind. The fir st of Vivek ananda’s yoga
“ t ypes” is Kar m a Yoga, “ t he m anner in w hich a m an r ealizes his ow n divinit y t hr ough
w or k s and dut y.” The second is Bhak t i Yoga, “ t he r ealizat ion of a divinit y t hr ough devot ion
t o and love of a per sonal God.” 37 The t hir d t ype Vivek ananda t er m ed Rāja Yoga, w hich he
descr ibed as “ t he r ealizat ion of divinit y t hr ough cont r ol of t he m ind.” H e consider ed t his
t o have been out lined by Pat añjali in t he Yoga Sūt r as and t o be t he m ost super ior of all
for m s of yoga. The four t h is Gnana Yoga (Jñāna Yoga), or “ r ealizat ion of m an’s ow n
divinit y t hr ough k now ledge.” 38 Above all, yoga w as pr esent ed by Vivek ananda as a
pr ocess of self-r ealizat ion, of m anifest ing “ t he Divinit y w it hin,” w hich t o him const it ut es
t he essence of all r eligiosit y.
U pon his r et ur n t o I ndia, Vivek ananda focused m or e on social out r each and r edefined
inst it ut ional I ndian r eligiosit y on t he pr inciple of seva as an expr ession of Kar m a Yoga.
The Ram ak r ishna M at h and M ission, founded by Vivek ananda shor t ly befor e his deat h,
cont inues t o have a significant and influent ial legacy in cont em por ar y I ndia. I n a
hist or ical evaluat ion of t he m ovem ent in I ndia, Gw ilym Beck er legge descr ibes t he
or ganizat ion as a r eligious associat ion w hose “ ult im at e goals ar e spir it ual but sought
t hr ough ext ensive pr ovision of ser vice t o hum anit y,” w it h fam ine r elief being an init ial
focus of it s ear ly act ivit y. 39
I n t he second half of t he 19t h cent ur y, I ndia suffer ed t hr ough eight m ajor per iods of
fam ine, w hich w as w idely at t r ibut ed t o colonial m ism anagem ent of supplies and
exploit at ion of I ndian r esour ces. Vivek ananda him self st opped shor t of dir ect ly cr it icizing
Br it ish r ule in his w r it ings, but t hese w r it ings ar t iculat ed, and t he Ram ak r ishna M at h and
M ission act ualized, a pow er ful vision for a m or e act ive, spir it ual, and m at er ially self-
suppor t ing nat ion. 40 Wit hin I ndia, yoga becam e incr easingly associat ed w it h all of t he
var ious elem ent s of Vivek ananda’s pr oject , not t he least being an inst illing of nat ional
pr ide and a m odel of m at er ial self-sufficiency pr edicat ed on an ideal of a uniquely I ndian
spir it ual capabilit y. As w ell as being influent ial in I ndia, Vivek ananda’s descr ipt ion of yoga
w as cir culat ed globally t hr ough Sw am i Sivananda’s (1887–1963) pr olific publishing and
cor r espondence net w or k s dur ing t he 20t h cent ur y. 41
The idea of “ pr act ical Vedant a” w as also t ak en up by m any ot her influent ial r eligious
t hink er s in I ndia, r eligious vir t uosi alt er nat ively k now n as sannyasin, fak ir s, and yogis.
Ot her figur es w ho becam e closely associat ed w it h a “ yogic” vision of a posit ive I ndian
developm ent al t r aject or y included t he Punjabis, Sw am i Ram a Tir t ha (1873–1906) and t he
sādhu Sundar Singh (1889–1929), w ho w er e bot h per ceived as par adigm s of I ndian
r eligious vir t uosi and nat ional pr ide. 42
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Sw ad esh i Yo g a—A u r o b i n d o an d M ah at m a
Gan d h i
Aur obindo’s influence on t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival in I ndia w as also pr ofound. The
English-educat ed Bengali, Aur obindo Ghose (1872–1950), r ose t o pr om inence dur ing t he
second Sw adeshi (self-sufficiency) m ovem ent (1905–1911) w hich opposed t he par t it ion of
Bengal int o r eligious sect ions by t he Br it ish Raj w it h t he aim of r educing opposit ion t o
colonial r ule. A k ey aspect of t his opposit ion w as t he boycot t of Br it ish goods, as w ell as
suppor t ing t he r evival of I ndian indust r ies, an idea t hat has an older lineage, not ably
having been advocat ed by t he highly influent ial Ar ya Sam aj, founder Dayanand Sar asw at i
(1824–1883), w ho also agit at ed for a r evit alized, m onot heist ic H induism based on t he
aut hor it y of t he Vedas. The Ar ya Sam aj unit ed w it h t he Theosophical Societ y in I ndia
bet w een 1878 t o 1882, fur t her incr easing t he influence of Dayanand Sar asw at i’s ideas.
The language of t he Sw adeshi m ovem ent in Bengal focused on m ak ing t he st r uggle for
self-r ule in I ndia a spir it ual vision.
I n t hese r evolut ionar y year s, Aur obindo w as a per suasively eloquent polem icist , dr aw ing
upon t he nar r at ive of Kṛ ṣṇa’s (Kr ishna’s) descent as an avat ar t o engage in t he bat t les of
t he w or ld t o inspir e sacr ifice in t he nam e of a r evolut ionar y ut opian vision of M ot her
I ndia. As ear ly as 1905, Aur obindo expr essed t he dual life goals of encount er ing Divinit y
and liber at ing I ndia fr om colonial r ule. 43 H e w as im pr isoned by t he Br it ish for his
r evolut ionar y act ivit ies fr om 1908 t o 1909 and held in solit ar y confinem ent . Aft er his
r elease, Aur obindo published an influent ial pr ison m em oir in a ser ies of ar t icles, lat er
r epublished as Kar ak ahini, w her e he descr ibed a spir it ual t r ansfor m at ion t hat had t ak en
place in pr ison and r eaffir m ed his vision of I ndian sw ar aj (self-r ule). H e also published a
jour nal ent it led Kar m ayogin (1909–1910) w her e he unit ed t he ideal of adher ence t o dut y
as a m eans t o spir it ual aw ak ening t hat Kṛ ṣṇa descr ibes in t he Bhagavad Gīt ā w it h t he
r evolut ionar y st r uggle.
I n 1910, how ever, Aur obindo r et ir ed fr om act ively pr om ot ing sw ar aj t o a self-im posed
exile in t he Fr ench colony of Pondicher r y. Ther e, he focused his int ellect on t he
r ealizat ion of divinit y, cr eat ing a com plex, evolut ionar y-focused vision of I nt egr al Yoga.
Fr om ar ound t he per iod of Wor ld War I onw ar d, Aur obindo ar t iculat ed a posit ive,
evolut ionar y vision for bot h t he individual and hum anit y as a w hole, t hr ough a unique
synt hesis of w hat he saw as t he highest spir it ual t hought acr oss East and West . By 1926,
he had becom e t he focus of a gr oup of devot ees and, w it h t he collabor at ion of Fr ench-
bor n M ir r a Alfassa, k now n as “ The M ot her,” est ablished t he Sr i Aur obindo Ashr am in
Pondicher r y.
The k ey w or k ar t iculat ing Aur obindo’s vision, The L ife Divine (1939), out lines an
expansive and or iginal m et aphysical schem a. H e explains a t ension bet w een his m yst ical
exper ience of Br ahm an and it s incom pat ibilit y w it h t he cur r ent st at e of t he w or ld in pain
and suffer ing, out lining m eans by w hich individuals and societ y can act ualize a ut opian
Page 9 of 37
vision of hum an evolut ion int o a st at e of divine har m ony. The nat ur e of Br ahm an,
Aur obindo ar gues, is best descr ibed by t he t er m Sat chit ānanda—a m er ging of sat (t r ut h),
chit (consciousness) and ānanda (bliss). 44 Aur obindo’s philosophy r est s on his st at us as a
r eligious m yst ic, w hich is pr edicat ed on being a “ yoga pr act it ioner ” w ho achieved
pr ofound m yst ic insight s aft er year s of dedicat ed m edit at ive pr act ice. H is opt im ist ic and
ut opian vision for hum anit y, gr ounded in uniquely I ndian spir it ual concept s, has pr ovided
a t em plat e for visions of bot h yoga and fur t her calls for sw adeshi.
M ohandas Kar am chand Gandhi (1869–1948), oft en called “ M ahat m a” or “ Gr eat Soul,” is
one of t he m ost fam ous I ndians, par t icular ly for his nonviolent int er vent ions t ow ar d
founding an independent I ndian nat ion-st at e. Gandhi also influenced t he yoga r evival in
I ndia in significant w ays. Specifically, he cont inued t he r elat ionship out lined by Aur obindo
(am ong ot her s) bet w een inner t r ansfor m at ion and t he cr eat ion of a m or e per fect m at er ial
w or ld. Alt hough his spir it ualit y w as ver y per sonal, Gandhi em bodied ideals of self-
discipline and et hical r est r aint as being insepar able for m t he building of a self-r eliant
I ndian nat ion. H e cont inued t he nar r at ive of liber at ion (m ok ṣa) via ser vice (seva) t hat has
becom e equat ed w it h t he idea of Kar m a Yoga. Gandhi par t icular ly and publicly focused on
t he ideals of sat ya (t r ut h) and ahim sa (nonviolence), as w ell as veget ar ianism and cont r ol
of t he senses. H is focus on br ahm achar ya encom passed ideals of bot h sexual abst inence
and fast ing as being cent r al. These ar e all par t of t he fir st set of et hical pr ecept s (yam as)
out lined in Pat añjali’s Yoga Sūt r a.
M any, bot h in I ndia and abr oad, w ho w er e inspir ed by Gandhi’s im pr essive self-discipline
and leader ship of t he Sw adeshi m ovem ent also look ed t ow ar d yoga as a sour ce of
inspir at ion and guidance. 45 Gandhi’s spir it ual influences, t hough expr essed in t er m s of
dhar m a, w er e quit e eclect ic and included his m ot her ’s Pr anam i Vaishnavism , t he Jainism
pr evalent in Gujar at , t he Bhagavad Gīt ā, Chr ist ianit y, t heosophy, and, par t icular ly,
Tolst oy’s The Kingdom of God I s Wit hin You (1894). Tolst oy’s t it le, t ak en fr om t he Gospel
of L uk e 17:21, w as also a phr ase com m only found am ong ear ly 20-cent ur y yoga cir cles.
Secondly, Gandhi’s concept ion of sw adeshi encom passed an ideological cr it ique of

