Yoga, Politics, and Conflict in Israel and Gaza

Exploring the controversial use of yoga by both peace activists and the Israeli military in the context of the ongoing conflict in Israel and Gaza. The chapter delves into specific incidents, activism efforts, and debates surrounding the spiritual practice in relation to war and peace in the region.

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Can yoga bring hostages home? No. Can yoga stop a genocide? Also no. But this won’t stop earnest practitioners from instrumentalizing practice for both purposes.

For supporters of Israel, practice is dedicated to the protection of land, the return of hostages, and to uphold the spiritual valor of soldiers. Among supporters of Palestine and a ceasefire, yoga practice and community is an organizing principle for decrying genocide, building mutual aid, and resisting global colonialism. Both factions cite the Bhagavad Gita.

Does yoga support nationalistic violence and body fascism? Isn’t that where its modern origins lie? Or does it have deeper, intersectional roots in universal liberation?

The interpretive war, articulated and inflamed online, only accelerates the material war.

But there is a third space we examine today: the gap between how spiritual aspirations appear and are praised or condemned in the world of the spectacle, and how they play out in the flesh.