In the last ten years, popularity in the practice of
yoga asana
(postures) in the United States has increased dramatically.
Although there is a long history of American Yoga practices,
the number of people currently practicing is comparatively
higher than ever. In 1994, a Roper poll found that 11 million
Americans do yoga at least once a week and six million practice
it regularly. The trend continues to gain momentum; one
estimate posited that by the year 2000 twelve million Americans
practiced regularly. As yoga
asana practice
increases in popularity, however, the issue of misrepresentation
or misappropriation of this ancient Indian philosophy deserves
attention. Is yoga in the West divorced from its Indian
philosophical, religious, and spiritual origins because
as a result of sacrilegious exploitation? Is it reduced
in presentation and practice to an exotic-chic way to get
a great looking body? Is the practice of yoga in America
completely devoid of its primary goal—liberating the soul
from “the corruptions of everyday life,” guiding one towards achieving enlightenment?
If the answer to these is yes, does that mean American
Yoga is useless or not worthy of the title “yoga”? I am
not quite so pessimistic about the state of Yoga in the America.
The individual who engages in ritualistic practice for a
long enough period of time will eventually seek to know
the nature, principles, and history of them. In chapter
two of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna explains, “The
mind, when controlled by the roving senses, steals away
the Prajna as a storm takes away a boat on the sea from
its destination, the spiritual shore. (2.67)”
And in chapter six:
“One gradually attains tranquility of mind by keeping
the mind fully absorbed in the Self by means of a well-trained
(and purified) intellect, and thinking of nothing else.
(6.25)
“Wheresoever this restless and unsteady mind wanders
away, one should (gently) bring it back to the reflection
of the Supreme.” (6.26)
Ritualistic
practice, then, is at least a start on the path to spiritual
liberation. If the number of Americans practicing asana remains as high as it is currently, perhaps more practitioners will explore,
in addition to the physical ones, the greater sphere of
healthy, spiritual benefits yoga can offer. In order for
this to occur though, if American yoga is going to lay claim
to the title of “yoga” with a reference to the asanas
of the Indian philosophy, the industry needs more instructors
whose teachings are in the same vain as those professed
by like Sharon Gannon and David Life of Jivamukti Yoga Center.
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David Life
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Sharon Gannon
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Through a case study of Jivamukti Yoga Center (JYC)—one
of the most trendy, chic, and soul-liberating focused centers in New York City (NYC)—I will address
how Gannon and Life represent religious and philosophical
concepts that originated in India through an abstract and
universalized vocabulary so as to cater to their mostly
young, mostly white, mostly wealthy NYC clientele. The specific
issues that I will explore are: the evolution of various
representations of yoga in the United States and how JYC
incorporates such representations into their own idea of
“traditional yoga practices” in order to live “a modern
lifestyle without losing sight of the ancient, universal
goal of liberation.” I will question whether and to what
extent the spiritual endeavor proclaimed by JYC conflicts
or can be in accord with an entrepreneurial endeavor, and
if their selling a “brand name” of spirituality contradicts
or threatens JYC’s professed intentions.
The adjustments and adaptations to yoga that Gannon
and Life have made to suit their audience and environment
have led to the creation of a new yoga, Jivamukti. Although
their syncretic method
parallels similar syncretic developments in the religious
practices of Hindu immigrants who have to adjust their religious
and social customs by virtue of entering a new environment,
Gannon and Life have not transplanted an Indian tradition
to the United States in the same way that the Hindu Diaspora
transplants religious practices. Certainly, both Gannon
and Life and members of the Diaspora have adjusted their
practices according to the demands of their environment
and practitioners/devotees. However, in the advent of extreme
popularity and celebrity status, it is in the increasing
commercialization of their representation of yoga that JYC
is failing to live up to its intentions. There is a gap
between the JYC theory and the JYC practice. American consumerism
and spiritual materialism overshadow the challenge that
Gannon and Life set for themselves when they began teaching
yoga—“to relate the ancient teachings to modern experience
without dumbing down yoga practices or sacrificing their
original aim, which was always and only to experience union
with the Divine Self.”
The Jivamukti Yoga method aims to liberate the soul
“from all past, present and future karma” while
an individual is living in a modern American society. JYC
does this by melding pop culture and religious practices.
By incorporating old, new, traditional, and innovative spiritual
and social ideas, and transcending differences like religion,
gender, and age, the Jivamukti method parallels the practice
of Hinduism in a modern American society. As Vasudha
Narayanan says, “[W]e must note that in Hinduism as it is
practice in this country [U.S.], there is a blurring of
lines between domestic, community, and temple rituals.” So too, Jivamukti Yoga blurs the lines
of contemporary American culture and Indian traditions as
it represents both. In this paper I will show how Jivamukti
Yoga is like the Hindu Diaspora in its representation of
originally Indian ideas and practices in America. In so
doing, I will also highlight the key difference between
the two—namely, the prevalence and priority of consumerism
and business for Jivamukti.
