| Abstrakt: |
Yoga has accommodated its female public while holding on to its ancient Indic roots to authenticate its modifications. This paper argues that the motivations to authenticate innovative yoga practices through Sanskrit texts and terminology has changed gradually and interculturally. This research is based on textual analysis of Iyengar Yoga works of literature and interviews with 37 Iyengar Yoga teachers worldwide. While during the first half of the 1900s, teaching yoga to women was a relatively new practice that needed a justification, today, as women are the majority of yoga practitioners and teachers, such justification is not needed. However, claims of authentication through Sanskritization persist. This time, Sanskrit texts and terminology are used by yoga teachers to cultivate meaning, a sense of belonging, and confidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
