The wholesome image of yoga took a hit in the past few weeks as a rising star of the discipline came tumbling back to earth. After accusations of sexual impropriety with female students, John Friend, the founder of Anusara, one of the world’s fastest-growing styles, told followers that he was stepping down for an indefinite period of “self-reflection, therapy and personal retreat.”[...]
But this is hardly the first time that yoga’s enlightened facade has been cracked by sexual scandal. Why does yoga produce so many philanderers? And why do the resulting uproars leave so many people shocked and distraught?
One factor is ignorance. Yoga teachers and how-to books seldom mention that the discipline began as a sex cult — an omission that leaves many practitioners open to libidinal surprise.[...]
Fascinating article. Independent of any overtly sexual aspects of yogic practice, I suppose that any group that heaps so much veneration upon the teacher/leader will be in danger of sexual impropriety. The buddhist community in America has had similar scandals in the past of leaders taking on girlfriends from among the acolytes.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if this is one reason why Hasidism, by and large, have more strictures on separating sexes compared to others Orthodox groups. The adoration and veneration typically given to a Hasidic Admo"r traditionally has been much more overt compared to a Misnaged Rosh Yeshiva or Posek. If the throngs of adoring hasidim constantly surronded a Rebbe also included women, that could be a huge temptation and stumbling block for the Rebbe.
Wow.
ReplyDeleteThis article is poorly researched and lacking in scientific thinking. For one, he is making an argument that Yoga teachers are bound to have inappropriate relations with their students because both of them are scantily clad and that it involves vigorous exercises! There are instances when Gym instructors have been similarly inappropriate with the patrons, so does that mean going to Gym is bad? Also, statistics used here is not researched. For eg-> its not clear what percentage of Yoga instructors have behaved inappropriately. I am not sure if this metric does have a higher statistical deviation from the normal (say a male instructor misbehaving with a female student).
ReplyDeleteNow that said, living in the 20th century... why should you remove the Tantric "stain"? I also know that there was another article by the same author in NYTimes that said "How Yoga can wreck your body", which was also poorly researched and mongering fear and disdain at Yoga!
Re. observer's comments:
ReplyDeleteWilliam Broad, the article's author, is hardly a yoga hater. He's a self-professed yoga enthusiast who has practiced yoga near-daily since the '70s.
In addition to the two recent NYT articles, he's just come out with a book detailing his research on the benefits and risks of yoga practice: (http://www.amazon.com/Science-Yoga-Risks-Rewards/dp/1451641427/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330459049&sr=8-1)
He's given two recent interviews on NPR. I've listened to both of them. He comes across as an earnest practitioner who feels he has gained tremendously from his yoga practice who is simultaneously concerned about many facets of the modern yoga industry.
http://www.npr.org/2012/02/07/146463156/the-risks-and-rewards-of-practicing-yoga
http://www.kera.org/2012/02/14/the-risks-and-the-rewards-of-yoga/
The author of the article wrote a book about the deficiencies of yoga. I would like to see a corollary defense to his claims.
ReplyDelete"This article is poorly researched and lacking in scientific thinking. For one, he is making an argument that Yoga teachers are bound to have inappropriate relations with their students because both of them are scantily clad and that it involves vigorous exercises!"
ReplyDelete- Yeah because that's not tempting at all.
Also it's not just that. His argument is also that the rituals are historically rooted in a sex cult. And now there is even scientific evidence to suggest a sexual/stimulating nature to some of these exercises. So actually the thinking was quite scientific.
" There are instances when Gym instructors have been similarly inappropriate with the patrons, so does that mean going to Gym is bad?"
The argument of the article was never "Yoga is bad." Of course, based on its history, a reader could draw that reasonable conclusion on his own.
Observer, your argument is laughable. Of course going to a mixed gym is problematic. And mixed yoga no less so. If we aren't allowed mixed dancing then how might you justify mixed exercising? Same thing. And yoga throws in the same problem that psychologists face, the adoration of the client toward the leader, only it's combined mental and physical interaction already. At least with psychology it's hands off and sitting apart and wearing clothes.
ReplyDeleteTzurah, I see no accomplishment in hasidishe practices of segregation. They've merely changed it from male female inappropriateness to male male perversity.
Yoga was institute by the Iranian conquers of India to subdue the indigenous population.
ReplyDelete"Tzurah, I see no accomplishment in hasidishe practices of segregation. They've merely changed it from male female inappropriateness to male male perversity."
ReplyDeleteThat may be true among the acolytes or run-of-the-mill mechanchim. I also agree that the strict separation of sexes among the Chassidic masses have unintended consequences that are harmful and counterproductive.
However, I'm more interested in this case in the leaders. Spiritual communties in which the members become subservient to and psychologically dependent on a hyper-venerated guru seem to be extremely prone to sexual abuses by the guru. Given the guru-like status of Chassidic Rebbes, I find it remarkable that Rebbes aren't known for having concubines/girlfriends/special sexual privileges.
For example, of all the horrible things Misnagdim said about Chassidim and their Rebbes at the height of the Chassidic/Misnaged conflict, the Rebbes' predilictions for sexual impropriety was not one of them. Also, a lot of off-the-derech folks have all sorts of sordid accusations about the cult-like Chassidic communities they left. The idea of the Rebbe/cult leader having a harem of lovers would be a great, juicy expose that the media would eat up. However, I've never seen such accusations. The only exception I've seen, and it seems to prove the rule, is R' Carlebach who was famously meikil on shmiras negiah.