Ashwan Kumar Peetush writes,
“We
live in a polyethnic and polycultural world. There are many
different people living together in close proximity. The
world is becoming a smaller place…we have to learn new ways
of getting along, we have to broaden our horizons. Our interdependence
requires the development of a new social fabric that is
based on mutual recognition and respect…We can thus try
and understand the beliefs and views of other communities,
with the future hope of mutual accommodation in mind…”
In
no other city are his comments more apt than in New York
City, 2003. This diverse amalgam of people compressed into
the space of a single city necessitates an acute awareness
of who we are and where individuals with varied backgrounds,
religious beliefs, and lifestyles fit into the microcosm
of our immediate communities and the macrocosm of humanity.
A crucial addition to such self-awareness is attention to
and respect for others’ identities and self-expressions,
including what Peetush calls “awareness of misrepresentation
and exclusion.” He explains, “This awareness is a constitutive
aspect of the social conditions that are required for the
possibility of a fair exchange between intercultural groups.” Within
the cultural richness of NYC, diversity is acknowledged
and embraced through various media—from parades to sites
of worship, from traditional dress to ritual activities,
to magazine articles and daily personal interactions. Peetush
argues that this dialogue “requires that we…pay attention
to how we re-present each other.”
This issue of representation is one with which a diasporic
population contends. Diana Eck remarks, “Religion is never
a finished product, packaged, delivered, and passed intact
from generation to generation…America today is an exciting
place to study the dynamic history of living faiths…” In
fact, the results of a Diaspora transplanting native religious
and cultural practices to a new environment prove that,
“not only is America changing these religions, but these
religions are also changing America.” Indeed,
America is a place where the representation of an “other”
takes on an additional need for sensitivity and understanding
when one group (such as JYC) represents an “other” (Indian
Yoga tradition) that is already representing itself (Hindu
Diaspora).
As non-Indian practitioners represent the Indian origins
and Hindu connections to the discipline, many instances
of yoga in America face the challenge of representing something
that is already representing something itself. Since 1893
when Swami Vivekananda introduced to the United States his
own representation of Hinduism and his version of raja yoga,
the issue of representation has become more and more prevalent
and complex. Vivekananda stated, “‘I think that the Hindoo
faith developed the spiritual in its devotees at the expense
of the material, and I think that in the Western world the
contrary is true. By uniting the materialism of the West
with the spiritualism of the East I believe much can be
accomplished.’” This
representation of Indian ideology supported the belief that,
“the cultural wealth of India could transform the alienated
American into a spiritual and yet material being.” In the 1920s Swami Paramhansa Yogananda
came to the United States to represent the teachings of
his guru Babaji. Babaji had said, “‘although high in intellectual
attainments, many Westerners are wedded to rank materialism…India
can teach the universal method by which the West will be
able to base its religious beliefs on the unshakable foundations
of yogic science.’” Although these early representations
of “yogic science,” itself a representation of Yoga philosophy,
offered yoga as a spiritual fix and a respite from alienation,
they did not affect a divorce from inherent rank materialism
of American culture.
More than a hundred years ago, yoga began changing America.
But today, more than ever, America is changing yoga. This
phenomenon merits close analysis; while some non-Indian
yogis do maintain a consciousness and respect for how they
represent the Indian tradition, others carelessly use it
as if it where there own to manipulate and exploit at will,
undoubtedly thanks in part to a “beloved marriage arrangement.” Those
yogis who do not care to give credit to the roots of the
tradition are those whom Peetush would condemn for maltreating
the pluralistic diversity of American culture. Those who
do respect the long history of yoga and its development,
like Sharon Gannon and David Life of Jivamukti Yoga Center,
on the other hand, aim to contribute to the interreligious
exchanges that keep this nation thriving in diversity. The
story of JYC is one to which Eck would refer in her observation,
“The stories of interreligious encounter remind us that
religions are not fixed entities but are dynamic movements…These
stories…remind us that our religious traditions are multivocal,
that no one speaks for the whole…and that newfound alliances
maybe made across the political and religious spectrum…that
our religious traditions are constantly influencing one
another.”
However, the story of JYC and the popularity of yoga
is a more complex interreligious engagement than most. The
second layer of representation—that is, non-diasporic yoga
teachers—added to the physical and materialistic components
of American yoga practice at least exacerbate the potential
to (if they don’t actually) usurp the original intentions
of yoga. Ours is a culture largely obsessed with materialism,
celebrity status, body image, and style. It is also one
in which religious preferences vary greatly. Recognizing
the potential for this factor to overwhelm religious goals,
Swami Vivekananda said in New York in 1896, “Religion is
not the place to look for what is universal…Religion, after
all, is a human expression, and religions are as different
as our cultures. For our universal kinship we much look
not to religion, but to God and to our deepest humanity,
which is the soul, struggling god-ward.” Gannon and Life also unabashedly encourage
students to look to God, however they do not suggest “religion”
(in an institutional sense) as the means through which to
do so. Instead, they skillfully utilize the “exotic” (foreign),
fashionable, body-sculpting status that yoga has accrued
in the service of the true goal of yoga—union with the Divine
Self. In so doing, Gannon and Life translate
what they believe to be “traditional yoga” into
an idiom that the young, hip New York crowd can easily understand
and appreciate without neglecting ancient meanings, teachings, and methods. The
only threat to their endeavor is their own increasing tendency
toward materialism and consumerism. As Gannon and Life gain
more and more popularity and their business expands, the
Jivamukti brand name is becoming more prominent than the
goal that the word advocates: liberation in life, liberation
while living.