West er n m edicine, doct or s, and hospit als, w hich he saw as agent s of colonial oppr ession,
and danger ous due t o t heir pr oviding “ violent sym pt om at ic cur es for specific illnesses
r at her t han holist ic t her apies t o r em edy poor healt h.” 46 For successful self-r ule, Gandhi
believed t hat I ndians needed t o be able t o r ely on t heir r esour ces of body, m ind, and soul
—t he developm ent of t he soul being dependent upon a healt hy body and a w ell-
disciplined m ind t hat can over com e t he t em pt at ions of t he sensual w or ld. The par allels
w it h t he yogic t r adit ions did not go unnot iced by t he r evolut ionar y nat ionalist s. 47
Gandhi also w as ver y sk ept ical of Ayur veda, t r adit ional I ndian m edicine, lar gely because
he believed t hat it had becom e an elit e, ur ban syst em of m edicinal healing. Joseph Alt er
ar gues t hat Gandhi’s beliefs on healt h w er e based pr im ar ily on West er n nat ur e-cur e
t r adit ions t hat w er e popular in t he lat e 19t h and ear ly 20t h cent ur ies. 48 But Gandhi also
dr ew on t he incr easingly popular claim s t hat yogic physical pr act ices could pr om ot e
healt h and w ell-being. I n t he lat e 1920s, he cor r esponded w it h Shr ipad Dam odar
Page 10 of 37
Sat w alek ar (1867–1938), a fellow nat ionalist and aut hor it y on healt h and yoga and an
aut hor of a book on Br aham achar ya (1924); he also consult ed w it h Sw am i Kuvalayananda
(1883–1966) (discussed fur t her in t he sect ion “ YOGA AS SCI EN CE AN D PU BL I C H EALTH ” ) for yoga
t her apy. Sat w alek ar also appear s t o have had a r elat ionship w it h Pant Pr at inidhi, Rajah of
Aundh, w ho advocat ed sur ya nam ask sar for healt h (t her e is fur t her discussion on sūr ya
nam ask ār a in t he sect ion “ YOGA AS PH YSI CAL CU LTU RE ” ). 49 Gandhi advocat ed sim ple br eat hing
exer cises, based on yogic pr āṇāyām a, for pr om ot ing a healt hy const it ut ion and m oder at e
exer cise, w hich could be accom plished by yoga-āsana.
Gandhi’s uniquely influent ial vision, bot h ant im oder nist and ant icolonialist , helped
t r ansfor m yoga int o a syst em for pr om ot ing physical healt h, m ent al cont r ol, and an
individual’s dut y t o asser t t he t r ut h of his or her I ndian soul in t he face of colonialism . H is
pow er ful connect ion of t he healt h of t he physical body, self-cont r ol, and self-r est r aint as
im por t ant for over com ing colonial oppr ession helped t o posit ion yoga as a syst em of
physical cult ur e and t her apeut ics in 20t h-cent ur y I ndia. Par t ially due t o Gandhi’s
influence in ear ly post independence I ndia, yoga slow ly cam e under t he dom ain of t he
M inist r y of H ealt h, and it w as oft en t w inned w it h nat ur opat hy in public healt h out r each
pr ogr am s. 50
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Yo g a as Ph ysi c al Cu l t u r e
Ther e w er e m any differ ent pr esent at ions of I ndian physical cult ur e in t he fir st half of t he
20t h cent ur y. This developm ent w as an I ndian r eact ion t o an int er nat ional m ovem ent t o
r evit alize physical cult ur e, including bodybuilding, w r est ling, and t he r evival of t he
Olym pic Gam es in 1896. Eur opean populat ions had becom e concer ned about t he physical
w eak ness of populat ions in new ly ur banized, indust r ialized cit ies. The int r oduct ion of
com pulsor y schooling in t he 19t h cent ur y w as a per fect venue for im pr oving w or k ing-
class childr en’s m inds and bodies. Dur ing t he lat e 19t h and ear ly 20t h cent ur ies,
nar r at ives of Social Dar w inism and eugenics becam e int er t w ined w it h calls for
nat ionalism and m ilit ar y r eadiness. These nar r at ives, lar gely of Eur opean or igin, began t o
per m eat e I ndian cult ur e fr om bot h colonial pow er s and t he I ndian r evolut ionar ies.
I ndian nat ionalist s began t o call for t he r evit alizat ion of t he I ndian body, t hr ough
specifically I ndian cult ur al t r adit ions. The sit e of m uch of t his 19t h-cent ur y physical
t r aining w as t he ak hāṛ ā (gym nasium ). H er e, t he pr act ice of yoga-āsana began t o slip int o
t he r eper t oir e of I ndic physical cult ur e, w hich also included I ndian m ar t ial ar t s,
w r est ling, w ar m -up exer cises (dands), sūr ya nam ask ār , w eight lift ing of I ndian clubs,
m allak ham ba (exer cises on a pillar ), and var ious dr ills. 51 A par t icular ly influent ial figur e
w as Rajar at na M anik r ao (1878–1954), w ho t ook over a successful ak hāṛ ā upon t he deat h
of his gur u Jum m adada (about 1784–1904), w ho had t r ained him in m ar t ial ar t s, U nani
m edicine, and var ious languages. M anik r ao r enam ed t he ak hāṛ ā in Vadodar a, Gujar at
Shr ee Jum m adada Vyayam M andir (a t em ple dedicat ed t o his gur u and physical
educat ion); t hus, var ious I ndian physical disciplines, including yoga-āsana, becam e
explicit ly link ed t o t em ple r eligiosit y. M anik r ao w as a pr olific w r it er in nat ionalist Gujar at i
new spaper s, st r essing t he im por t ance of I ndian physical cult ur e and becom ing ver y
popular locally. H is r evival of physical cult ur e w as one of t he influences on Sr i
Raghavendr a Rao, w ho w r ot e under t he nam e “ Tir uk a” and t r aveled ar ound I ndia in t he
ear ly 1930s dissem inat ing w r it ings t o inspir e a new gener at ion of yogi fr eedom fight er s. 52
Ther e w er e a num ber of significant I ndian popular izer s of yoga w ho w er e explicit ly

influenced by West er n for m s of physical cult ur e and bodybuilding. These figur es included
Shr i Yogendr a (bor n M anibhai H ar ibhai Desai, 1897–1989), w ho w as am ong t he fir st t o
have pioneer ed t he k ind of āsana-focused classes t hat soon becam e popular am ong t he
m iddle classes w or ldw ide. Yogendr a’s Yoga Asanas Sim plified (1928) becam e a t em plat e
for fut ur e yoga-āsana book s; his syst em has been show n t o be deeply influenced by t he
physical cult ur ist M ax M üller, am ong ot her Eur opeans. 53 Founded in 1918, Yogendr a’s
Yoga I nst it ut e at Sant a Cr uz (now a subur b of Bom bay) w as an ear ly cent er for cur at ive
yoga t her apy, cat er ing lar gely t o m iddle-class pat r ons. The ideology of Yogendr a r elat ed
gener al physical im pr ovem ent w it h t he pot ent ial for eugenic m ut at ions t o lead t o a
st r onger nat ional r ace. 54 But per haps one of Yogendr a’s last ing legacies w as t he
nor m alizat ion of a secular ized yoga, pr im ar ily addr essing t he physical com plaint s of
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I ndian householder s, including w om en, w hile also r efer encing Pat ñajali’s Yoga Sūt r a as
t he basis of t his appr oach t o yoga. 55
K. V. I yer (1897–1980) w as anot her influent ial figur e w ho m er ged bodybuilding, physical
cult ur e, and yoga-āsana in his Bangalor e-based gym nasium fr om 1922 onw ar d. Dur ing
t he 1930s, I yer ’s st udent Sundar am (1901–1994) r an a Yogic School of Physical Cult ur e
and t he t w o oft en collabor at ed in lect ur e–dem onst r at ion t our s of I ndia. Sundar am w as a
pr olific aut hor in Tam il and also act ive in t he ear ly Congr ess Par t y’s agit at ion for polit ical
independence. Anot her of I yer ’s st udent s, Ram esh S. Balsek ar (1917–2009), r eceived
ext ensive phot ogr aphic cover age in t he Br it ish physical cult ur e m agazine H ealt h and
St r engt h and included a num ber of yoga-āsana as w ell as sūr ya nam ask ār exer cises in his
1940 book St r eam lines. 56 Aft er his r et ir em ent fr om business in 1977, Ram esh Balsek ar
becam e a Bom bay-based int er nat ional gur u figur e t eaching Advait a philosophical
insight s.
A fur t her influent ial figur e is Bishnu Char an Ghosh (1903–1970), t he younger br ot her of
int er nat ional yoga gur u Par am ahansa Yogananda (1893–1952). H e w as int r oduced t o
yogic physical cult ur e at Yogananda’s Ranchi School for Boys in Bengal, and lat er he
opened t he Ghosh College of Yoga and Physical Cult ur e in Calcut t a in 1923, w hich
cont inues it s successful oper at ion. 57 I t w as at Ghosh’s school t hat t he int er nat ional yoga
gur u Bik r am Choudhur y (b. 1946) w as int r oduced t o yoga; Bik r am Choudhur y w ent on t o
gr eat popular it y and financial success aft er m oving t o t he U nit ed St at es in t he 1970s,
befor e facing a num ber of legal challenges r elat ing t o sexual m isconduct and copyr ight s
in t he lat e 2000s. 58 For all t hese individuals, yoga could be seen as an exer cise pr om ot ing
gener al physical healt h, specific t her apeut ic int er vent ions, im pr ovem ent of t he I ndian
nat ion, and spir it ual liber at ion. These goals becam e int er r elat ed t hr ough a m ult ifacet ed
pr esent at ion of yoga, w hich encom passed, but should not be r educed t o, an āsana-based
pr act ice.
Sūr ya nam ask ār (sun salut at ions) becam e incor por at ed int o cont em por ar y yoga- āsana
due t o t he influence of Bhaw anr ao Balasaheb Pant Pr at inidhi (1868–1951), t he Rajah of
Aundh, a sm all st at e in M ahar asht r a (see Figur e 1 ). I n t he 1920s onw ar d, Pant w or k ed
w it h Shr ipad Dam odar Sat w alek ar (a high-pr ofile nat ionalist w ho, as pr eviously
m ent ioned, also had cont act w it h Gandhi), t o pr om ot e t he exer cise of sūr ya nam ask ār
w it hin his pr ogr essive educat ional pr ogr am for t he people under his gover nance and t o
cr eat e a civic body r eady for self-gover nance. 59 I n Joseph Alt er ’s assessm ent : “ Over t he
past sevent y year s t he hist or y of sūr ya nam ask ār has conver ged w it h t he hist or y of yoga
as t he lat t er has also developed int o a for m of physical t r aining. But in Bhavanr ao’s
concept ion, sūr ya nam ask ār w as a for m of bodybuilding and vigor ous self-discipline m or e
dir ect ly associat ed w it h r it ual and spir it ualit y.” 60 Pant 's vision of sūr ya nam ask ār w as
inspir ed by bot h t he Vedas and t he physical cult ur e m ovem ent in gener al. Sūr ya
nam ask ār m er ged effor t lessly int o t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival, finding it self pr act iced
in K. V. I yer ’s gym nasium s by 1930, in t he yoga-āsana guides of Sw am i Sivananda’s Yogic
Page 13 of 37
H om e Exer cises (1939), in Vishnudevanana’s Com plet e I llust r at ed Book on Yoga (1960),
and as an appendix t o B. K. S. I yengar ’s encyclopedic L ight on Yoga (1966). 61
A final influent ial figur e in

r edefining yoga in popular
im aginat ion as a lar gely
physical-based pr act ice
w as Tir um alai
Kr ishnam achar ya (1888–
1989), w hose innovat ions
t o yoga w er e lar gely
Click t o view lar ger im m or t alized by t he global
Figur e 1. I ndian N avy per sonnel per for m sūr ya popular it y of m any of his
nam ask ār, descr ibed as yoga on boar d I N S Sunayna st udent s, par t icular ly
on June 21, 2015.
I ndr a Devi (1899–2002), B.
Phot o by t he I ndian N avy.
K. S. I yengar (1918–2014),
K. Pat t abhi Jois (1915–
2009), and his son T. K. V. Desik achar (1938–2016). Fr om 1933 t o 1950, Kr ishnam achar ya
t aught an evolving pr ogr am of yoga-āsana at t he Jaganm ohan Palace in M ysor e, under t he
pat r onage of t he M ahar aja of M ysor e, Kr ishnar aja Wodiyar I V (1884–1940).
Kr ishnam achar ya w as w ell ver sed in t he t r adit ional dar śanas, having st udied in Banar as
and Pat na U niver sit y in Bihar and w as or iginally engaged by t he m ahar aja t o t each
philosophical subject s, including m īm āṃ sā. H ow ever, I ndian physical cult ur e pr oved t o be
m or e popular, and Kr ishnam achar ya w as inst r uct ed by t he m ahar aja t o t each yoga-
āsana. 62 Wodiyar I V w as a gr eat pat r on of t he ear ly 20t h-cent ur y physical-cult ur e
m ovem ent m or e gener ally, suppor t ing K. V. I yer, as w ell as I yer ’s st udent H . Anant Rao,
w ho r an a gym nasium in t he sam e w ing of t he Jaganm ohan Palace w her e
Kr ishnam achar ya t aught yoga-āsana. The m ahar aja also sent Kr ishnam achar ya on var ious
t our s of I ndia t o pr om ot e yoga and physical cult ur e.
Kr ishnam achar ya w as alw ays int er est ed in using āsana and pr āṇāyām a t o im pr ove healt h.
Aft er leaving M ysor e t o set t le in Chennai, he pioneer ed a for m of yoga t her apy in
pr escr ibing br eat h and m ovem ent sequences for specific healt h pr oblem s. This t r adit ion
w as cont inued by his son, T. K. V. Desik achar. L ar gely independent of Kr ishnam achar ya’s
cont inued influence, B. K. S. I yengar also developed his t eaching of yoga-āsana t ow ar d
m eet ing healt h and w ellness concer ns in t he fir st inst ance, w hile also developing his ow n
explor at ions on m or e sot er iological aim s of yoga. The influence t hat Kr ishnam achar ya’s
st udent s have had on t he popular yoga r evival in I ndia has in m any w ays been indir ect ,
w it h t he m ediat ed global pr esent at ions of āsana feeding back int o t he self-under st anding
of I ndian pr act it ioner s fr om t he lat e 20t h cent ur y onw ar d. 63
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Yo g a as Sc i en c e an d Pu b l i c H eal t h
The m edical t r adit ions of I ndia have a r ich hist or y. I n ear ly Vedic lit er at ur e, int er vent ions
of pr iest s and t he use of specific plant s w er e associat ed w it h healing pr act ices. Fr om
pr ior t o t he t im e of t he Gaut am a Buddha, it is lik ely t hat w ander ing ascet ics (śr am aṇa)
exchanged m edical k now ledge w it h one anot her. 64 I n bot h or al t r adit ions and som e
w r it t en sour ces, t her e is an over lap bet w een t he pr act ices (and her bs) believed t o
develop m agical pow er s (siddhis) and cur at ive healt h benefit s. Addit ionally, r ecipes for
her bal m edicines have cir culat ed am ong sādhus in t he m oder n per iod r elat ing t o t he
r ejuvenat e t her apy of k ayak alpa. 65 Wander ing sādhus (also called yogis) m ay also at t im es
offer m edical cur es t o villager s, par t icular ly devot ees w it h w hom t hey have a pr eexist ing
connect ion. 66 I ndian villager s ar e lik ely t o hold sk ept ical at t it udes t o such sādhus, w it h
m uch depending on a par t icular individual’s local r eput at ion. H ow ever, m any I ndians w it h
var ious per sonal, financial, or physical t r oubles m ay appr oach t hem for “ blessings” and
ot her r em edies. 67
Sr im an Par am ham sa M adhavdasji M ahar aj (1798–1921), gur u t o bot h Shr i Yogendr a and
Sw am i Kuvalyananda (1883–1966), w as, accor ding t o or al t r adit ion, a w ander ing sādhu
for m any year s befor e set t ling in M alsar, Gujar at , w her e he offer ed healt h cur es at an
ashr am in t he ear ly 20t h cent ur y. The biogr apher of Shr i Yogendr a r ecor ds t hat under
M adhavdasji’s guidance at t he M alsar ashr am , Yogendr a w as t aught āsana (post ur es),
pr āṇāyām a (br eat hing exer cises), k r iyā (t r adit ional cleansing t echniques such as
sw allow ing clot h), bandhas (lock s), and diet ar y r ecom m endat ions as t her apeut ic
int er vent ions. 68
I n I ndia, t he m onast ic set t ing w as an ear ly sit e for t he syst em izat ion of m edical
t r eat m ent , and Buddhist m onast er ies w er e par t icular ly im por t ant for t he syst em at izat ion
of Ayur veda. 69 H ow ever, t he ext ent t o w hich ot her I ndian m onast ic envir onm ent s offer ed
healt h and healing ser vices, including per haps yogic t echniques, t o local populat ions in
t he ear ly m oder n per iod is an unexplor ed ar ea of r esear ch. Cer t ainly, par t icular sādhus
such as M adhavdasji gained r eput at ions as being able t o heal bot h m ent al and physical
pr oblem s, and it appear s t hat a k ind of infor m al “ sick bay” evolved at M adhavdasji’s
ashr am in M alsar. 70
M adhavdasji’s pupils Shr i Yogendr a (see t he sect ion “ YOGA AS PH YSI CAL CU LTU RE ” ) and Sw am i
Kuvalyananda w er e ext r em ely influent ial in br inging yogic cur es t o scient ific, biom edical
analysis. 71 Kuvalyananda w as bor n Jagannat h Ganesh Gune in Gujar at and st udied at
Bar oda U niver sit y w her e he w as influenced by t he nat ionalist L ok m anya Tilak (1856–
1920), Sr i Aur obindo, and physical cult ur alist Rajr at an M anik r ao. Ar ound 1919, Gune m et
M adhavdasji M ahar aj and becam e par t icular ly int er est ed in explor ing abilit ies acquir ed
t hr ough yogic pr act ice (siddhis) w it h West er n scient ific m odels.
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I n 1924, Gune w as able t o r aise enough m oney t o found a r esear ch cent er w it h t he

