Accessibility, Scope and Quality of Yoga in America

There is an ongoing conversation about yoga in our society. This conversation happens in studios, among teachers, and most importantly between students, day in and day out. The conversation is about what is yoga, who should do it, why, and how to learn what one 'should' learn. While many of us are actively having this conversation, I think we all have to strive to keep the conversation deep, not trivialize it, and recognize the importance of honoring both the roots of our traditions and the realities of the western marketplace. Unless we succeed in honoring both realities, I am of the opinion that only the more superficial offerings will be widely available, we will find that yoga, like so many other aspects of our society will be 'MacDonald-ized'.

Here's an article in the NYTimes about yoga classes, finding advanced classes and the ramifications on a society-wide basis of the rapid growth of yoga in America. The author - Joelle Hann - does a nice job at the beginning of presenting the problem - lots of lower level classes, economic 'drivers' for this status quo - but then trivializes the state of the solution, and the issues around 'what is an advanced class'. My guess is that she just didn't have enough space to do the issues justice.

Its really quite important for us all as a community of yoga practitioners to be aware of this dynamic, and I applaud the Times and Joelle for fostering this conversation. If we are going to develop a more sophisticated body of yoga students and teachers it is vital that we be truthful about the state of our teachers, classes and programming.

As a studio, at Yoga Yoga we are always striving to balance the needs of the students with the economics of the business. When we have to, we choose to live with a lower return, and make the teaching available. In fact, we are excited about adding 4 new teaching rooms, which will let us add the sort of programming that Joelle refers to in the article - prime time advanced classes for small groups.

As yoga's role in our country continues to evolve, these conversations are ciritical. The International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) is doing a great job in fostering powerful conversations. John Kepner, the current executive director had arranged for this series, done through the Integrator Blog, about the future role of yoga therapy. This is a critical conversation about the role yoga may play in the future. How available & accessible will yoga therapy be?

These two 'threads', how advanced yoga is taught in studios and the evolution of yoga therapy are both aspects of this same conversation. How can we best involve ourselves in this conversation, and do we really have the time, energy and commitment to do the conversation justice?