Before explaining the philosophy that Gannon and Life propound,
it is important to outline briefly the basic concepts of
Classical Yoga as
put forth in the Yoga Sutra
attributed to Patanjali (circa the third century A.D.).
It is also necessary to look at how Gannon and Life respect
the cultural transplantation of yoga by imitating tactics
of those representing it as members of the diaspora. Beginning
with Vivekananda in the late 1800s and early 1900s,
and progressing to Sri Brahmananda Saraswati in the late
1960s, the ashtanga yoga of
K. Pattabhi Jois
and the teachings of Sri Nirmalananda, and to the trendy
hybrid gym-yoga forms of the new millennium, an explanation
of how yogic philosophy and practice has evolved through
the Diaspora will contextualize the theory and foundations
of Jivamukti Yoga.
Yoga is a Sanskrit word that comes from the root yuj, which means, “to yoke.” It is a system of logical
meditative practices through which one embarks on a path
to spiritual enlightenment. Yoga is the means by which the
human spirit reclaims control of itself and abides in a
potent state of calm; it is also the goal—union with God.
The Katha Upanishad
says,
When the five perceptions are stilled,
together with the mind,
and no even reason bestirs itself;
they call it the highest state.
When the senses are firmly reined in,
that is Yoga, so people think.
From distractions a man is then free, for Yoga is the
coming-into-being,
as well as the ceasing-to-be. (KaU 6.10)
In the early third century A.D. a sage
and philosopher called Patanjali compiled 195 aphorisms,
which offer “the possibility of complete psychological transformation…a
way to clear the mind of accumulated experiences and memories
that bind us to a world of pain.”
He explains that in order to do this, one must cultivate
dispassion, dedicate oneself and actions to the Lord, and
develop pure contemplation. The practical means to accomplish
this is ashtanga, the eight limbs, which, if practiced astutely will lead to liberation.
The eight limbs are: moral principles, observances, posture,
breath control, and withdrawal of the senses, concentration,
meditation, and pure contemplation. The undertaking of the
first limb, which consists of nonviolence, truthfulness,
not stealing, celibacy, and refraining from greediness,
is the mahavrata (great
vow) of yogic practice. Once an individual takes the mahavrata, one embarks on a path of personal discipline through
the observances of bodily purification, contentments, austerity,
study, and dedication to the Lord Yoga. Posture is the appropriate positioning
of the body to enable effective breath control—steady inhalation,
retention, and exhalation. When the body is situated comfortably
and the breath is controlled, the mind can concentrate such
that the senses sever their association with objects. This
state of calm and attentiveness allows thought to turn inward.
The final three limbs constitute perfect discipline; they
culminate in the ultimate spiritual transformation. Concentration
refers to total focus on a single point, meditation is a
constant flow of attention on a single object, and pure
contemplation occurs when that attention overflows from
the object and absorbs the subject, resulting in nonduality.
When one masters all eight limbs, one gains extraordinary
powers and knowledge. With these powers, the yogi eliminates
all impurities of the mind and infinite knowledge alone
exists—the spirit achieves its true identity: union with
God, pure consciousness. As a whole, explains Miller,
“The Yoga Sutra is an economical set of mnemonic pronouncements of the arduous course
for achieving spiritual freedom, a text that is meant to
be learned by hear and amplified by a teachers’ guidance,
although ultimately it can only be fully apprehended experientially,
through long, continuous practice.”
In 1893 Swami Vivekananda, a disciple of the saintly yogi
Ramakrishna, introduced Hinduism to the American masses
at the Chicago’s Parliament of Religion with a speech on
what he called raja-yoga,
based on his guru’s interpretation of Patanjali’s Yoga
Sutra. In 1894 he founded the New York Vedanta Society, where
he taught classes and gave lectures on Yoga and Vedanta
schools of thought. Miller suggests that, Vivekananda’s
“commentary on the devotional and service aspects of yoga
supplements Patanjali’s philosophical and meditative emphases.” In 1900 he published a book called
Raja Yoga,
describing the ‘royal path’, “as both mystical and psychological.
It is a form of spiritual discipline based on the cultivation
of concentration…bringing the mind to one-pointedness…will
lead to clarity and concentration in the realization of
God.” The Swami’s goal was to unite religious
and scientific ideas of the East and the West. He pleaded
for a mutual understanding of spiritual Oneness: Eck claims,
“in short…Vivekananda set forth a form of Hindu thought
and practice that, he thought, would be both appealing and
useful in the American context.”
New York City in 1919 was the context for 22 year-old Yogendra
Mastanami’s representation of the first asana practice
in America. Although he returned to Mumbai after just three
years in America
his impact was profound. By the 1930s, Indian immigrants
taught Hatha Yoga
at large public demonstrations. Americans
realized the physical benefits of the practice through the
efforts of the Russian-born yogini Indra Devi. She
opened a Yoga studio in Hollywood in 1947 where she taught
stars like Gloria Swanson, Jennifer Jones, and Robert Ryan.