pur pose of explor ing yoga in scient ific, physiological det ail; t his w as t he Kaivalyadham a
Yoga Ashr am in L onavala, a hill cit y bet w een Bom bay and Pune. At t his t im e, Gune
adopt ed t he nam e of Sw am i Kuvalyananda and began publishing t he r esult s of his
r esear ch in Yoga M im am sa, a jour nal t hat had bot h nat ional and int er nat ional influence.
H e opened t he ashr am t o people seek ing yoga as physical cult ur e t o im pr ove healt h, and
also t o t hose seek ing yoga as a t her apeut ic int er vent ion for specific condit ions, even
including Gandhi as an ear ly pat ient . 72 Fr om t he lat e 1920s, t he ashr am w as also
conduct ing st udies on classical Sansk r it ic t ext s. Kuvalayanda’s w or k cam e t o t he
at t ent ion of nat ionalist leader s as w ell as int er nat ional r esear cher s and at t r act ed
gover nm ent al sponsor ship. The Kaivalyadham a Yoga Ashr am and Kuvalayananda’s
innovat ive m er ging of West er n science w it h disciplined t eaching of yoga as physical
cult ur e, t her apeut ic int er vent ion, and m et aphysical sot er iology had per vasive influence
on fur t her under st andings of yoga. 73
Kuvalayananda’s init iat ives did m uch t o inst it ut ionalize yoga t her apeut ics as par t of t he
I ndian nat ional healt h-car e syst em . I n 1950, he founded, w it h a donat ion by Set h
M ak hanlal Sesk ar ia, t he Gor dhandas Sesk ar ia College of Yoga and Cult ur al Synt hesis,
and in 1962, t he S. A. D. T. Gupt a Yogi H ospit al w as est ablished at t he Kuvalyananda
M ar g in L onavla, offer ing t hir t y-six beds for yogic t r eat m ent and scient ific st udy w it h
funding fr om t he M ahar asht r a St at e Gover nm ent and Shr i A. T. Gupt a. Kaivalyadham a
cont inues as a cent er for bot h dom est ic and int er nat ional educat ion, w it h a focus on yogic
t her apy, com bined w it h nat ur opat hy and pr event at ive m edicine.
Aft er I ndian independence, Ayur vedic pr act it ioner s cam paigned for official st at e
r ecognit ion and sponsor ship, and yoga has gr adually becom e under st ood as a “ sist er
science” t o Ayur veda. 74 The st at e sponsor ship of Ayur veda, yoga, and ot her for m s of
indigenous and nonbiom edical m edicine has been addr essed in an uneven w ay since
independence, w it h m any r egional var iat ions. 75 Aft er m any year s of inconsist ent suppor t ,
yoga becam e a nam ed ar ea of r esear ch in indigenous syst em s of m edicine on t he nat ional
level w it h t he founding of t he Cent r al Council for Resear ch in I ndian M edicine and
H om eopat hy in 1970. 76 Yoga’s st at us as a for m of indigenous m edicine w as fur t her
est ablished and t w inned w it h N at ur opat hy w it h t he est ablishm ent of a separ at e Cent r al
Council of Resear ch for Yoga and N at ur opat hy (CCRYN ) in 1978. Today, “ yoga
t her apeut ics” holds a place in m any gover nm ent -sponsor ed hospit als and healt h-car e
cent er s. I t is m ost fr equent ly com bined w it h nat ur opat hy as a t r eat m ent m odel, but
incr easingly it is seen t o over lap w it h Ayur veda and t he cat egor y of indigenous or I ndian
m edicine. 77 A Depar t m ent of Ayur veda, Yoga and N at ur opat hy, U nani, Siddha and
H om oeopat hy (AYU SH ) w as cr eat ed w it hin t he M inist r y of H ealt h and Fam ily Welfar e in
2003; it w as r aised t o t he level of an independent M inist r y in N ovem ber 2014. As is
evident , t he I ndian gover nm ent has been incr easingly suppor t ive of t he developm ent of
AYU SH t r eat m ent w it hin I ndia, including yoga as a t her apeut ic int er vent ion. As of 2016,
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t he I ndian gover nm ent ’s N at ional H ealt h Por t al list s fift een “ Yoga I nst it ut es” w it h cont act
det ails on it s w ebsit e. 78
T h e Yo g a R evi val i n t h e A g e o f Gl o b al i zat i o n

