The Changing Trends Of Yoga In The Age Of Globalisation

Yoga is no more the sages practising yoga in the caves but also a fit yogini teaching hardcore yoga postures to agile yoga students.

We all are living in fast-paced industrialisation and globalisation age. Sitting in the comfort of the living room, social media accesses us to the best of both worlds, the east and the west. Western domination talks about science, and the east boasts spirituality and philosophy. And yoga today is the cross-over between these roads, the scientific west and the emotional-spiritual east. The cultural sophistication engulfs the east in the artistic manifestation of a luxurious lifestyle, cars, holidays and inexpensive yoga studies with led screens to dwell in the glamour fever. Yoga is no more the sages practising yoga in the caves and the guru shishya parampara but also a good-looking fit yogini teaching hardcore yoga postures to agile yoga students. The metropolitan cities boast of large and glam yoga studios. Paloma Gangopadhyay, International yoga teacher and lifestyle coach shares changing yoga trends in the global era.

How Have The Yoga Types Changed?

The yoginis are glamorous models, yoga entrepreneurs, homemakers, students, boys and girls coming in and out of the studios wearing some of the trendiest yoga clothes by some brands. The types of yoga have changed. What we know as traditional yoga are now ashtanga, Vinyasa, Hatha, power and many modern yoga techniques which boast of weight loss, body toning, destress and detox. The classes have a high to medium intensity level that attunes to the changing trends of the time Iyengar and Patanjali yoga balance western teaching techniques and the eastern spiritual flavour.

Modern Yogic Trends

The modern yogic trends are many and far-reaching. In the Australian and Canadian sub-continent, we talk of beer yoga, animal yoga, and couple yoga. The USA takes pride in hot yoga, Pilates, and soul cycles which are huge celeb fads. We see celebrities walking with their managers in and out of the expensive yoga studios in Manhattan, Los Angeles, Mumbai, Dubai and many such metro cities. And sometimes, we see these celebs walking their most unadorned self on the unknown roads of Rishikesh and Haridwar, learning the spirituality, yoga and Ayurveda in India.

So both worlds, come and visit and revisit each other to create a harmonious whole of the yoga world. Though we say trends are changing, somewhere, we all share the same blue sky under which we live.