She also trained hundreds of teachers. Following
the trendiness of asana
practice inspired by Indra Devi, the mid-1950s and early
1960s saw yoga become typical form of exercise taught at
the local YMCA. To be sure, with little or no regard to
respectfully acknowledge or explain the origins of the practice—what
I would indeed call a great misappropriation.
In 1964, Sri Brahmananda Sarasvati founded the Yoga Society
of New York and the Ananda Ashram with a goal similar to
that of Swami Vivekananda. Before turning his attention
fully to the Ashram, he was a medical doctor and surgeon,
a background that aided him in his objective to integrate
the ancient teachings of Yoga and Vedanta with his medical
and scientific knowledge that spanned traditions of the
East and the West. Brahmananda emphasized the unity of consciousness,
the freedom of the individual to discover the true Self,
and the universal harmony of the spiritual, physical, and
mental Self as expressed in Yoga and Vedanta philosophies.
By the 1970s, asana
practice was so mainstream that a
counterculture set out to reclaim the spiritual roots of
yoga and reconnect asana practice to Hinduism in attempt to reverse the trend, and
proudly represent a more devout form of the tradition.
Spiritually focused forms of yoga, like Maharishi Mahesh
Yogi’s Transcendental Meditation (TM), A.C. Bhaktivedanta’s
International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON)
movement, Swami Muktananda’s siddha yoga, and Maharaj Ji’s
Divine Light Mission entered the sphere of American yoga.
This seems to be what Gannon and Life have in mind with
Jivamukti, evinced in their statement, “We hope to encourage
you to move beyond studying the various interesting shapes
and attributes of the yoga practices and start fitting them
back together” in a physically, mentally and spiritually
integrated practice.
Despite the spiritually focused reactions of the 70s,
an extremely influential asana
practice came to America in 1975 through the teachings of
K. Pattabhi Jois. Jois introduced an intensely physical
asana-focused method he called Ashtanga Yoga. His physical routine links together a vinyasa (thread) or “sequence” of poses with the thread of
the breath. Jois learned this method in Mysore from his
guru Sri Krishnamacharya. Krishnamacharya supposedly based
his teachings on an ancient manuscript, the Yoga Karunta.
Although the author and date of this text is difficult to
determine, it is generally accepted as the ancient and original
source of the method Jois teaches. Jois focuses on the physical
aspect of yoga because, he argues,
By the mere study of texts on yoga, by the mere grasp
of yoga’s meaning as a word, by a mere discussion of the
pros and cons of this intellectual grasp, one cannot have
thorough knowledge of yoga. For just as knowledge of culinary
science does not satisfy hunger, neither will the benefits
of yoga be realized fully by a mere understanding of the
science of its practice…the scriptures only show us the
right path. It is up to us to understand them and to put
them into practice. By the strength gained through this
practice, we can come to know the method for bringing the
mind and sense organs under control. Thus can we achieve
yoga.
Jois
further suggests that in order to subscribe to the moral
principles and observances explained in the Yoga Sutra, one must be careful to avoid illness and obstacles—anything that molests
the body, the sense organs, or the mind. The practice of
asana brings the body and sense organs under control so that
the mind can be the sole object of focus.
Prior to the introduction of Jois’ Ashtanga Yoga method, the Hatha Yoga counterculture
in America was retying yoga to its Indian origin—the concept
of liberation of the soul—body and mind through a systematic
philosophy as opposed to just a physical endeavor. In an
article in Yoga Journal, a yoga practitioner
of thirty years commented, “‘Back when I first started…[yoga]
was very tied to Hinduism—to wearing white cotton yoga pants,
taking a Hindu name, burning incense, and having a guru…Now
it’s taken on an American patina rather than a Hindu patina.’” The concept of yoga as a body shaping
form of exercise infiltrated the American psyche, and now,
undoubtedly Americanized, the evolution of yoga is bringing
about many new forms. Yoga hybrid gym classes now combine
asana with diverse, hip themes, as consumer culture represents and (mis)appropriates
the ancient religio-philosophical tradition that aspires
to liberate the soul. Instead the main reason for practice
and teaching seems to be for the sake of “a yoga butt” and capitalist endeavors. Power-Yoga,
Aqua-Yoga, Disco Yoga, and Yogilates are a few of the recently
evolved species of American Yoga. According to the President
of Integral Yoga Institute Swami Ramananda, these evolutes
of yoga practice produce limited benefits because they aspire
to limited goals of physical well being, as opposed to spiritual
liberation. While these forms of exercise may not
limit the benefits for the individual who aspires to obtain
a “yoga butt”, if the practice claims that it is “yoga”,
such a mundane goal provokes the question of whether the
practice is worthy of the title “yoga” if it fails to acknowledge
and accredit the origins of the practice.
These new yoga practices fail to credit the Indian tradition
and origin of yoga. Although Swami Vivekananda, Sri Brahmananda,
and Sri Pattabhi Jois all adapted their methods to suit
their American audience, these men respected and worked
with the tradition in order to remain true to it while catering
their audience. Swami Ramananda continues, “‘If you take
that one limb of the eight and you focus on that, play with
that, get creative with that, you are really practicing
something out of context…It’s important to retain a distinction
between yoga in its classical sense and the practice of
asana, which, in many people minds, yoga is reduced to.’”