an d M ass M ed i a
Alt hough t he physical cult ur e cr aze of t he ear ly 20t h cent ur y som ew hat declined in
influence aft er independence, I ndians cont inued t o t each subject s called “ yoga” in I ndia
and incr easingly on t he global st age. The idea of r eceiving spir it ual insight t hr ough
cont act w it h a t eacher (gur u) is per vasive in I ndian cult ur e. 79 M any gur us ar e also
under st ood as yogis, and t he spir it ual insight s t hey offer ar e oft en pr esent ed as
r epr esent ing t he essence of yoga.
Dur ing t he 20t h cent ur y, m any differ ent figur es gained pr om inence, at t r act ing devot ees
and for m ing bot h r eligious and social or ganizat ions in t heir nam es. I n addit ion t o som e of
t he figur es m ent ioned pr eviously, ot her influent ial ear ly 20t h-cent ur y yoga gur us include
Sai Baba of Shir di (1835–1918), 80 Ram ana M ahar shi (1879–1950), 81 M eher Baba (1894–
1969), and Sr i Anandam ayi M aa (1896–1982) (see Figur e 2 ). 82 These gur us oft en
under lined t hat t heir m essage of univer sal spir it ual insight t r anscended m undane
dist inct ions am ong r eligious t r adit ions. M any individuals, bot h I ndian and Eur opean,
visit ed one or sever al of such r enow ned spir it ual vir t uosi, seek ing t heir ow n insight and
healing fr om a var iet y of physical and em ot ional pr oblem s.
An ear ly innovat or in
global com m unicat ions of
yoga w as Sw am i
Sivananda (1887–1963)
and his Divine L ight
Societ y, w hich w as
founded in 1936.
Or iginally a biom edical
doct or, t ur ned sannyasin in
Rishik esh, Sivananda
cont inued t o r epr esent
int er t w ined ideals of
healt h and spir it ual
developm ent t hat w er e
becom ing associat ed w it h
Click t o view lar ger
yoga in I ndia dur ing t he
Figur e 2. Sr i Anandam ayi M a in t he ear ly 20t h
cent ur y. ear ly 20t h cent ur y. H e w as
Phot o by anonym ous follow er. a pr olific publisher and
Page 17 of 37
let t er w r it er, and t he Divine L ight Societ y’s publishing house chur ned out cheaply
pr oduced pam phlet s and book s on yoga t hat w er e dist r ibut ed globally.
Sivananda’s vision of yoga w as eclect ic, offer ing var ying definit ions of “ self-r ealizat ion,”
“ God-r ealizat ion” and “ r ealizing t he I m m or t al At m an” as t he pur pose of yogic st r iving.
H is lit er at ur e em phasized m edit at ion pr act ices over āsana, but āsana becam e a st r onger
par t of t he Sivananda lineage over t im e. 83 Alt hough not dir ect ly agit at ing for
independence, Sivananda suppor t ed t he idealizat ion of Gandhi as a m odel yogi. 84 I n m any
w ays, Sivananda cont inued Vivek ananda’s cat egor ies of yoga, w it h Sar ah St r auss ar guing
t hat Sivananda’s injunct ions t o “ Ser ve, L ove, M edit at e, Realise” r oughly par allel
Vivek ananda’s four pat hs of yoga. 85 Sivananda’s disciples, par t icular ly Sw am i
Vishnudevananda (1927–1993) w ho set t led in M ont r eal, Canada, in 1959 and helped
est ablish a global follow ing, over saw t he opening of Sivananda Yoga Cent r es w or ldw ide.
The Bihar School of Yoga founded in 1964 by anot her of Sivananda’s disciples, Sw am i
Sat yananda Sar asw at i (1923–2009) also achieved an influent ial posit ion bot h w it hin I ndia
and int er nat ionally.
Follow ing t he lead of Vivek ananda’s seva-or ient ed Ram ak r ishna M at h and M ission, t he
et hic of seva has becom e an alm ost ubiquit ous par t of cont em por ar y yoga ashr am
act ivit ies. The pr ovision of food, healt h, and educat ional r esour ces is w idespr ead am ong
cont em por ar y I ndian r eligious or ganizat ions, m any of w hich claim associat ions w it h
yoga. 86
This ser vice m ission is also exem plified by t he Vivek ananda Kendr a founded in 1972 by
t he I ndian nat ionalist leader Ek nat h Ram k r ishna Ranade (1914–1982). The Kendr a
conduct s yoga cam ps as par t of it s m ission t o pr ovide spir it ual and pr act ical uplift t o t he
m asses of I ndia. 87 Ek nat h Ranade w as pr eviously a m em ber of t he Rāṣṭ r īya Svayam sēvak a
Saṅgha (RSS), a H indu-nat ionalist or ganizat ion for m ed in 1925 t o inst ill discipline and
selfless ser vice t o t he cr eat ion of a H indu nat ion-st at e. 88 The RSS is or ganized int o
br anches (śāk hā) t hat or ganize local volunt eer s int o var ious act ivit ies, including physical
fit ness dr ills (w hich include yoga āsana), fir st -aid t r aining, and var ious char it able and
social act ivit ies. The pr om ot ion of yoga as uniquely H indu by t he RSS has been seen as
t hr eat ening t o ot her fait h gr oups w it hin I ndia. A var iet y of ot her I ndia nat ionalist -or ient ed
or ganizat ions have also used t he popular it y of yoga as a com ponent of t heir act ivit ies for
pr om ot ing healt h and self-discipline and for inst illing a spir it ual w or ldview. The
or ganizat ion of lar ge yoga cam ps (shivir ) for bot h specific populat ions and t he gener al
public is now com m on. 89
The leader s of t he new ly independent I ndian nat ion oft en expr essed int er est in pr om ot ing
yoga and I ndian for m s of healt h and w ell-being in var ious capacit ies. The fir st pr im e
m inist er of independent I ndia and an associat e of Gandhi, Jaw ahar lal N ehr u (1889–1964),
w as w idely r epor t ed t o have been influenced by t he Bhagavad Gīt ā and t o pr act ice yoga-
āsana. I n t he 1970s, Pr im e M inist er I ndir a Gandhi (1917–1984) w as closely associat ed
w it h Dhir endr a Br ahm acar i (1924–1994), w ho pr om ot ed t he benefit s of yoga in a w eek ly
br oadcast on Door dar shan, t he st at e-ow ned t elevision net w or k . Br ahm acar i also
Page 18 of 37
int r oduced yoga as physical cult ur e t o m any st at e-ow ned schools in t he Delhi ar ea.
N ot ably, H ar bhajan Singh Pur i, popular ly k now n as Yogi Bhajan (1929–2004), at t ended
Dhir endr a’s yoga classes in N ew Delhi in t he 1960s and w ent on t o found Kundalini Yoga
in Am er ica. 90 Br ahm acar i w as a cont r over sial figur e, at t r act ing cr it icism for w hat w as
seen as an inappr opr iat ely int im at e r elat ionship w it h I ndir a Gandhi, as w ell as for an
eccent r ic and lavish ashr am at M ant alai and var ious business and land deals t hat w er e
lat er r uled illegal. 91 The r eput at ion of Br ahm acar i highlight s a cont inued feeling of
am bivalence w it hin I ndia t ow ar d yogis, and ack now ledgm ent t hat m any appar ent “ God
m en” can be fr audulent and abuse t heir pow er over devot ees. 92
The r ise of global m edia acceler at ed t he ascent of t he int er nat ional gur u figur e,
epit om ized by t he M ahar ishi M ahesh Yogi’s (1918–2008) success in at t r act ing t he w or ld’s
m ost fam ous m usic band, The Beat les, as devot ees for a shor t per iod in 1967. The
M ahar ishi him self cam e fr om an or t hodox Advait a Vedānt a back gr ound, being t he
adm inist r at ive secr et ar y t o t he Śaṅk ar ācār ya of Jyot ir M at h, Sw am i Br ahm ānanda
Sar asw at ī (1868–1953) dur ing t he 1940s. The M ahar ishi’s copyr ight ed for m of
“ Tr anscendent al M edit at ion” w as pr om ot ed as yoga in t he 1970s; lat er, his or ganizat ions
began t o pr om ot e br anded “ M ahar ishi Ayur ved” m edicines t o t heir devot ees and t hose
seek ing alt er nat ives t o biom edicine. Ot her I ndian yoga t eacher s influenced by t his
lineage include Sr i Sr i Ravi Shank ar (b.1956), w ho oper at es highly successful ashr am s
and w ellness pr ogr am s under t he nam e of The Ar t of L iving Foundat ion. 93 M any of t hese
int er nat ional gur us em phasize t he language of univer sal spir it ualit y, influenced by
cent ur ies of int er nat ional exchange and English-language dom inance, w hich Sr inivas
Ar avam udan has apt ly analyzed as Gur u English (2006).
Ot her I ndian yoga gur us w ho have at t r act ed consider able int er est w it hin I ndia and t he
I ndian diaspor a include M āt ā Am ṛ t ānandam ayī (b. 1953), w idely k now n as Am m a, or
“ m ot her,” and t he “ hugging saint ,” 94 and Sat hya Sai Baba (1926–2011). 95 Beat le Geor ge
H ar r ison’s lat er associat ion w it h t he I nt er nat ional Societ y for Kr ishna Consciousness
(I SKCON ) fur t her popular ized t he Gaudiya Vaishnavit e r evival begun by Bhak t isiddhānt a
Sar asvat ī (1874–1937) in Bengal and t he vision of Kr ishna-focused bhak t i yoga
t hr oughout I ndia. 96 The cont em por ar y yoga r evival goes beyond gr oups ident ifying as
H indu, w it h r ecent scholar ship also highlight ing t he r evival of yoga w it hin t he Jain
Shvet am bar a Ter āpant h. 97 Ther e ar e com plex r elat ionships bet w een t he int er nat ional
(oft en Anglophile) br anches of t he gur u-led or ganizat ions and m or e local st r uct ur es,
w hich ar e oft en conduct ed in r egional languages.
Per haps t he m ost ubiquit ous face of t he yoga r evival in cont em por ar y I ndia is Sw am i
Ram dev (b. 1971?). 98 The fir st signs of Ram dev’s est ablishm ent of him self as a m ajor yoga
gur u w er e w it h t he founding of t he Divya Yoga M andir (Tr ust ) w it h his business associat e
Balk r ishna ar ound 1995. Rem em ber ed by locals as w alk ing ar ound H ar idw ar dist r ibut ing
pam phlet s about t he benefit s of yoga and Ayur veda, Ram dev developed his syst em of
t eaching yoga bet w een 1995 and 2002. 99 I n 2003, he began t eaching yoga for a
com m er cial, spir it ually focused channel called Aast ha TV. At t he end of 2007, Vedic
Br oadcast ing L im it ed, m anaged by Ram dev’s business par t ner Balk r ishna, t ook
Page 19 of 37
ow ner ship of t he channel. I n 2011, all but one of t he t en m ost popular r eligious pr ogr am s
in I ndia w er e br oadcast on Aast ha TV, and t he t op t hr ee show s w er e all by Baba
Ram dev. 100 Those affiliat ed w it h Ram dev have suggest ed t hat m or e t han four billion
people w at ch his m or ning yoga t elevision pr ogr am s w or ldw ide. H e has been descr ibed as
I ndia’s “ m ost popular t ele-healer ” and is oft en descr ibed as a “ household nam e” by t he
pr ess in I ndia. 101
I n addit ion t o his t elevision show s, Ram dev conduct s ver y lar ge shivir (huge public yoga
classes) and aut hor izes t eacher s t o t each under his nam e locally. At his m ass yoga cam ps
w it h t housands of par t icipant s, individuals pr act ice pr āṇāyām and āsan, w hich can also be
done w it h lim it ed per sonal space and m obilit y. And t hr ough a t eacher -t r aining syst em ,
The Pat anjali Yog Sam it i claim s t o r un 50,000 fr ee yoga classes ever y day “ in nook and
cor ner ” t hr oughout I ndia. 102 Ram dev’s headquar t er s, t he Pat anjali Yogpeet h in H ar idw ar,
U t t ar ak hand, pr ovides bot h allopat hic and Ayur vedic m edical car e and pr om ot es r esear ch
int o t he m edical benefit s of yoga and Ayur veda. Ram dev also r uns a lar ge business w it h
Balk r ishna t hat pr oduces Pat anjali-br anded Ayur vedic m edicine. H e pr om ot es a for m of
capit alist sw adeshi, m oving int o I ndian-pr oduced food, noodles, and even jeans under t he
Pat anjali br and, pr om ot ing fr eedom fr om for eign m ult inat ional cor por at ions. 103 H is
st r ongest base of suppor t appear s t o be am ong t he H indi-speak ing low er -m iddle classes
in t he West and N or t h of I ndia and t he diaspor a, but he has also at t r act ed suppor t fr om a
w ide r ange of I ndian societ y. 104
Ram dev is w ell k now n for m ak ing cont r over sial public st at em ent s and cham pioning
I ndian nat ional int er est s. H e pr esent s him self as a plain-t alk ing, dow n-t o-ear t h spir it ual
leader w ho is unafr aid t o say w hat needs t o be said. I n 2011, he gained ext ensive
cover age for his public r allies, dem anding t hat t he I ndian gover nm ent cr ack dow n on
cor r upt ion and lost t ax r evenue; in 2013, aft er t hr eat ening t o becom e dir ect ly involved in
polit ics, Ram dev endor sed N ar endr a M odi (b. 1950) and t he Bhar at iya Janat a Par t y (BJP)
for t he office of I ndian pr im e m inist er.
The r esponse of t he I ndian gover nm ent t o t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival has been lar gely
t o em br ace all yoga t hat can be seen as exem plar y for m s of I ndian cult ur e, w hile
at t em pt ing t o pr ot ect t r adit ional k now ledge fr om neocolonial poaching, such as yoga-
āsanas, w hich ar e consider ed a uniquely I ndian cult ur al r esour ce. To t his end, yoga-āsana
and ot her I ndian m edical k now ledge have been included in t he Tr adit ional Know ledge
Digit al L ibr ar y (TKDL ), est ablished in 2001 t o pr event t he pat ent ing of k now ledge t hat
belongs t o I ndian cult ur al t r adit ions. 105 I n 2015, t he I ndian gover nm ent also offer ed
official r ecognit ion t o yoga as a spor t . 106
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T h e M u l t i val en t R evi val o f Yo g a i n

