The Paradox of the Modern Yoga Practice

Yoga permeates every corner, yet its contemporary meaning and significance remains somewhat elusive. As originally a spiritual practice rooted in Hinduism, yoga has transcended its origins and become an ubiquitous tool in addressing various issues seemingly caused by late modern lifestyle, e.g. stress and burn-outs. This study delves into the multifaceted nature of yoga's significance within contemporary society, exploring how something inherently spiritual can function as a pragmatic modern tool. In doing so, this study engages with literature on both yoga’s spiritual-religious tradition and Western late modernity. It notes scholars that address the capitalistic, secular, and individualistic ethos of late modernity as well as the re-enchanting efforts that respond to these dynamics, such as the process of easternization and the New Age Movement. Most notably, this study draws upon and empirically adds to Hartmut Rosa’s work on the social acceleration of society. Through the qualitative method of 15 semi-structured interviews this study seeks to answer the question: how do yoga teachers negotiate yoga’s value in context of the late modern West? Central to the inquiry is the exploration of modern yoga’s inherent paradox, that is - how is it possible for something to both function as a part of late modern society as well as contradict and even critique it? The analysis reveals how yoga teachers adopt a fourfold typology of positions towards the negotiation of yoga’s value operating within this paradox. It is shown how all positions take an antagonistic stance toward late modern consumer society. Furthermore, in alignment with Hartmut Rosa’s theory, the analysis reveals the embodiment of a radical spiritual-religious and anti-modern deceleration, as seen in the instrumentalization of yoga as a gateway to enlightenment (position 1) and a token of the alternative (position 2). Conversely, there is also an attempt at deceleration that inadvertently accelerates and thereby reinforces the very late modern forces it opposes, evident in the instrumentalization of yoga as a technique of self-development (position 3) and a personal healing journey (position 4). In aggregate, these different positions serve as an explanation of how the modern yoga practice is both rejecting and embracing late modernity. More so, the identified positions reflect ideological narratives of religion, socialism and neoliberalism, i.a. contributing a gendered perspective and needed nuance to the discourse on yogic spirituality under the influence of neoliberalism.