A young Indian woman from CUNY asks, “To what extent is
imitation a compliment? And to what extent is imitation
(mis)appropriation?” To
be sure, her question is relevant to the issue at hand.
That is, to what extent is it “ok” for and beneficial (in
a spiritual, yogic sense) for an individual to perform a
decontextualized and modified posture and call it yoga?
An article in a fall 2002 issue of Yoga Journal aptly points out,
“When practices get interpreted cross-culturally, the teachers
transmitting the form have the subtly difficult task of
preserving the essence of the practice,”
but at the same time, they have to adjust the practice according
to the environment and people to whom it is newly addressed.
The lack of attention given to how one represents yoga by
those who are not well versed in the basic tenets of classical
Yoga is of concern in light of Peetush’s call for a pluralistic,
tolerant, interdependent American culture.
Enter Jivamukti Yoga Center. Its founders, Sharon Gannon
and David Life, set forth a mission nine years ago, with
their “brand name” Jivamukti Yoga, “to reintegrate the physical,
psychological, and spiritual aspects of yoga for Western
practitioners.” They are “dedicated to teaching yoga
as a spiritual practice, and to reminding…students that
they are committing themselves to a demanding mystical journey
toward enlightenment.”
The Jivamukti method is notable for its classical and pop
culture infused syncretic approach to yoga. It is a philosophy
that concentrates on the teachings found in Indian texts
and the wisdom of Swamis that elucidate ancient ideas concerning
yoga. The main texts that Jivamukti highlights are Patanjali’s
Yoga Sutra,
the Bhagavad Gita, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, and the Upanishads. They also esteem the teachings and inspirations of
Sri Brahmananda, Sri Pattabhi Jois, and Sri Nirmalananda—the
“Anarchist Swami”.
Gannon and Life discuss their philosophy in Jivamukti
Yoga: Practices for Liberating Body and Soul.
They claim, “Jivamukti Yoga is the practice of internal
revolution, of liberating the only prisoner you can really
free: your soul.” In
addition to reading ancient texts, studying the philosophy,
and keeping the goal of union with the Divine Self at the
forefront of one’s practice, Gannon and Life, when they
embarked on their yoga teaching careers, sought a cultural
expression that late twentieth-century America could offer
as assistance for achieving their goal.
As artists, inevitably on the fringes of society but in
the center of a thriving community of creativity—the East
Village in the 1980s—Gannon and Life looked to their tattooed,
pierced, and blue- and green-haired nonconformist artist,
poet, and musician friends for inspiration. They looked
to the music of the Beatles, Van Morrison, John Coltrane,
and Bill Laswell. Gannon and Life used these modern icons’
spiritually uplifting lyrics and fusion of Eastern and Western
influences together with their recognition of the “essential,
idealist nature of the United States…Freedom, liberation
through unity in diversity,”
to develop and realize their mission.
By the mid 1990s, Jivamukti Yoga Center amassed great popularity.
Although a visit to JYC gives the initial impression of
vain, body-conscious New Yorkers, the religious focus of
the Center is a major factor in its success. In their book
they state,
“Yoga philosophy says: Yoga are the direct line to God.
At Jivamukti we carry this idea further; we seek to diminish
the division between religions by looking for their essential
commonality. For example, you can find the essential nature
of the Goddess in Mother Mary, Glinda the Good Witch, Isis,
and the Hindu goddess Laxmi. They all represent her bountiful,
merciful force.”
This interpretation could be considered along the lines
of misappropriation, especially given the fact that Gannon
and Life have taken the liberty to translate the yogic path
that guides one to the realization of Atman = Brahman as
the Indian practice that leads to God realization. However,
Gannon and Life’s respect and commitment to the Indian tradition
that their gurus (who were representing Indian traditions
as immigrants) taught to them, evinced by their expressed
devotion and gratitude to these teachers, warrants recognition
and kudos. The five elements that form the foundation of
the Jivamukti Yoga Method are applicable to any lifestyle.
The focus on the aforementioned texts pays homage to the
tradition of yoga, its Indian origins, and its religious
affiliations, while the remaining four core practices are
entirely universal. Students are encouraged to read the
Bhagavad Gita, Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra,
Bhakti (devotion)
includes understanding, tolerance, and interreligious dialogue.
The use of altars, religious pictures, and incense creates
a devotional mood. Kirtan (devotional chanting) and japa (repetition of the name of God) occur during a yoga
session to reinforce the goal of the practice. Gannon and
Life approach the ethic of ahimsa
(nonviolence) by advocating vegetarianism, animal rights,
and environmental and social activism. A pamphlet with the
title, “Animal Mukti” is available at the front desk. The
front page reads: “In New York City, 40,000 Cats & Dogs
are put to death annually. What can you do to stop these
murders?” The smaller print at the bottom of the page says,
“Animal Mukti is a landmark clinic founded and fully funded
by Jivamukti Yoga Center which provides free spay and neuter
services to cats and dogs in New York City.” Music is a
crucial aspect of the yogi’s perfection of listening and
speech. Nada Yoga, an important element in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, is the practice of listening for the unstruck sound—OM.