Co n t em p o r ar y I n d i a
Yoga is cer t ainly exper iencing a r evival in cont em por ar y I ndia. The fir st I nt er nat ional Day
of Yoga, w it h an int er nat ionally sponsor ed r esolut ion at t he U nit ed N at ions, w as
celebr at ed on June 21, 2015. I n his pr oposal for t his day, I ndian Pr im e M inist er N ar endr a
M odi explained t o t he U nit ed N at ions:
Yoga is an invaluable gift of I ndia’s ancient t r adit ion. I t em bodies unit y of m ind
and body; t hought and act ion; r est r aint and fulfillm ent ; har m ony bet w een m an
and nat ur e; a holist ic appr oach t o healt h and w ell-being. I t is not about exer cise
but t o discover t he sense of oneness w it h your self, t he w or ld and nat ur e. 107
Alt hough m inor it y gr oups in I ndia ar e uncom for t able w it h t he associat ion of yoga and
H indut va ideology, it is clear t hat m any gr oups t hat do not self-ident ify as H indu also have
pr act ices t hey under st and as yoga. Yoga is a m ult ivalent t er m cover ing a diver se
collect ion of ideas and pr act ices. I n cont em por ar y I ndia, yoga has st r ong associat ions as a
r eligious ideal, as w ell as an act ivit y t hat can pr om ot e healt h and w ellness. Yoga is also
associat ed w it h nat ionalist ic ideology, int er nat ional gur us, evidence-based biom edical
healt h benefit s, secular physical cult ur e, and pur ely individual aspir at ions for m ok ṣa.
R evi ew o f t h e L i t er at u r e
An academ ic focus on som et hing t hat could be ident ified as a cont em por ar y yoga r evival
occur r ed r elat ively r ecent ly, w it h t he t er m “ M oder n Yoga” int r oduced by Elizabet h De
M ichelis in A H ist or y of M oder n Yoga (2004). I n t he sam e year, Joseph Alt er published
Yoga in M oder n I ndia, w hich out lined som e of t he significant influences of biom edical
par adigm s on yoga in colonial I ndia; it follow ed up on his pr evious w or k on som at ic
aspect s of I ndian nat ionalism and Gandhi. This w as follow ed by M ar k Singlet on’s 2010
book Yoga Body, w hich elucidat ed t he ext ent t o w hich West er n ideas of physical cult ur e
influenced cont em por ar y pr act ices of yoga, especially t he em phasis on physical post ur es
(āsana).
Anot her body of lit er at ur e has em phasized t he r ole of consum er ism and t r ansnat ionalism
in t r ansfor m ing m oder n yoga, for exam ple, Andr ea R. Jain’s Selling Yoga (2014), w hich
com plem ent s t he pr evious analysis of yoga in neoliber al, consum er ist societ ies by Jer em y
Car r et t e and Richar d King in Selling Spir it ualit y (2004) and Kim ber ly A. L au in N ew Age
Capit alism (2000). 108 These m onogr aphs t end t o suppor t an im plicit idea of a cont inuous
yoga t r adit ion t hat is som ehow t r ansfor m ed, or r einvent ed, in differ ent t im es and places.
Page 21 of 37
M uch of t he exist ing r esear ch par adigm also dialogues w it h t he par adigm of t he invent ion
of t r adit ion. 109 Som e cont em por ar y r esear ch can be seen as at t em pt ing t o uncover novel
m oder n innovat ions t er m ed “ yoga” t hat ar e discont inuous w it h m or e t r adit ional I ndia
pr act ices. This is echoed in t he concer ns of H indut va polit icians and spok espeople bot h in
I ndia and in t he diaspor a t hat t he for m s of yoga popular in gym s and pr om ot ed by
celebr it ies debase t he pur e and ancient t r adit ion of yoga t hat is sacr ed t o I ndians. 110 The
cont em por ar y yoga r evival obviously involves a spect r um of people t hat r ange fr om
ascet ics t o highly successful businessm en and a huge var iet y of or ganizat ions t hat have
var ious posit ions in t his m ilieu. 111
Agehananda Bhar at i’s descr ipt ion (1970) of how I ndians r eem phasize aspect s of t heir
cult ur e t hat have been acclaim ed by “ West er ner s” has also been ext r em ely influent ial in
lit er at ur e on t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival, and r em ains an under lying par adigm of m ost
hist or ical analysis. Bhar at i pr oposes t hat officially, fr om t he colonial per iod t o t he
pr esent ,
West er n t hings ar e not desir able in t he I ndian cult ur al univer se; but neit her ar e
t he t hem es and t he w or k s of t he t r adit ion w hich is t hought r eact ionar y and
obsolet e. Yet , one and all, t hey gat her m om ent um and r espect t hr ough a pr ocess
of r e-encult ur at ion. I have coined t he facet ious-sounding t er m “ pizza-effect ” for
t his per vasive pat t er n. 112
As Bhar at i explains in his foot not e:
The or iginal pizza w as a sim ple, hot -bak ed br ead w it hout any t r im m ings, t he
st aple of t he Calabr ian and Sicilian cont adini fr om w hom w ell over 90% of all
I t alo-Am er icans descend. Aft er Wor ld War I , a highly elabor at ed dish, t he U.S.
pizza of m any sizes, flavor s, and hues, m ade it s w ay back t o I t aly w it h visit ing
k insfolk fr om Am er ica. The t er m and t he object have acquir ed a new m eaning and
a new st at us, as w ell as m any new t ast es in t he land of it s or igin, not only in t he
sout h, but t hr oughout t he lengt h and w idt h of I t aly. 113
I n cont r ast , r ecent ant hr opological w or k has em phasized r ecipr ocal global r elat ionships
and t he im por t ance of net w or k s coalescing ar ound int er nat ionally t our ing I ndian gur us.
Yoga is oft en only a par t of t he “ pack age” of t hese cont em por ar y I ndian gur us, w hich
includes healt h car e, a com m unit y in w hich t o belong, and a m eaningful w or ldview. The
t er m yoga oft en feat ur es in var ious w ays as defining t he gr oup’s sot er iological goals, and
t he pr act ice of physical post ur es and pr āṇāyām a is also a ubiquit ous feat ur e. This
appr oach began w it h Sar ah St r auss’s m ult isit ed et hnogr aphy on t he developm ent of
Sivananda Yoga in I ndia, Ger m any, and t he U nit ed St at es, w hich elegant ly illust r at es t he
t r ansnat ional m ovem ent of an influent ial pr act ice (2005). 114 This is com plem ent ed m or e
r ecent ly by Vér onique Alt glas’s m ult isit ed sociological r esear ch on Siddha and Sivananda
Yoga cent er s in Br it ain and Fr ance, w hich concent r at es on dem ogr aphics of t hose w ho
ar e at t r act ed t o t he globalized for m s of t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival. 115 Tr ansnat ional
Page 22 of 37
exchange and net w or k s w er e also t he t heor et ical focus of a 2013 edit ed volum e by
Beat r ix H auser, as w ell as Am anda L ucia’s w or k on Am m a, t he hugging gur u, and Sm r it i
Sr inivas’s w or k on Sat hya Sai Baba. 116
I n t he field of ant hr opology and hist or y, N āt h sam pr adayas have r eceived quit e a lot of
et hnogr aphic and hist or ical r esear ch as phenom ena lar gely dist inct fr om t he
cont em por ar y yoga r evival. 117 H ow ever, r ecent et hnogr aphy has show n t hat cont em por ar y
N āt hs have been influenced by t he popular it y of āsana, and m or e r ecent ly have been
incor por at ing m or e of t hese t echniques int o t heir int er act ions w it h t he public. 118
Beyond t he foundat ional w or k s m ent ioned, t her e ar e ext ensive r esour ces in t he case
st udy appr oach found in m onogr aph-lengt h biogr aphies, academ ic jour nals, and edit ed
volum es. Ther e is a r ich lit er at ur e her e for anyone seek ing t o get an over view of t he
m yr iad pr esent at ions of yoga in t he cont em por ar y w or ld. 119 Recent r esear ch has also
begun t o focus on t he visual cult ur e of I ndia in t he pr em oder n per iod as pr oviding
evidence for var ious physical pr act ices. 120
I n 2015, t w o am bit ious r esear ch pr oject s w er e funded by t he Eur opean Resear ch Council
t hat aim t o t ak e a longue dur ée view of yoga over t he past t housand year s. The fir st is t he
H at ha Yoga Pr oject , w hich w ill pr im ar ily ext end t he accessibilit y of hist or ical r esear ch
w it h at t ent ion t o m anuscr ipt s, but also cont ains an et hnogr aphic elem ent of int er view s
w it h cont em por ar y sādhus. The second m ajor r esear ch pr oject , Ayur yog, is look ing at
over laps am ong yoga, Ayur veda, and r asaśāst r a (I ndian alchem y and iat r ochem ist r y) fr om
t he 10t h t o t he 21st cent ur ies, focusing on t he disciplines’ healt h, r ejuvenat ion, and
longevit y pr act ices. I t is lik ely t hat t he lit er at ur e in t his field w ill be consider ably m or e
diver se by 2020.
Pr i m ar y So u r c es
Resear ch t o dat e has lar gely been done by Anglophone academ ics, w it h a bias t ow ar d
English language sour ces. The digit alizat ion of hist or ical new spaper s since 2000 has
opened up r esear ch avenues for exam ining r egional popular izat ion of yoga in dist inct
localit ies.
For t hose w it h com pet ency in t he r egional languages of I ndia, t her e is m uch r esear ch t o
be done ar t iculat ing t he r elat ionship bet w een ver nacular lit er at ur e and local r evival
m ovem ent s. The r elat ionship bet w een t hese local I ndian r egions and t he developm ent of
yoga is a neglect ed ar ea of r esear ch; collect ions of ver nacular new spaper s have yet t o be
digit ized, and or al hist or y r esear ch could st ill yield int er est ing new insight s w hen
connect ed t o t he int er nat ional nar r at ive on t he cont em por ar y yoga r evival.
While m ost of t he influent ial act or s for t he r evival of yoga have been ident ified, t he
significance of m any ot her secondar y figur es, associat ed w it h specific spher es of r egional
influence, has yet t o be t ouched.
Page 23 of 37
L i n k s t o D i g i t al an d Vi su al M at er i al s
Web si t es
En t an g l ed H i st o r i es o f Yo g a, Ayu r ved a an d A l c h em y i n So u t h A si a.
This Eur opean Resear ch Council funded pr oject (2015–2020) exam ines t he hist or ies of
yoga, Ayur veda, and r asaśāst r a (I ndian alchem y and iat r ochem ist r y) fr om t he 10t h t o t he
21st cent ur ies, focusing on t he disciplines’ healt h, r ejuvenat ion, and longevit y pr act ices.
The goals of t he pr oject , w hich is based at t he U niver sit y of Vienna, ar e t o r eveal t he
ent anglem ent s of t hese hist or ical t r adit ions, and t o t r ace t he t r aject or ies of t heir
evolut ion as com ponent s of t he global healt h-car e and per sonal developm ent indust r ies.
T h e H aṭ h a Yo g a Pr o j ec t ( H YP) .
The H aṭ ha Yoga Pr oject (H YP) is a five-year r esear ch pr oject (2015–2020) funded by t he

