On This Yoga Day, Lets Focus on True Efforts to Understand Yoga

As India, along with the world, is gearing up to celebrate Yoga, a lot of noise is heard from all sides, but real emphasis on true learning is lacking. There is happy noise from the hundreds of Yoga enthusiasts getting ready for their celebration by organizing public performances of Yoga. In fact, some are expecting to enter the Guinnes book for the largest gathering and performance of Yoga. While there are also some gruntling noises from so called secularists, Muslims announcing that they would not be taking part in the Yoga Day celebrations.

India, as the land of Yoga has a responsibility to preserve and continue the tradition of Yoga through education, research and scholarship. Serious study of Yoga is necessary to pass on the requisite knowledge to the future generations. When I was growing up in India all the Yoga asanas I learned are from my family. School education was helpless in the field of Yoga. Similarly, my higher education in Osmania University and University of Hyderabad similarly provided me no background in Yoga. School or college did not teach Yoga at any time. It was only after coming to the West that I learned how important it is for mind, body unity and focus. It was only here that I discovered the value of Yoga. Most universities, public libraries offer courses on Yoga in the West. There are numerous private schools of Yoga that teach a variety of styles of Yoga, calling it a physical exercise. The Yoga day seems to be doing exactly what the privately run Yoga programs in the gyms across the western world had been doing for a long time. Promoting Yoga as a physical exercise. Yoga is much more than just a physical exercise and understanding it should be at the core of Yoga day activities. It is important to have Yoga day celebrated with performance of Yoga. But it should also be a day where new research and scholarship sheds light on this traditional knowledge.

Yoga postures (asanas) are practiced, but it is also important to read and understand the Yogasutras of Patanjali. More publications discussing the Patanjali Yogasutras and philosophical aspects of Yoga should be made available to the common people of India.

Meditation is an essential part of Yoga which needs long and focussed practice under a learned teacher. Training centers, certifications for different levels of Yoga proficiency is also important. Currently, Yoga institutes, and training centers are independent organizations, which are run without any scrutiny or accreditation. A educational authority to certify and accredit various levels of Yoga programs is necessary. Due to the importance of Yoga for modern life, it is important to establish a Central organization to oversee the licensing and functioning of Institutes as well as the certifications for Yoga training.

Before this turns into another show of mindless numbers and postures it should be taken in the right direction where learning, research and scholarship is encouraged at all levels of Yoga practice. Unless Yoga studies is offered as a subject of study in the universities, Yoga Days like this will not be able to provide real value to the practitioners.