Listening for the unstruck sound begins with refining one’s
ability to listen and hear. Gannon and Life claim that one
starts to do this by appreciating good music, which according
to them, is music that resulted from pop music artists’
incorporation of Indian philosophy and spirituality into
their lyrics beginning in the 1960s. Instructors play songs
ranging from the Beatles to Ravi Shankar, from Bhagavan
Das and Krishna Das to Sting and Van Morrison because these
artists celebrate the “philosophical ideals of God as love,
peace, and nonviolence”
in their lyrics. At JYC, a variety of music styles and sounds
fill a yoga classroom after students listen for and create
the sound current OM and engage in kirtan of the chant:
Guru Brahma,
Guru Vishnu,
Guru Devo Maheshvara,
Guru Sakshat,
Param Brahma,
Tasmai Shri Guruvey Namaha.
Our creation is that Guru,
The duration of our lives is that Guru,
Our trials and the death of the body is that Guru,
There is a Guru that is near by,
And a Guru that is beyond the beyond.
I offer
all of my efforts to the Guru.
The
fifth element of the Jivamukti Yoga method is meditation.
Gannon and Life explain, “We encourage the practice and
study of meditation. We feel strongly that without meditation, no attainment
in yoga is possible. There is no point in practicing asana,
for example, with out also practicing meditation. It must
be a part of every…practice session.” Instructors continuously encourage
students to focus on the present. The breath too, reminds
practitioners to concentrate, to move in conjunction with
the breath, to focus on the moment. Gannon or Life also
leads a once-weekly, by donation, seated meditation session
that attracts a large audience. The Jivamukti Yoga experience
integrates the aforementioned five facets—scripture, bhakti, ahimsa,
music, and meditation—into the environment, instruction,
and practices at the Center. Drawing on the multiple influences
heretofore mentioned, and their own creativity they believe
that, “art can fill the gap between the yogi in the Himalayan
cave and the modern urban practitioner.”
In addition to the five foundational elements of Jivamukti
Yoga, Gannon and Life promote the teachings of their Indian
gurus: Sri Nirmalananda, Sri Brahmananda, and Sri Pattabhi
Jois. Indeed, the foundation of Jivamukti stems from the
synthesis of these gurus’ teachings. Sri Nirmalananda was largely responsible
for inspiring the ahimsa component of the Jivamukti method. He was the first guru of Gannon and
Life and taught them a mantra: “lokah samasta sukhino
bhavantu.” Literally translated it means, “May all beings, everywhere,
be happy and free.” Gannon and Life make sure that this
mantra is repeated in every class and satsang
with their extended interpretation, “May all beings, everywhere,
be happy and free, and may the thoughts and actions of our
lives contribute to that happiness and to that freedom for
all.”
Sri Nirmalananda is known by the epithet, “the Anarchist
Swami”. However, his definition of anarchy was self-rule
by the enlightened Self—personal control of a Self that
is free from the tyranny of thoughts. The swami spent much of his life as
an activist, despite his ascetic practices. He wrote letters
to heads of state pleading for world peace, shunned all
animal products for ethical reasons, and embraced ahimsa
to the utmost extent in the name of divine worship—enlightened
self-rule. In his book, A Garland of Forest Flowers,
the he promotes social activism for the self explaining
that, “The curse of the believers of religion and politics
has been compulsion to convert others to a particular creed
or an ideology…Compassion of the heart should be our way,
not the compulsion of the mind and the belief of believers
which they force on others.” These concepts of activism, ethical
awareness, and responsibility for the self are central to
Jivamukti, evident in the passage: “Jivamukti Yoga is…our
attempt to offer a form of ethical social activism. This
activism is not aimed at overthrowing existing governments
or even critiquing them. Jivamukti Yoga is the practice
of internal revolution, of liberating the only prisoner
you can really free: your soul.”
On the topic of nonviolence, Nirmalananda says, “When the
truth is known, we realize that we are only others in whatever
form they may exist…The cruelty which we show others is
the worst form of evil which we do ourselves.”
With teachings like this, the swami made a profound influence
on Gannon and Life and the teachings they now profess.
In contrast to Swami Nirmalananda’s ascetic lifestyle, another
guru of Gannon and Life, Sri Pattabhi Jois, showed the two
that “the yogi could walk in cities and towns, work in the
world, have relationships and families, and yet be free
of the comings and goings…the fluctuations of the chittam, or mindstuff.” Jois explains that renunciation
was practical in this day and age. He assures that active
participation in this world and in this life resounds in
the Jivamukti philosophy. In fact, the word jivamukti itself means, “living liberated,”
that is, “one who is enlightened to the true nature of being,
while still living.” Jois
taught Gannon and Life the yoga practice he learned from
his guru, T. Krishnamacharya, a disciple of an ashtanga master and expert, Rama Mohan Brahmacharya. Ashtanga Yoga, Jois explains,
involves teaching yogic texts along with asana practice. Gannon and Life learned from guruji the ethical
and philosophical principles that these texts and asanas describe. They suggest that, “by the practice of yoga,
our minds…become focused on finding the path to the Supreme
Self, whose nature is bliss. When the mind is not attached
to things, such as the objects of the senses, it will be
able to dissolve itself into the Self. This is what is known
as the state of jivanmukti,”
they pay homage to Jois by practicing and disseminating
his valuable lessons and vigorous asana
routine.
