Yoga as a competition loses hands down

1. In the latest attempt to commercialize a sacred tradition, the founders of Bikram yoga, Mr. and Mrs. Bikram Choudhary, are now on a quest to make a competition out of yoga. Do they really think that through a contest, it is possible to judge an individual's spiritual progress? Inner peace? Mastery over the mind and inner self? 

   
   

   It absolutely cannot, which is why any attempt to make yoga competitive fails because yoga is so much more than a series of physical poses or asanas. Yoga, firmly rooted in Hindu philosophy, is a combination of both physical and mental exercises with the ultimate goal of moksha, or liberation from the cycle of reincarnation.  And the two cannot be separated - yoga cannot be physical exercise alone.  Unfortunately, many studios in the West have given the physical aspect of yoga greater importance than the mental disciplines, thereby perpetuating the inaccurate impression that yoga is asana.  And the Choudhary's "yoga" competition which judges contestants based solely on their performance of various asanas, takes the misrepresentation to the next level.  Here, asanas are completely taken out of the context of yoga and placed in a competition - if I was unaware of its context, a brief clip of the New York Regional Yoga Championship resembled an audition for contortionists at the Cirque du Soleil! 

   
   

   Any learned yogi well-versed in Patajanli's famous Yoga Sutras will easily attest to the fact that asana constitutes a rather minor section of the 196 sutras.  In fact, asana is only one of the eight limbs of yoga.  Can you truly judge a yogi or yogini based on only 1/8th of his or her practice?  Much to my disdain and to that of many in the yoga community, the Choudharys seem to think so.  In fact, their long term goal is to enter yoga into the Olympics.  

   
   

   So, is yoga a sport now? As my yoga instructor, Holbrook Newman, says, "No no no! I don't agree at all...yoga is not a competitive sport! The ancient yogis must be rolling over in their graves over this." I agree wholeheartedly.  

   
   

   Moreover, as yoga studios desperately fend off attempted government regulation by highlighting the spiritual nature of the practice, the Choudhary's desire to make yoga a competitive sport can be viewed as nothing less than a major setback for the yoga community. If, as the Choudhary's desire, yoga is accepted in the Olympics, how will the community be able to successfully defend yoga as a religious or spiritual tradition?  

   
   

   When yoga becomes an asana competition, it becomes nothing more than sport - akin to competitive diving or gymnastics - based on one's physical prowess and ability to compete against others. Indeed, the dynamism and pluralism inherent in Hinduism has allowed for freedoms in interpretation and practice, but one's intention should come from a place of reverence with the goal being spiritual progress.  The intent behind competitive yoga doesn't seem to fit.  What a shame if the practice that generations have turned to for relaxation, health and spiritual awakening becomes a sport with a trophy or a gold medal as the end goal.  

   
   

   
   

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