Eur opean Resear ch Council and based at SOAS, U niver sit y of L ondon, w hich aim s t o
char t t he hist or y of physical yoga pr act ice by m eans of philology, t hat is, t he st udy of
t ext s on yoga, and et hnogr aphy, t hat is, fieldw or k am ong pr act it ioner s of yoga. The
pr oject t eam consist s of four r esear cher s based at SOAS, one at t he École fr ançaise
d’Ext r êm e Or ient , Pondicher r y, and one at t he M ahar aja M an Singh Pust ak Pr ak ash,
Jodhpur. The pr oject ’s pr im ar y out put s w ill be cr it ical edit ions and annot at ed t r anslat ions
of t en Sansk r it t ext s on haṭ ha yoga, four m onogr aphs, and a r ange of jour nal ar t icles,
book chapt er s, and encyclopedia ent r ies.
T h e H ar t su i k er A r c h i ve.
This ar chive, held at t he Br it ish M useum in L ondon, docum ent s I ndian m endicant s or
sādhus, m ost ly H indu, but including som e Jain pr act it ioner s, in t he lat er 20t h cent ur y in
nor t her n I ndia. The im ages w er e t ak en by Adolphus H ar t suik er over m any year s, fr om t he
1970s onw ar d.
M o d er n Yo g a R esear c h Web si t e.
This Websit e highlight s r esear ch int o m oder n yoga and, m or e gener ally, about som e of
t he m ost infor m at ive r esear ch on ear lier for m s of yoga. This sit e’s cont r ibut or s ar e
t ypically univer sit y academ ics engaged in t eaching, and in t he pr ofessional st udy of for m s
of m oder n yoga and/or of Sout h Asian hist or y, cult ur e, and languages. This Websit e
highlight s som e of t hose w ho ar e act ive in t hese ar eas of r esear ch and access, in sever al;
cases via dir ect dow nloads, and som e of t heir m ost r elevant cont r ibut ions.
Yo g a: T h e A r t o f Tr an sf o r m at i o n .
Page 24 of 37
Online r esour ce r elat ed t o t he exhibit ion Yoga: The Ar t of Tr ansfor m at ion held dur ing
2013–2014 at t he Fr eer Galler y of Ar t /Ar t hur M . Sack ler Galler y, Sm it hsonian I nst it ut ion,
Washingt on, DC. U nit ed St at es. This Websit e pr ovides exam ples of t he visual cult ur e of
yoga hist or y. The exhibit ion’s 133 w or k s, w hich w er e cr eat ed over t w o m illennia, r ange
fr om devot ional sculpt ur es and illust r at ed cour t m anuscr ipt s t o colonial phot ogr aphs and
ear ly film s.
Vi d eo s
Su k sh m a Vyayam a f i l m by Dhir endr a Br ahm achar i. Available on YouTube.
Vi d eo o f B ab a R am d ev. Available on YouTube.
Vi d eo o f N ar en d r a M o d i par t icipat ing in I nt er nat ional Yoga Day at Rajpat h, June 21,
2015. Available on YouTube.
A c k n o w l ed g m en t s
This pr oject has r eceived funding fr om t he Eur opean U nion’s H or izon 2020 r esear ch and
innovat ion pr ogr am under gr ant agr eem ent N o 639363.
Fu r t h er R ead i n g
Alt er, Joseph S.Gandhi’s Body: Sex, Diet , and t he Polit ics of N at ionalism . Philadelphia:
U niver sit y of Pennsylvania Pr ess, 2000.
Alt er, Joseph S.Yoga in M oder n I ndia: The Body bet w een Science and Philosophy.
Pr incet on, N J, and Woodst ock , U.K.: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 2004.
Ar avam udan, Sr inivas. Gur u English: Sout h Asian Religion in a Cosm opolit an L anguage.
Oxfor d and Pr incet on, N J: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 2006.
Beck er legge, Gw ilym . “ Sevā: The Focus of a Fr agm ent ed but Gr adually Coalescing Field
of St udy.” Religions of Sout h Asia 9.2 (2015): 208–239.
Beck er legge, Gw ilym . “ Sw am i Vivek ananda (1863–1902) 150 Year s On: Cr it ical St udies of
an I nfluent ial H indu Gur u.” Religion Com pass 7.10 (2013): 444–453.
Bhar at i, Agehananda. “ The H indu Renaissance and I t s Apologet ic Pat t er ns.” Jour nal of
Asian St udies 29.2 (1970): 267–287.
Bouillier, Vér onique. I t inér ance et vie m onast ique: L es ascèt es N at h Yogis en I nde
cont em por aine. Par is: Edit ions de la M sh, 2008.
Page 25 of 37
De M ichelis, Elizabet h. A H ist or y of M oder n Yoga: Pat añjali and West er n Esot er icism .
N ew Yor k : Cont inuum , 2004.
Goldber g, Elliot t . The Pat h of M oder n Yoga: The H ist or y of an Em bodied Spir it ual
Pr act ice. Rochest er, VT: I nner Tr adit ions, 2016.
H auser, Beat r ix, ed. Yoga Tr aveling: Bodily Pr act ice in Tr anscult ur al Per spect ive. L ondon:
Spr inger, 2013.
Jacobsen, Knut A.Theor y and Pr act ice of Yoga: Essays in H onour of Ger ald Jam es L ar son.
L eiden, The N et her lands: Br ill, 2004.
Kopf, David. The Br ahm o Sam aj and t he Shaping of t he M oder n I ndian M ind. Pr incet on,
N J: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 1979.
M allinson, Jam es and M ar k Singlet on. Root s of Yoga. St I ves, U.K.: Penguin Book s, 2017.
M cKean, L ise. Divine Ent er pr ise: Gur us and t he H indu N at ionalist M ovem ent . Chicago:
U niver sit y of Chicago Pr ess, 1996.
Pinch, William . War r ior Ascet ics and I ndian Em pir es. Cam br idge, U.K. and N ew Yor k :
Cam br idge U niver sit y Pr ess, 2006.
Singlet on, M ar k . Yoga Body: The Or igins of M oder n Post ur e Pr act ice. Oxfor d and N ew
Yor k : Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2010.
Singlet on, M ar k , and Jean Byr ne, eds. Yoga in t he M oder n Wor ld: Cont em por ar y
Per spect ives. L ondon: Rout ledge, 2008.
Singlet on, M ar k , and Ellen Goldber g, eds. Gur us of M oder n Yoga. Oxfor d and N ew Yor k :
Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014.
St r auss, Sar ah. Posit ioning Yoga: Balancing Act s Acr oss Cult ur es. Oxfor d and N ew Yor k :
Ber g, 2005.
Whit e, David Gor don. The Yoga Sut r a of Pat anjali: A Biogr aphy. Pr incet on, N J, and
Oxfor d: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014.
Whit e, David Gor don, ed. Yoga in Pr act ice. Pr incet on, N J: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess,
2012.
N o t es:
(1.) Jam es M allinson, “ Śāk t ism and H aṭ hayoga,” in Goddess Tr adit ions in Tant r ic
H induism : H ist or y, Pr act ice and Doct r ine, ed. Bjar ne Wer nick e Olesen (Oxfor d:
Rout ledge, 2016), 109–140; and for pr act it ioner s of yoga m ent ioned in t he M ahābhār at a,
see John L . Br ock ingt on, “ Epic Yoga,” Jour nal of Vaiṣṇava St udies 14.1 (2005): 123–138.
Page 26 of 37
(2.) Dom inik Wujast yk , “ The Pat h t o L iber at ion t hr ough Yogic M indfulness in Ear ly
Ayur veda,” in Yoga in Pr act ice ed. David Gor don Whit e (Pr incet on, N J: Pr incet on
U niver sit y Pr ess, 2012), 31–42; Johannes Br onk hor st , “ Yoga and Sesvar a Sam k hya,”
Jour nal of I ndian Philosophy 9 (1981): 309–320; and Andr ew N icholson, “ I s Yoga H indu?
On t he Fuzziness of Religious Boundar ies,” Com m on Know ledge 19.3 (2013): 490–505.
(3.) M ar k Singlet on, Yoga Body: The Or igins of M oder n Post ur e Pr act ice (Oxfor d and N ew
Yor k : Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2010), 35–51.
(4.) Philipp M aas, “A Concise H ist or iogr aphy of Classical Yoga Philosophy,” in
Per iodizat ion and H ist or iogr aphy of I ndian Philosophy, ed. Eli Fr anco (Vienna: Sam m lung
de N obili, I nst it ut für Südasien-, Tibet - und Buddhism usk unde der U niver sit ät Wien,
2013), 53–90; and David Gor don Whit e, The Yoga Sut r a of Pat anjali: A Biogr aphy
(Pr incet on, N J, and Oxfor d: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014).
(5.) Knut A. Jacobsen, ed., Yoga Pow er s: Ext r aor dinar y Capacit ies At t ained Thr ough
M edit at ion and Concent r at ion (L eiden, The N et her lands: Br ill, 2012).
(6.) David Gor don Whit e, Sinist er Yogis (L ondon: U niver sit y of Chicago Pr ess, 2009), Knut
Jacobson (ed.), Yogic Pow er s: Ext r aor dinar y Capacit ies At t ained Thr ough M edit at ion and
Concent r at ion (L eiden, The N et her lands: Br ill, 2011) and Jam es M allinson and M ar k
Singlet on “ Yogic Pow er s,” Root s of Yoga (St I ves, U.K.: Penguin Book s, 2017), 359–394.
(7.) Geoffr ey Sam uel, The Or igins of Yoga and Tant r a (Cam br idge, U.K.: Cam br idge
U niver sit y Pr ess, 2008) and Sham an H at ley “ Tant r ic Śaivism in Ear ly M edieval I ndia:
Recent Resear ch and Fut ur e Dir ect ions,” Religion Com pass 4 (2010), 615–628.
(8.) I bid., 271–290.
(9.) Sham an H at ley, “ Conver t ing t he Ḍāk inī: Goddess Cult s and Tant r as of t he Yoginīs
Bet w een Buddhism and śaivism ” in Tant r ic Tr adit ions in Tr ansm ission and Tr anslat ion
eds. David B Gr ay and Ryan Richar d Over bey (Oxfor d: Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2016), 42.
(10.) Sam uel, The Or igins of Yoga and Tant r a, 276–290. See also Alexis Sander son, “ Yoga
in Śaivism : The Yoga Sect ion of t he M ṛ gendr at ant r a. An Annot at ed Tr anslat ion of t he Text
w it h t he Com m ent ar y of Bhaṭ ṭ a N ār āyaṇak aṇṭ ha,” and David Gor don Whit e, The
Alchem ical Body: Siddha Tr adit ions in M edieval I ndia (Chicago: Chicago U niver sit y Pr ess,
1996).
(11.) Kat hleen Taylor, Sir John Woodr offe, Tant r a and Bengal: “An I ndian Soul in a
Eur opean Body?” (L ondon: Rout ledge, 2001).
(12.) Whit e, Sinist er Yogis.
(13.) Jason Bir ch, “ M eaning of H aṭ ha in Ear ly H aṭ hayoga,” Jour nal of t he Am er ican
Or ient al Societ y 131.4 (2011): 527–554.
Page 27 of 37
(14.) Gudr un Bühnem ann, Eight y-four Āsanas in Yoga: A Sur vey of Tr adit ions: w it h
I llust r at ions (N ew Delhi: D. K. Pr int w or ld, 2007).
(15.) See Jam es M allinson and M ar k Singlet on, eds., Root s of Yoga: A Sour cebook fr om
t he I ndic Tr adit ions (St I ves: Penguin Book s, 2017), and The H aṭ ha Yoga Pr oject (H YP), as
w ell as Kennet h L iber m an, “ The Reflexivit y of t he Aut hent icit y of H aṭ ha Yoga” in Yoga in
t he M oder n Wor ld: Cont em por ar y Per spect ives, eds. M ar k Singlet on and Jean Byr ne
(L ondon: Rout ledge, 2008), 100–116.
(16.) William R. Pinch, War r ior Ascet ics and I ndian Em pir es (Cam br idge, U.K., and N ew
Yor k : Cam br idge U niver sit y Pr ess, 2006); M onik a H or st m ann, “ Pow er and St at us:
Rām ānandī War r ior Ascet ics in 18t h-Cent ur y Jaipur,” in Ascet icism and Pow er in Sout h
and Sout h East Asia, eds. Pet er Flügel and Gust aaf H out m an (L ondon: Rout ledge, 2017);
and David Gor don Whit e, “ Yogic and Polit ical Pow er am ong t he N at h Siddhas of N or t h
I ndia,” in Ascet icism and Pow er in Sout h and Sout h East Asia, eds. Pet er Flügel and
Gust aaf H out m an (L ondon: Rout ledge, 2017).
(17.) See Jam es M allinson, ‘N āt h Saṃ pr adāya’ Br ill Encyclopaedia of H induism , vol. 3
(L eiden, The N et her lands: Br ill, 2011), 407–428; M at t hew Clar k , The Daśanām ī-
Saṃ nyāsīs: The I nt egr at ion of Ascet ic L ineages int o an Or der (L eiden, The N et her lands:
Br ill, 2006) and Whit e, Sinist er Yogis, 198–236.
(18.) M allinson and Singlet on, The Root s of Yoga, 359–394.
(19.) Pinch, War r ior Ascet ics, 82–93.
(20.) Singlet on, Yoga Body, 55.
(21.) Kier an N ar ayan, “ Refr act ions of t he Field at H om e: Am er ican Repr esent at ions of
I ndian H oly M en in t he 19t h and 20t h Cent ur ies,” Cult ur al Ant hr opology 8.4 (1993): 476–
509, and Singlet on, Yoga Body, 35–53.
(22.) Singelt on, Yoga Body, 80, and Whit e, Sinist er Yogis, 231–234.
(23.) John M ar t in H onigber ger, Thir t y-five Year s in t he East : Advent ur es, Discover ies,
Exper im ent s and H ist or ical Sk et ches Relat ing t o t he Punjab and Cashm er e in Connect ion
w it h M edicine, Bot any, Phar m acy and Toget her w it h an Or iginal M at er ia M edica and A
M edical Vocabular y in Four Eur opean and Five East er n L anguages (L ondon: H Baillier e,
1852), 92–95 and 116, w hich r ecor ds a “ faqueer s” act ing as one of sever al m edical
advisor s t o t hose in pow er in L ahor e dur ing t he ear ly 1800s.
(24.) Singlet on, Yoga Body, 75–80, and Sam uel, Or igins of Yoga and Tant r a.
(25.) Raym ond Sw ab, The Or ient al Renaissance: Eur ope’s Rediscover y of I ndia and t he
East 1680–1880 (N ew Yor k : Colum bia U niver sit y Pr ess, 1984).
Page 28 of 37
(26.) Cat her ine Anne Robinson, “ I nt er pr et er of H induism t o t he West ? Sir Edw in Ar nold’s
(Re)Pr esent at ions of H indu Text s and Their Recept ion,” Religions of Sout h Asia 8.2
(2014): 217–236.
(27.) Agehananda Bhar at i, “ The H indu Renaissance and I t s Apologet ic Pat t er ns,” Jour nal
of Asian St udies 29.2 (1970): 267–287.
(28.) Cat her ine A. Robinson, I nt er pr et at ions of t he Bhagavad Gīt ā and I m ages of t he
H indu Tr adit ion: The Song of t he L or d (L ondon: Rout ledge, 2006).
(29.) For hist or ies of t he t heosophical societ y see Rout ledge H andbook s by Olav H am m er ;
H am m er, “ Theosophy,” in The Occult Wor ld, ed. Chr ist opher Par t r idge (L ondon,
Rout ledge, 2014), 250–259; Olav H am m er and M ik ael Rot hst ein, eds., H andbook of t he
Theosophical Cur r ent (L eiden, The N et her lands: Br ill, 2013); Jeffr ey D. L avoie, The
Theosophical Societ y: The H ist or y of a Spir it ualist M ovem ent (Boca Rat on, FL : U niver sal-
Publisher s, 2014); Joy Dixon, Divine Fem inism : Theosophy and Fem inism in England
(Balt im or e: Johns H opk ins U niver sit y Pr ess, 2001); Joscelyn Godw in, The Theosophical
Enlight enm ent (Albany: St at e U niver sit y of N ew Yor k Pr ess, 1994); and B. F. Cam pbell,
Ancient Wisdom Revived—A H ist or y of t he Theosophical M ovem ent (Ber k eley: U niver sit y
of Califor nia Pr ess, 1980).
(30.) Tim ot hy S. Dobe, H indu Chr ist ian Faqir : M oder n M onk s, Global Chr ist ianit y and
I ndian Saint hood (Oxfor d: Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2015), 19–24.
(31.) Elizabet h De M ichelis, A H ist or y of M oder n Yoga: Pat añjali and West er n Esot er icism
(L ondon: Cont inuum , 2004), 46 and 19–90. For m or e dept h, see David Kopf, Br it ish
Or ient alism and t he Bengali Renaissance (Ber k eley: U niver sit y of Califor nia Pr ess, 1969);
David Kopf, The Br ahm o Sam aj and t he Shaping of t he M oder n I ndian M ind (Pr incet on,
N J: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 1979); William H albfass, I ndia and Eur ope: An Essay in
U nder st anding (Albany: St at e U niver sit y of N ew Yor k Pr ess, 1988). H albfass’s book w as
published in Ger m an in 1981.
(32.) Wilhelm H albfass, ed., Philology and Confr ont at ion: Paul H ack er on Tr adit ional and
M oder n Vedānt a (Albany: St at e U niver sit y of N ew Yor k Pr ess, 1995), and Eli Fr anco and
Kar in Pr eisendanz, eds., Beyond Or ient alism : The Wor k of Wilhelm H albfass and I t s
I m pact on I ndian and Cr oss-Cult ur al St udies (Delhi: M ot ilal Banar sidass, 1997). The t er m
N eo-Vedant a w as r evived in a m or e neut r al w ay in De M ichelis, A H ist or y of M oder n Yoga.
(33.) Kopf, Br it ish Or ient alism and t he Bengal Renaissance.
(34.) Sen as quot ed in De M ichelis, A H ist or y of M oder n Yoga, 89.
(35.) Gw ilym Beck er legge, “ Sw am i Vivek ananda (1863–1902) 150 Year s On: Cr it ical
St udies of an I nfluent ial H indu Gur u,” Religion Com pass 7.10 (2013): 444–453.
Page 29 of 37
(36.) M ar k Singlet on, “ The Classical Rever ies of M oder n Yoga: Pat añjali and Const r uct ive
Or ient alism ,” in Yoga in t he M oder n Wor ld: Cont em por ar y Per spect ives, ed. M ar k
Singlet on and Jean Byr ne (L ondon: Rout ledge, 2008), 77–99.
(37.) De M ichelis, A H ist or y of M oder n Yoga, 124, quot ing fr om Sw am i Vivek ananda, The
Com plet e Wor k s of Sw am i Vivek ananda, Vol. 9, (Calcut t a: Advait a Ashr am a, c. 1997), 484.
(38.) De M ichelis, A H ist or y of M oder n Yoga, 151. For a hist or y of t he idea of r āja yoga in
I ndia, see Jason Bir ch, “ Rājayoga: The Reincar nat ions of t he King of All Yogas,”
I nt er nat ional Jour nal of H indu St udies 17.3 (2013): 401–444.
(39.) Gw ilym Beck er legge, Sw am i Vivek ananda’s L egacy of Ser vice: A St udy of t he
Ram ak r ishna M at h and M ission (N ew Delhi: Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2006), 73.
(40.) I bid., 79–95.
(41.) Sar ah St r auss, Posit ioning Yoga: Balancing Act s Acr oss Cult ur es (Oxfor d and N ew
Yor k : Ber g, 2005), 9.
(42.) Dobe, H indu Chr ist ian Faqir , and Robin Rinehar t , One L ifet im e, M any L ives: The
Exper ience of M oder n H indu H agiogr aphy (At lant a: Scholar s Pr ess, 1999).
(43.) Alex Wolfer s, “ Bor n L ik e Kr ishna in t he Pr ison-H ouse: Revolut ionar y Ascet icism in
t he Polit ical Ashr am of Aur obindo Ghose,” Sout h Asia: Jour nal of Sout h Asian St udies 39.3
(2016): 525–545.
(44.) For a good over view of Aur obindo’s m et aphysics, see St ephen Philips, Aur obindo’s
Philosophy of Br ahm an (L eiden, The N et her lands: Br ill, 1986), and St ephen Philips, “ The
Cent r al Ar gum ent of Aur obindo’s The L ife Divine,” Philosophy East and West 35.3 (1985):
271–284. An im por t ant int er pr et er of Aur obindo for t he I ndian audience has been S. K.
M ait r a, The M eet ing of t he East and t he West in t he Philosophy of Sr i Aur obindo
(Pondicher r y: Sr i Aur obindo Ashr am , 1956). Also see Ann Gleig and Char les I . Flor es,
“ Rem em ber ing Sr i Aur obindo and t he M ot her : The For got t en L ineage of I nt egr al Yoga,”
in Gur us of M oder n Yoga, eds. M ar k Singlet on and Ellen Goldber g (Oxfor d and N ew Yor k :
Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014), 38–59.
(45.) Judit h Br ow n, Gandhi: Pr isoner of H ope (L ondon: Yale U niver sit y Pr ess, 1989), 74–
94, and Kat hr yn Tidr ick , Gandhi: A Polit ical and Spir it ual L ife (L ondon: I . B. Taur is, 2006),
23–52.
(46.) Joseph Alt er, Gandhi’s Body: Sex, Diet and t he Polit ics of N at ionalism (Pr incet on, N J,
and Woodst ock , U.K.: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 2000), 12.
(47.) For exam ple see Sander son, Yoga in Śaivism .
(48.) Alt er, Gandhi’s Body, 14.
Page 30 of 37
(49.) Alt er, Gandhi’s Body, 83–112, and Tidr ick , Gandhi, 213. The influence of
Sat w alek ar ’s ext ensive H indi w r it ings on t he developm ent of yoga, āsana, and healt h has
yet t o be explor ed.
(50.) Paul Br ass, “ The Polit ics of Ayur vedic Educat ion: A Case St udy of Revivalism and
M oder nizat ion in I ndia,” in Educat ion and Polit ics in I ndia, eds. Susanne H . Rudolph and
L loyd I . Rudolph (Cam br idge, M A: H ar var d U niver sit y Pr ess, 1992), 342–371.
(51.) D. C. M ujum dar, ed., Encyclopedia of I ndia Physical Cult ur e (Bhar oda, I ndia: Good
Com panions, 1950).
(52.) Singlet on, Yoga Body, 103–104.
(53.) I bid., p. 47, and Elliot t Goldber g, The Pat h of M oder n Yoga: The H ist or y of an
Em bodied Spir it ual Pr act ice (Rochest er, VT: I nner Tr adit ions, 2016).
(54.) M ar k Singlet on, “ Yoga, Eugenics and Spir it ual Dar w inism in t he Ear ly Tw ent iet h
Cent ur y,” I nt er nat ional Jour nal of H indu St udies 11.2 (2007): 125–146; Singlet on, Yoga
Body, 119–122, and Goldber g, The Pat h of M oder n Yoga.
(55.) Joseph S. Alt er, “ Shr i Yogendr a: M agic, M oder nit y and t he Bur den of t he M iddle-
Class Yogi,” in Gur us of M oder n Yoga, eds. M ar k Singlet on and Ellen Goldber g (Oxfor d
and N ew Yor k : Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014), 60–82.
(56.) Singlet on, Yoga Body, 126, and Goldber g, The Pat h of M oder n Yoga.
(57.) Joseph Alt er, M or al M at er ialism : Sex and M asculinit y in M oder n I ndia (L ondon:
Penguin, 2011), 149–178, and Anya P. Foxen, Biogr aphy of a Yogi: Yogananda and t he
Bir t h of M oder n Yoga (N ew Yor k : Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2017).
(58.) Alison Fish, “ The Com m odificat ion and Exchange of Know ledge in t he Case of
Tr ansnat ional Com m er cial Yoga,” I nt er nat ional Jour nal of Cult ur al Pr oper t y 13.2 (2006):
194–201, and St ephanie For shee, “ GC of Bik r am Yoga Wins $7.3 M illion in Sexual
H ar assm ent Case,” L aw.Com , Januar y 26, 2016. Available at ht t p://w w w.law.com /sit es/
ar t icles/2016/01/26/gc-of-bik r am -yoga-w ins-7-3-m illion-in-sexual-har assm ent -case/?
slr et ur n= 20170031125832.
(59.) See also Singlet on, Yoga Body, 101–102.
(60.) Alt er, Gandhi’s Body, 95.
(61.) Goldber g, The Pat h of M oder n Yoga.
(62.) N or m an Sjom en, The Yoga Tr adit ion of t he M ysor e Palace (N ew Delhi: Abhinav
Publicat ions, 1996), 50–51.
Page 31 of 37
(63.) Jam es M allinson, “A H ist or y of Physical Yoga Pr act ice, w it h a Focus on I nver sions,”
or al pr esent at ion at t he int er nat ional confer ence “ Yoga dar śana, yoga sādhana:
Tr adit ions, Tr ansm issions, Tr ansfor m at ions,” Jagiellonian U niver sit y, Kr ak ów, Poland,
M ay 20, 2016.
(64.) Kennet h G. Zysk , Religious M edicine: The H ist or y and Evolut ion of I ndian M edicine
(N ew Br unsw ick , N J: Tr ansact ion Publisher s, 1993).
(65.) Per sonal int er view w it h Jam es M allinson on 21 M ay 2016 see also T. S. Anat ha
M ur t hy, M ahar aj: A Biogr aphy of Shr im an Tapasviji M ahar aj, a M ahat m a Who L ived for
185 Year s (L och L om ond, CA: Daw n H or se, 1986).
(66.) Sw am i Ajaya, ed. L iving w it h t he H im alayan M ast er s: Spir it ual Exper iences of
Sw am i Ram a (H onesdale, PA: H im alayan I nt er nat ional I nst it ut e of Yoga Science &
Philosophy, 1978), 357–383.
(67.) An exam ple is descr ibed by Kir in N ar ayan, St or yt eller s, Saint s and Scoundr els: Folk
N ar r at ive in H indu Religious Teaching (Philadelphia: U niver sit y of Pennsylvania Pr ess,
1989), 80–81.
(68.) Sant an Rodr igues, The H ouseholder Yogi: L ife of Shr i Yogendr a (Bom bay: Yogendr a
Publicat ions Fund, t he Yoga I nst it ut e, 1982), and also descr ibed in Goldber g, The Pat h of
M oder n Yoga, 7–15.
(69.) Kennet h G. Zysk , Ascet icism and H ealing in Ancient I ndia: M edicine in t he Buddhist
M onast er y (Delhi: M ont ail Banar sidass, 1998).
(70.) Rodr igues, The H ouseholder Yogi, 43–44 and 47. See also Sudhir Kak ar, Sham ans,
M yst ics and Doct or s (Chicago: Chicago U niver sit y Pr ess, 1982).
(71.) Joseph Alt er, Yoga in M oder n I ndia: The Body Bet w een Science and Philosophy
(Pr incet on, N J, and Oxfor d: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 2004), 73–108.
(72.) Goldber g, The Pat h of M oder n Yoga, 97–99.
(73.) Alt er, Yoga in M oder n I ndia, 73–108.
(74.) Jason Bir ch, “ Did Ayur veda I nfluence M edieval Yoga Tr adit ions? Pr elim inar y
Rem ar k s on t heir Shar ed Ter m inology, Theor y and Pr axis,” Ayur yog.or g, blog, Decem ber
16, 2015.
(75.) Dom inik Wujast yk , “ The Evolut ion of I ndian Gover nm ent Policy on Ayur veda in t he
Tw ent iet h Cent ur y,” in M oder n and Global Ayur veda: Plur alism and Par adigm s, eds.
Dagm ar Wujast yk and Fr eder ick M . Sm it h (Albany: St at e U niver sit y of N ew Yor k Pr ess,
2008), 43–76 and Paul Br ass, “ The Polit ics of Ayur vedic Educat ion: A Case St udy of
Revivalism and M oder nizat ion in I ndia,” in Educat ion and Polit ics in I ndia, eds. Susanne
Page 32 of 37
H . Rudolph and L loyd I . Rudolph (Cam br idge, M A: H ar var d U niver sit y Pr ess, 1992), 342–
371.
(76.) Cent r al Council for Resear ch in I ndian M edicine and H om eopat hy, Salient feat ur es
in t he decade of developm ent of indigenous syst em s of m edicine (N ew Delhi: Cent r al
Council for Resear ch in I ndian M edicine and H om oeopat hy, M inist ar y [ sic] of H ealt h and
Fam ily Planning, Govt . of I ndia, 1977), 6.
(77.) Joseph Alt er, “ N at ur e Cur e and Ayur veda: N at ionalism , Viscer alit y and Bioecology in
I ndia,” Body and Societ y 21 (2015), 3–28.
(78.) N at ional H ealt h Por t al of I ndia, “ L ist of Yoga I nst it ut es.”
(79.) Jacob Copem an and Aya I k egam e, eds., The Gur u in Sout h Asia: N ew
I nt er disciplinar y Per spect ives (L ondon: Rout ledge, 2012).
(80.) Kar line M cL ain, “ Be U nit ed, Be Vir t uous: Com posit e Cult ur e and t he Gr ow t h of
Shir di Sai Baba Devot ion,” N ova Religio: Jour nal of Alt er nat ive and Em er gent Religions
15.2 (2011): 20–49; and Sm r it i Sr inivas, “ The Br ahm in and t he Fak ir : Subur ban
Religiosit y in t he Cult of Shir di Sai Baba,” Jour nal of Cont em por ar y Religion 14.2 (1999):
245–262.
(81.) Ank ur Bar ua, “ The Silences of Ram ana M ahar shi: Self-Enquir y and L iber at ion in
Sāṁ k hya Yoga and Advait a Vedānt a,” Religions of Sout h Asia 9.2 (2015): 186–207.
(82.) L isa L assell H allst r om , M ot her of Bliss: Anandam ayi M a (1896–1982) (N ew Yor k :
Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 1999), and Aym ar d Or ianne, When a Goddess Dies: Wor shipping
M ā Ānandam ayī aft er H er Deat h (Oxfor d: Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014).
(83.) St r auss, Posit ioning Yoga.
(84.) Sw am i Sivananda, The Pr act ice of Yoga (M adr as: Ganesh, 1929).
(85.) St r auss, Posit ioning Yoga, 9.
(86.) Gw ilym Beck er legge, “ Sevā: The Focus of a Fr agm ent ed but Gr adually Coalescing
Field of St udy,” Religions of Sout h Asia 9.2 (2015): 208–239.
(87.) Gw ilym Beck er legge, “ Ek nat h Ranade, Gur us, and Jivavr at is: The Vivek ananda
Kendr a’s Pr om ot ion of t he ‘Yogic Way of L ife,’” in Gur us of M oder n Yoga, eds. M ar k
Singlet on and Ellen Goldber g (Oxfor d and N ew Yor k : Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014),
327–350, and Gw ilym Beck er legge, “ U nifying Consciousness, U nifying t he N at ion:
Com pet ing Visions of t he Fut ur e of I ndia and Yoga Tr adit ion,” in Cont r over sial Fut ur es:
Spir it ualit y, M oney, Discipline and Apocalypse, A332: Why I s Religion Cont r over sial? ed.
Gr aham H ar vey (M ilt on Keynes, U.K.: The Open U niver sit y, 2013), 93–140.
(88.) Joseph Alt er, “ Som at ic N at ionalism : I ndian Wr est ling and M ilit ant H induism ,”
M oder n Asian St udies 28.3 (1994): 557–588.
Page 33 of 37
(89.) Joseph Alt er, “ Yoga Shivir : Per for m at ivit y and t he St udy of M oder n Yoga,” in Yoga in
t he M oder n Wor ld: Cont em por ar y Per spect ives, eds. M ar k Singlet on and Jean Byr ne
(L ondon: Rout ledge, 2008), 36–48.
(90.) Philipe Deslippe, “ Fr om M ahar aj t o M ahan Tant r ic: The Const r uct ion of Yogi
Bhajan’s Kundalini Yoga,” Sik h For m at ions 8.3 (2012): 369–387.
(91.) “ Obit uar y: Dhir endr a Br ahm achar i, Yoga M ast er, 70,” N ew Yor k Tim es, June 10,
1994.
(92.) Kunal Anand, “ 7 I ndian Godm en Wit h Super pow er s Who God Couldn’t Save Fr om
Pr ison,” I ndia Tim es, N ovem ber 19, 2014, and Dipank ar Gupt a, “ I ndia’s Godm an
Syndr om e,” The H indu, N ovem ber 26, 2016.
(93.) St ephen Jacobs, The Ar t of L iving Foundat ion: Spir it ualit y and Wellbeing in t he
Global Cont ext (Alder shot : Ashgat e, 2015), and Kat hink a Fr øyst ad, “ Roping Out sider s I n:
I nvok ing Science in Cont em por ar y Spir it ual M ovem ent s in I ndia,” N ova Religio. Jour nal of
Alt er nat ive and Em er gent Religions 14.4 (2011): 77–98.
(94.) Am anda J. L ucia, Reflect ions of Am m a: Devot ees in a Global Em br ace (Ber k eley:
U niver sit y of Califor nia Pr ess, 2014); M aya War r ier, “ The Seva Et hic and t he Spir it of
I nst it ut ion Building in t he M at a Am r it anandam ayi M ission,” in H induism in Public and
Pr ivat e, ed. Ant ony Copley (Delhi: Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2003); M aya War r ier, H indu
Selves in t he M oder n Wor ld: The M at a Am r it anandam ayi M ission (L ondon: Rout ledge-
Cur zon, 2005); and M aya War r ier, “ M oder nit y and I t s I m balances: Const r uct ing M oder n
Selfhood in t he M at a Am r it anandam ayi M ission,” Religion 36 (2006): 179–195.
(95.) Sm r it i Sr inivas, I n t he Pr esence of Sai Baba: Body, Cit y, and M em or y in a Global