Continuing their spiritual developments and yogic practices,
Gannon and Life encountered Sri Brahmananda Sarasvati nine
years after they met their first guru. Sri Brahmananda renewed
their devotion as practitioners and instructors when he
said, with “indefatiguable energy” (despite having endured
a paralyzing stroke), “‘You are not the body and mind, although
you have a body and mind. You are the Self. You are the
Self. You are alive, feel the pulsation!” Sri Brahmananda taught Gannon and Life
at the Ashram he founded, Ananda Ashram until he passed
away. Although they did not know him for a long period of
time, Sri Brahmananda guided Gannon and Life with “his timeless
message that we are all beyond the body and mind; we are
the vibration of the I-AM.”
Although he passed away in 1993, Gannon and Life still
feel a strong connection to Sri Brahmananda and the teachings
he left behind. One of the ways they express this is through
the association JYC maintains with Ananda Ashram. Each Wednesday
night JYC hosts satsang (“association with those who remind you of your True
potential”) with members from Ananda Ashram. Sri
Brahmananda’s disciples give teachings, tell stories, and
mediate a discourse with members of the JYC community—clients,
instructors, and staff members. The most popular Ananda
Ashram satsang is the first Wednesday of the month when Joan Suval,
a senior disciple of Sri Brahmananda and the “Mother of
the Ashram” for thirty-five years, leads the discussion.
It is interesting to note that Suval, like Gannon and Life,
represents Brahmananda’s representation; she is a white
woman spreading the teachings of a diasporic Indian Swami.
Two additional evenings of the week—Monday and Thursday—are
dedicated to satsang in the forms of kirtan (call and response devotional singing) and meditation
respectively. All three satsang opportunities are “suggested donation” gatherings at
JYC. According to its website, satsang “is the spiritual heart and soul of JYC.” Somewhat ironically, however,
these are the least crowded gatherings when compared to
the attendance of asana
classes. This fact highlights the business aspect of JYC,
as opposed to the religious aspect (strictly speaking) with
which Gannon and Life are associated.
The above-mentioned three yogas—bhakti, karma,
and jnana—are all part of a class session (as opposed to satsang) which JYC clientele pay a fee to attend.
Each class begins with the chanting of OM followed by a prayer through which the practitioner offers all efforts
to God, the Guru. In the lectures given at the beginning
of each class Jivamukti instructors often quote Gannon and
Life and their Swamis before conducting Ashtanga Yoga asana sequences. In
these mini-teachings the instructor elaborates on a particular
topic—the Jivamukti Focus of the Month. The Focus of the
Month is a yoga-associated concept taken from the Jivamukti
book. The Focus and the teaching serve to contextualize
the student’s practice, both in the yoga tradition and at
JYC. The instructor will quote the Jivamukti book and further
explain the concept in his/her own words using other
texts to support
the claims. Although the lectures are instructional and
provide authentic information, it is difficult to ignore
the propagandistic aspect of them. Here again a business
and commercial prevalence is evident.
It is this tendency towards marketing the Jivamukti
“brand name” and the reality that JYC is a business in NYC
that threatens the representation of yoga as a life transforming that Gannon and Life
seem to want to uphold. In fact, their book says, “We became
teachers because we were driven to communicate something
extraordinary about human potential. Our passion is to teach
yoga as a spiritual practice.” Although
the structure of JYC classes and satsang transfer the Jivamukti method into practice, the other
areas of the Center undermine the credibility of this smooth
transition. Staff members and instructors with whom I casually
conversed did tell me that they feel like JYC is spiritual
place more than a business. However, when speaking to them
I was constantly reminded of JYC’s commercial aspects. The
sound of the cash register opening and the credit card machine
printing, the uniform royal blue shirts that say STAFF across
the back, and the merchandise at the boutique (books, compact
disks, “Jivamukti” brand yoga-wear and yoga mat totes—complete
with the Jivamukti Yoga logo!) all distracted me from focusing
on my personal spirituality. Additionally, if a client has a “scan
card” containing x number of pre-paid classes, he/she is
assured a spot in a class that may fill to capacity because
cardholders can call ahead to reserve a space. A flyer I
saw posted on the bulletin board provided a similar incentive
to the scan card option; it encouraged others to refer a
friend and “earn up to 5 free classes until March 31st.” At
the front desk clients—indeed, I did hear people at JYC
referred to as “clients” significantly more often than as
“students,” “yogis,” or “practitioners”—can purchase 16
ounce bottles of water with the “Jivamukti” label for $2
a bottle. They can rent towels embroidered with “Jivamukti”
and the Jivamukti logo—a large towel for $.75, a larger
one for $1.00. In my opinion, the presence of the Jivamukti
brand name—be it on a water bottle, a yoga mat tote bag,
a spandex tank top, or a credit-card slip—is not relevant
to uniting with the Divine Self.
Not surprisingly, the classes Gannon or Life teaches
are always full or “sold out,” if you will. Often they are
not even present to teach such classes; for most of the
month of March they were traveling to promote their new
book, The Art of Yoga. The duo wants to spread the Jivamukti yoga method across America. This
endeavor is encouraging for the type of respectful representation
of yoga Gannon and Life claim for themselves, but it is
also a conveniently business-savvy concept. Although “Gannon
and Life credit Jivamukti for the resurgence of yoga’s popularity
in the spiritual wasteland of the nineties,”
there is a disheartening fallacy with such a claim. The
problem with this “resurgence of popularity” is that JYC,
Gannon, and Life conveniently profit from it, seemingly
more and more as their fames continues to grow. JYC recently
increased the price of a membership from $750 to $1,200
a year.
