" Recently I’ve found myself in one of those awkward situations in which I’m unsure of the wisdom of telling the truth – of saying to a certain individual – the words burning in my throat. While I’ve been telling myself that its best to show restraint, I’ve come to suspect it’s only fear that makes it easier to say nothing. But the real problem is this; stranded between my choice of cowardly silence and the desire to give voice, I’ve become stuck, unable to fully commit to either – or any – course of action.

This has got me thinking a lot about Patanjali (the revered medieval sage of yoga) and his Sutra on the meaning – and ramifications – of truthfulness. Especially, his teaching that truth (satya) is about much more than just abstaining from lying, it about the finding the courage to ‘speak’, even if difficult or painful. This is necessary because words in themselves are talismanic forces that shape reality and call the world into being. We must be established in truthfulness, not just to increase our moral virtue, but to increase our power to achieve what we want – even our destiny – in the world."

http://bodydivineyoga.wordpress.com/2012/10/07/to...

Such an important interview! Thanks Melanie and Anna - will be sharing!

check out this post on the issue - "Yoga Body:The Conspiracy"
http://bodydivineyoga.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/yo...

Also - I find Carol's statement " female teachers have taken the lead in jettisoning more hierarchical, authoritarian methods of teaching and practice in favor of more democratic and nurturing ones" most interesting and worthy of further exploration. I also wish the film had spent a little more time examining women's possible early role in the development of yoga.... here is an excerpt from my blog titled " Did Women Invent Yoga" ..if you'd like to read more head over to http://bodydivineyoga.wordpress.com/2011/02/25/di...

"If you don’t think yoga is a feminist issue try suggesting as author and feminist historian Vicki Noble does, that women invented the ancient practice. Noble’s assertion brings to light something rarely acknowledged or addressed in the yoga world – that throughout it’s 5000 year history women have been completely excluded from the practice of yoga.

While fair access to downward dog might seem on the surface like a feminist victory, Noble and other feminist researchers ask – why are women still practicing a form of yoga developed by men – only for men?

In fact, their research is uncovering evidence of an alternative, much more ancient female centered yoga practice that preceded the Hindi yogis by thousands of years.

Who knew?

Miranda Shaw is a historian on the female roots of Tantra Yoga. In her book Passionate Enlightenment she writes how yogini’s gathered at feasts to play “cymbals, bells, and tambourines and danced within a halo of light and a cloud of incense.” They sang “songs of realization” regaling one another “with spontaneous songs of deep spiritual insight.”'

Monica Sjoo is another feminist historian whose books explore the legends of priestesses found in art, myths, and historical records. Sjoo claims that from the Pre-Neolithic through to at least the Bronze Age, across India, across the Silk Road to China, that women were performing ecstatic healing rituals for the benefit of their communities.

Both Sjoo and Noble argue that the concept of Kundalini originated in the female “Siddhis” (yogic powers) of menstruation, female sexuality, natural birth, and menopause. Noble believes these ancient yogic rites encouraged the free, spontaneous flow of kundalini energy through the female group, and by extension, throughout the entire community.

Noble believes yoga is a feminist issue because until we understand women’s central role in the development of yoga, it cannot be a truly effective female practice. She urges women to reclaim the “natural, biological ways of accessing and experiencing the yogic power of our ancient fore-sisters”.

Today some schools of yoga are evolving into a more fluid, even ecstatic practice. Priestesses like Shiva Rea are all about energy flow, as opposed to the static practice of traditional Hatha.

Shiva has sold millions of yoga DVD’s and is the creator of what she calls “Trance Dance Yoga” a free-form trance dance that invites us to experience the free flow of Shakti, (the divine feminine energy) to lead us back into our bodies and rejuvenate us with Prana, the vital energy of life.

Today the influence of Shiva’s Trance Dance Yoga is felt in nearly every yoga community. Classes in Goddess Yoga, Prana Flow and Sacred Dance abound. Some of the trendiest studios even feature Yoga Dance Raves by candlelight.

Does this herald a return to a yoga once practiced by our fore-mothers, a yoga of ecstatic embodiment? As we gather in communal classes, I wonder if our practise of yoga can become, like the practices of our ancient ancestors, a ritual of blessing and healing within the community.

According to Noble, the legacy of the ancient yoginis can be “activated in the here-and-now to bring balance and renewal to our community through our delight in the powers of the physical body.”