Religious M ovem ent (L eiden, The N et her lands, and Bost on: Br ill, 2008); Alexandr a Kent ,
Divinit y and Diver sit y: A H indu Revit alizat ion M ovem ent in M alaysia (Singapor e: Select
Book s, 2005); and H ugh U r ban, “Avat ar for Our Age: Sat hya Sai Baba and t he Cult ur al
Cont r adict ions of L at e Capit alism ,” Religion 33 (2003): 73–93.
(96.) L ucian Wong, “ Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava St udies: M apping t he Field,” Religions of Sout h
Asia 9.3 (2015).
(97.) Andr ea R. Jain, “ The Dual-I deal of t he Ascet ic and H ealt hy Body: The Jain Ter āpant h
and M oder n Yoga in t he Cont ext of L at e Capit alism ,” N ova Religio: Jour nal of Alt er nat ive
and Em er gent Religions 15.3 (2012): 29–50; and Olle Qvar nst r öm and Jason Bir ch,
“ U niver salist and M issionar y Jainism : Jain Yoga of t he Ter āpant hī Tr adit ion,” in Yoga in
Pr act ice, ed. David Gor don Whit e (Pr incet on, N J: Pr incet on U niver sit y Pr ess, 2012), 365–
382.
(98.) N o official sour ce has given a dat e of bir t h t o t he pr ess, and sever al dat es can be
found in m edia sour ces.
Page 34 of 37
(99.) Raj Ashok , The L ife and Tim es of Baba Ram dev (N ew Delhi: H ay H ouse, 2010);
Kindle L ocat ion: 864.
(100.) Sunaina Kum ar, “ I n Sear ch of t he Rem ot e Cont r ol,” Tehelk a M agazine, June 25,
2011.
(101.) Edit or ial, “ The Jour ney of t he Yoga Gur u—Baba Ram dev,” Jagr an Post , June 3,
2011.
(102.) Achar ya Balak r ishna (2016) ‘Fr ee Yoga Classes’ ht t p://

