Yoga and “Orientalism”
Orientalism is a term that has meant a number of things in both popular culture and in academic circles. I will use the term today in the following way: Orientalism is the study, imitation, depiction, or idolatry of any aspect of a multitude of so-called “Eastern” cultures that is shaped by attitudes that are, at rock bottom, racist, reductive, and elitist. My thesis is that much of the obsession with yoga today is driven by a kind of Orientalism. In particular, I wish to argue here that many Americans who have been drawn to yoga have created myths about India and Indian culture that simply do not coincide with reality, and that these myths run the risk of being offensive to the very people/culture they are supposed to celebrate. (more…)
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