Short description
De Michelis (religious and theological studies, U. of Cambridge) investigates how the yoga that is practiced in Europe today differs from classical forms, and how it acquired its unique traits. Along the way she also explores how it differs from meditation, why there are so many kinds and how they do and do not differ from each other, and why suchDe Michelis (religious and theological studies, U. of Cambridge) investigates how the yoga that is practiced in Europe today differs from classical forms, and how it acquired its unique traits.
Long description
A History of Modern Yoga traces the roots of Modern Yoga back to the spread of western esoteric ideas in 18th century Bengal's intellectual circles. In due course Raja Yoga, published by Vivekananda in 1896, became the seminal text of Modern Yoga largely because, the author shows, it reconfigured the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali along the lines of a then emerging New Age Occultistic style of secularised and individualistically oriented religiosity. With regard to 20th century developments, this book proposes a four-fold typology of Modern Yoga comprising Modern Psychosomatic, Modern Meditational, Modern Postural and Modern Denominational forms. Iyengar Yoga, one of the most influential schools of Modern Postural Yoga, is then analyzed in the light of this framework, while the conclusion shows how a typical Modern Postural Yoga session may be interpreted to reveal the forms and contents of a healing ritual of secular religion.
Review
"'Carefully researched and closely-argued... Far more than a reconstruction of the history of Modern Yoga, the book is an important contribution to the history of Orientalism, the Brahmo Samaj, and Neo-Vedanta.' Professor David Gordon White, Department of Religious Studies University of California, Santa Barbara; 'A History of Modern Yoga is a timely work of astute, rigorous, critical scholarship. De Michelis has done an outstanding job.' Professor Joseph Alter, University of Pittsburgh"
Table of contents
- Introduction
- Part I
- The Prehistory of Modern Yoga
- Roots of Modern Yoga
- The Religious Foundations of Modern Yoga
- Vivekananda and the Emergence of Neo
- Vedantic Occultism
- "God
- Realisation" and "Self
- Realisation" in Neo
- Vedanta
- Part II
- Modern Yoga Theory and Practice
- Vivekananda's Raja
- Yoga ()
- Modern Yoga Formulated
- th Century Developments of Modern Yoga
- Theory and Practice of Lyengar Yoga
- Conclusion
- Modern Postural Yoga as Healing Ritual of Secular
- Religion