w w w.achar yabalk r ishna.com /fr ee-yoga-classes/.
(103.) Ram u Bhagw at , “ Soon, Pat anjali’s ‘Sw adeshi’ jeans,” Tim es of I ndia, Sept em ber 12,
2016.
(104.) Chandr im a Chak r abor t y, “ Ram dev and Som at ic N at ionalism : Em bodying t he
N at ion, Desir ing t he Global,” Econom ic and Polit ical Week ly 41.5 (2006): 387–390; M ir a
N anda, “ H ow M oder n Ar e We? Cult ur al Cont r adict ions of I ndia’s M oder nit y,” Econom ic
and Polit ical Week ly 41.6 (2006): 491–496; and St uar t St ar back er, “ Sw am i Ram dev:
M oder n Yoga Revolut ionar y,” in Gur us of M oder n Yoga, ed. M ar k Singlet on and Ellen
Goldber g (Oxfor d and N ew Yor k : Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014), 351–372.
(105.) Allison Fish, “ The Com m odificat ion and Exchange of Know ledge in t he Case of
Tr ansnat ional Com m er cial Yoga,” I nt er nat ional Jour nal of Cult ur al Pr oper t y 13 (2006):
189–206, and Allison Fish, “ L aying Claim t o Yoga: I nt ellect ual Pr oper t y, Cult ur al Right s,
and t he Digit al Ar chive in I ndia,” Ph.D. diss., U niver sit y of Califor nia at I r vine, 2010.
(106.) Expr ess N ew s Ser vice, “ Yoga, N ow a Spor t s Discipline, Get s Pr ior it y fr om Spor t s
M inist r y,” I ndian Expr ess, Sept em ber 2, 2015.
(107.) I nt er nat ional Day of Yoga 21.06.2016,
(108.) Andr ea R. Jain, Selling Yoga: Fr om Count er cult ur e t o Popu Cult ur e (N ew Yor k :
Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014); Jer em y Car r et t e and Richar d King, Selling Spir it ualit y:
The Silent Tak eover of Religion (L ondon: Rout ledge, 2004); and Kim ber ly J. L au, N ew Age
Capit alism : M ak ing M oney East of Eden (Philadelphia: U niver sit y of Pennsylvania Pr ess,
2000).
(109.) Er ic H obsbaw m and Ter r ence Ranger, The I nvent ion of Tr adit ion (Cam br idge, U.K.:
Cam br idge U niver sit y Pr ess, 1983), and also see Benedict Ander son, I m agined
Com m unit ies (L ondon: Ver so, 1983).
(110.) See H indu Am er ican Foundat ion (H AF) “ Tak e Back Yoga: Br inging t o L ight Yoga’s
H indu Root s,” and Andr ea Jain, “ The M alleabilit y of Yoga: A Response t o Chr ist ian and
H indu Opponent s of t he Popular izat ion of Yoga,” Jour nal of H indu-Chr ist ian St udies 25
(2012): 3–10; and Andr ea Jain, “ Who I s t o Say M oder n Yoga Pr act it ioner s H ave I t All
Page 35 of 37
Wr ong? On H indu Or igins and Yogaphobia,” Jour nal of t he Am er ican Academ y of Religion
82.2 (2014): 427–471.
(111.) Suzanne N ew com be, “ Spaces of Yoga—Tow ar ds a N on-Essent ialist U nder st anding
of Yoga,” in Yoga in Tr ansfor m at ion: H ist or ical and Cont em por ar y Per spect ives on a
Global Phenom enon, ed. Kar l Bair (Göt t ingen: V& R U niver sit y Pr ess, 2017).
(112.) Agehananda Bhar at i, “ The H indu Renaissance and I t s Apologet ic Pat t er ns,” Jour nal
of Asian St udies 29.2 (1970): 267–287.
(113.) I bid., 273.19.
(114.) St r auss, Posit ioning Yoga.
(115.) Vér onique Alt glas, Fr om Yoga t o Kabbalah: Religious Exot icism and t he L ogics of
Br icolage (N ew Yor k : Oxfor d U niver sit y Pr ess, 2014).
(116.) Beat r ix H auser ed., Yoga Tr avelling: Bodily Pr act ice in Tr anscult ur al Per spect ive
(L ondon: Spr inger, 2013); Am anda L ucia, Reflect ions of Am m a: Devot ees in a Global
Em br ace (Ber k eley: U niver sit y of Califor nia Pr ess, 2014) and Sm r it i Sr inivas, I n t he
Pr esence of Sai Baba (L eiden, The N et her lands: Br ill, 2008).
(117.) For exam ple, see Vér onique Bouillier, “ Religion Com pass: A Sur vey of Cur r ent
Resear ches on I ndia’s N at h Yogis,” Religion Com pass 7 (2013): 157–168.
(118.) Vér onique Bouillier, “ M oder n Gur u and Old Sam pr adaya: H ow a N at h Yogi
Anniver sar y Fest ival Becam e a Per for m ance on H induism ,” in Public H induism s, eds. John
Zavos et al. (N ew Delhi: SAGE, 2012), 373–391; M allinson, per sonal int er view on 21 M ay
2016; and Daniela Bevilacqua, “ L et t he Sādhus Talk . Ascet ic pr act it ioner s of yoga in
nor t her n I ndia,” Confer ence Paper given at t he Yoga dar śana, yoga sādhana: t r adit ions,
t r ansm issions, t r ansfor m at ions, Jagiellonian U niver sit y, Kr ak ow, Poland 19–21 M ay 2016.
Available online at : ht t ps://w w w.academ ia.edu/25569049/
L et _t he_S%C4%81dhus_Talk ._Ascet ic_pr act it ioner s_of_yoga_in_nor t her n_I ndia.
(119.) For an over view of lit er at ur e pr oduced befor e 2009, see Suzanne N ew com be,
“ M oder n Yoga,” Religion Com pass 3.6 (2009): 986–1002.
(120.) Debr a Diam ond, Yoga: The Ar t of Tr ansfor m at ion (Washingt on, DC: Sm it hsonian
Book s, 2013); see also Debr a Diam ond, Cat her ine Glynn, and Kar ni Singh Jasol, eds.,
Gar den & Cosm os: The Royal Paint ings of Jodhpur (L ondon: Br it ish M useum Pr ess, 2008),
and Sunil Shar m a, “ The Sat i and t he Yogi: Safavid and M ughal I m per ial Self-
Repr esent at ion in Tw o Album Pages,” in H ar m ony: The N or m a Jean Calder w ood
Collect ion of I slam ic Ar t , ed. M ar y M cWilliam s (N ew H aven, CT: Yale U niver sit y Pr ess,
2012).
Su zan n e N ew c o m b e
Page 36 of 37
The Open U niver sit y
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The Revival of Yoga in Contemporary India

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The Revival of Yoga in Contemporary India

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T h e R evi val o f Yo g a i n Co n t em p o r ar y I n d i a

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As Bhar at i explains in his foot not e:

The H aṭ ha Yoga Pr oject (H YP) is a five-year r esear ch pr oject (2015–2020) funded by t he

Su k sh m a Vyayam a f i l m by Dhir endr a Br ahm achar i. Available on YouTube.

Vi d eo o f B ab a R am d ev. Available on YouTube.

(8.) I bid., 271–290.

(12.) Whit e, Sinist er Yogis.

(18.) M allinson and Singlet on, The Root s of Yoga, 359–394.

(19.) Pinch, War r ior Ascet ics, 82–93.

(20.) Singlet on, Yoga Body, 55.

(33.) Kopf, Br it ish Or ient alism and t he Bengal Renaissance.

(34.) Sen as quot ed in De M ichelis, A H ist or y of M oder n Yoga, 89.

(40.) I bid., 79–95.

(47.) For exam ple see Sander son, Yoga in Śaivism .

(48.) Alt er, Gandhi’s Body, 14.

(52.) Singlet on, Yoga Body, 103–104.

(59.) See also Singlet on, Yoga Body, 101–102.

(60.) Alt er, Gandhi’s Body, 95.

(61.) Goldber g, The Pat h of M oder n Yoga.

(72.) Goldber g, The Pat h of M oder n Yoga, 97–99.

(73.) Alt er, Yoga in M oder n I ndia, 73–108.

(78.) N at ional H ealt h Por t al of I ndia, “ L ist of Yoga I nst it ut es.”

(83.) St r auss, Posit ioning Yoga.

(85.) St r auss, Posit ioning Yoga, 9.

(95.) Sm r it i Sr inivas, I n t he Pr esence of Sai Baba: Body, Cit y, and M em or y in a Global

(102.) Achar ya Balak r ishna (2016) ‘Fr ee Yoga Classes’ ht t p://

(107.) I nt er nat ional Day of Yoga 21.06.2016,

(113.) I bid., 273.19.

(114.) St r auss, Posit ioning Yoga.

The Open U niver sit y

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