They just published a new book, which is prominently featured
in the boutique display case. I stand by my claim that this
business not fit very well into the framework of the Jivamukti
method or as Life says, “the goal…[of] God Realization.”
Other marketing stints include five words on the cover
of the Jivamukti Yoga book, “With a foreword by Sting,”
and a blurb on the back cover, “As seen on the Today
Show”. An article online explains, “For the opening of the new Jivamukti space,
a star studded guest list included clients Sting and his
wife and Willem Dafoe. Donna Karan donated socks when a
publicist contested the expectancy of le beau monde
to walk around barefoot (a requirement at JYC).” Although this may be an over-generalized
statement, it would not be entirely appropriate to entrust
the representation of an ancient, sacred, and spiritual
tradition like yoga to the majority of America’s celebrity
population or American media-consumer culture.
Although JYC receives a great deal of media-hype and attention,
a final example of misrepresentation secures the fear of
the submission of JYC to unchecked spiritual materialism.
Upon approaching JYC about a research project for a class
at Columbia University, the staff issued forth a press kit
consisting of a Jivamukti Folder filled with color photocopies
of magazine covers and articles on which Jivamukti, Gannon,
and/or Life have been featured including: Time Magazine,
Yoga Journal, Yoga Chicago, Chicago Tribune, USA Today,
and multiple New York Times articles. The folder also contains
two pages of positive, praising quotes from various mass
media sources, brief biographies of Gannon and Life, and
a brief description of “Jivamukti Yoga”. That a scholarly
research endeavor received media treatment provokes concern
as to the order of priorities at JYC—marketing, commercialization,
and exposure regarding Jivamukti Yoga representing tradition based yoga for Westerners followed
by actually teaching
the fundamental tenets of yoga—Classical, Modern, and the
Jivamukti synthesis.
Ironically, they proclaim in their book,
“Today…we have become a mute audience: voyeurs rather
than participants, consumers rather than creators. We collect,
acquire, and hoard. With the growing popularity of yoga,
it, too, could be reduced to a vacuous commodity. This is
why we emphasize to our student s that their practice must
be grounded in humility and selflessness and a striving
toward divinity.”
By
explaining the Jivamukti Yoga method one can see the intention
of this excerpt, and the truth in Life’s quote, “‘Our project
from the very beginning has been to respiritualize the practices.’” However, an increasing tendency towards
spiritual materialism and the increasing popularity of JYC
overshadows the claim of respectful representation that
Gannon and Life profess. Despite their theoretical intentions, the image of Jivamukti
Yoga is one of JYC as spiritual commodity—a direct consequence
of its popularity and star-studded reputation.
In theory JYC duly represents a practice
adapted by Americans for Americans. In practice is it is
and it is not. Surely an American representation is appropriately
commercial and commodified for the masses. However, it is
unfortunate that despite Gannon’s claim, “We’re not just making a living. We have a responsibility
and an obligation. It would be easier not to say anything—just
inhale and exhale, do this and do that—but our consciousness,
and our gurus, will never let us do that,” JYC is a
successful, media-hyped, trendy business. Its prominence
as a chic spiritual hotspot, a “palatial, three-studio
center on the newly swank strip of Lafayette Street directly
south of Astor Place,” is changing the type of respectful representation of an “other”
that Peetush, among others would appreciate and transforming
it into another American misrepresentation.
Works
Cited
Cushman,
Anne. “The New Yoga,” Yoga Journal, Jan/Feb 2002.
21 Mar. 2003 <http://www.yogajournal.com/views/281_1.cfm>
Eck, Diana.
A New Religious America. New York: Harper Collins,
2002.
Gannon,
Sharon and David Life. Jivamukti Yoga: Practices for
Liberating Body and Soul. New York: Ballantine Publishing
Company, 2002.
Jivamukti
Yoga Center: Chants, Mantras and Prayers. Printed handouts for student use in class.
Jois, K.
Pattabhi. Yoga Mala. New York: Northpoint Press,
1999.
<http://www.newyorkmetro.com/nymetro/health/fitness/features/2158/index1.html>
Mukherjea,
Ananya. “Indo Chic.” 19 Mar. 2003 <http://www.makezine.org/indo.html>
Olivelle,
Patrick trans. Upanisads. New York: Oxford University
Press, 1996.
Peetush,
Ashwani Kumar. “From Decolonization to Dialogue: Consturcting
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Perspectives. Ed. T.S. Tukmani. New Delhi: Munshiram
Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Lts, 2001:193-212.
Prasad,
Ramanand trans. The Bhagavad Gita. California: American
Gita Society, 1988. http://www. eawc.evansville.edu/anthology/gita.htm
5 Mar. 2003.
Prashad,
Vijay. The Karma of Brown Folk. Minneapolis: University
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A Garland of Forest Flowers. Bombay: R.V. Raghavan,
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