Cultural Appropriation and Yoga

Exploring the concerns and lack of authority in the practice of yoga, particularly in relation to cultural appropriation and understanding its traditional meaning rooted in the Indian Vedic tradition.

Transcript

chevron_right

Play full episode

chevron_right

Transcript

Episode notes

The ease with which we can travel has blurred many cultural boundaries over the past couple of hundred years, and especially so in the past 50 years.

On any given day you could start your day with a Vedic Meditation practice originating in India (of course), followed by Capoeira from Brazil in the park, have a croissant for breakfast, attend Spanish language lessons in the morning, enjoy Yum Cha from Hong Kong for lunch, spend the afternoon at a local indigenous cultural experience, meditate again before a Middle Eastern dinner, then watch an opera sung in Italian for the evening.

It’s not a typical day by any means. but these are the options available to many of us.

They build our understanding and appreciation of each other and add color to our world, but at what point does appreciation become appropriation?

How can we maintain cultural integrity without overstepping the mark? Thom explores this subject through the lens of Vedic wisdom and its application to modern life.

Episode Highlights:

[00:45] None of Us is an Island

[03:22] There Shall be No Italian Food

[05:44] Representing a Culture

[08:33] Is There any Theft Occurring?

[10:22] The Shankaracharya Tradition

[12:46] Troth of Initiator

[14:12] The Command to Teach Vedic Meditation

[16:41] The Layer Known as Yoga

[19:29] Yogastha Kuru Karmani

[21:40] Training and Accreditation to Preserve Cultural Traditions

[23:33] The Secret Knowledge