To me this seems like a yogic heritage well worth keeping. So I just don’t get why, despite the recent spate of articles and books exploring the historical roots of yoga, so few mention women’s contributions.

Why is it that the current debate amongst yoga scholars regarding the true historicity of yoga (is it 5000 years old or just 500) barely takes into account the legacy of ancient yoginis? I find this blind spot puzzling. I can’t help but wonder, in this so-called post feminist era, if yoga really has “come a long way baby”? "

I reviewed Yogawoman for my column at the The Yellow Yogi and I agree with much Carol has written...here are a few excerpts from my review which can be found in full at http://www.yellowyogi.com/daniellesden/

"Essentially, the film is one long commercial for yoga, encouraging women who haven’t yet taken up the practice to do so. The filmmakers want us to know that yoga is for every woman, no matter her age, social status, or ethnicity. And as one plug used to promote the film states YogaWoman will help you “feel your own strength and make you want to get on the mat.”

But sadly I found some dissonance with this message. From the super thin, superstar yoga teachers interviewed, to the visual sequences featuring thin muscular women flowing effortlessly through difficult poses, there was nary a ‘real’ body in sight.

As a yoga teacher, it’s been my experience that images featuring incredibly lithe bendy women actually discourage those who aren’t young, thin and flexible (the majority of the population) from trying yoga in the first place. I’ve done a lot of explaining that yoga isn’t about pretzel poses, anyone can do yoga, despite their size or fitness level. Yeah, right.... And while no one actually says thinner is better, don’t images speak a thousand words?

While the documentary credits ‘women power’ for making yoga a multimillion dollar business I wish it had taken more time exploring how it’s commodification is also perpetuating unrealistic body images. Fact is, as yoga has become big business it has also become the latest tool in the corporate arsenal to make us feel like we don’t measure up. Ads featuring incredibly slim young women clad in beatific smiles and skin tight yoga pants are being used to hawk everything from tea to cereal, vitamins to vacations.

While the film delves into the societal pressure women feel to be thin, and toots yoga as the antidote, nearly all the yoga icons featured in the film, teachers like Seane Corn, Patrica Walden and Shiva Rea were practically devoid of body fat.

Is this really a healthy ideal? Research reveals that underweight women face issues with menstrual regularity, fertility and bone density, and get this, even die younger than their moderately overweight peers.

But Yogawoman never mentions any of this. Which is strange, considering that the film spends so much time detailing the many health benefits of yoga?

The film does a beautiful job of illustrating how, from motherhood to menopause; yoga enhances women’s reproductive health, even their sex life. It explores how yoga has helped women deal with cancer, infertility, anxiety, depression, and given them strength to recover from substance abuse and eating disorders.

But where YogaWoman falls short is in exploring the ‘why’. In one portion of the film, illustrated by a class of upside down women in headstand, we are told how yoga helps us “tune in” to ourselves. The film seems to imply by becoming physically stronger, we become more confident, and this confidence makes us more ‘real’. But does the transformative aspect of yoga really lie in the fact that postures exercise our pelvic wall or help our lymph fluids flow more easily? I think it goes way beyond that.

I believe yoga’s power lies in the spiritual aspects of practice. Our image-orientated culture, by demanding we look a certain way, disconnects us from our body’s desires and needs.
I believe that one of the reasons women resonate so powerfully with yoga is they discover something we don’t have a name for in our culture, something we don’t even know were missing – until we experience it. We forge a spiritual connection to our own bodies.

That’s why I was a little disappointed that the filmmakers, perhaps in the interest making yoga more accessible, decided to skirt its metaphysical aspects. Barely 7 minutes of an hour and half film are given over to talk of inner peace and achieving lightness of mind. For a film that explores how women are changing one of the oldest spiritual practices in the world, there was little, if any, direct mention of spirituality at all..

Despite my griping, the film is well worth the price of admission, its chock full of sisterhood bonding, good feelings and Oprah lump in throat moments. I loved that. And the best part is the way the filmmakers made yoga’s true spiritual veracity shine through the yoga women they featured in this film.

From all ages and walks of life, they truly are the heart of yoga.

Embodying the tradition of the Bodhisattva, enlightened beings who remain on earth to help alleviate humanity’s suffering, we see “yogawomen” from around the globe caring for others.

Whether they are teaching incarcerated teens, building a birth center in Kenya, or creating classes for cancer survivors, they are awesome. Go Yogini's Go!