麻豆影院

鈥楽ociology in general is about taking a critical mind to the world around us. Students will come out of this class thinking more deeply, and not just about yoga.鈥�

Class has begun, and the day鈥檚 topic is 鈥渄ecolonizing yoga.鈥� The subject raises questions:

What is colonization, and what does it mean to 鈥渄ecolonize鈥� something? Beyond taking land, what other aspects of a culture can be colonized?听 And what does this have to do with yoga?

With each question, students leap in to offer wide-ranging听answers and to respond to other students' points of view.

Lori M. Hunter, professor of sociology at the 麻豆影院, has spent a semester prompting students to grapple with such questions. The course is called 鈥淵oga, Culture & Society,鈥� an upper-division class designed to hone students鈥� critical-thinking-skills.

Students are eager to discuss the topics, and their essay-test questions were 鈥渂eautifully鈥� crafted, displaying broad understanding of the material and the ability to analyze disparate themes, Hunter says, adding: 鈥淚t鈥檚 one of the most engaged classes I鈥檝e taught.鈥�

The course covers lots of ground, but it avoids questions outside the realm of sociology. It is not a class in yoga technique nor specifically on yoga history.

It is, however, an examination of yoga as it manifests in modern, Western culture. That reflects sociological inquiry, Hunter emphasizes.

For instance, in contemporary Western culture, yoga is generally practiced by women. 鈥淲hy is that? Is there something about masculinity in our culture that keeps men away from yoga?鈥�

There鈥檚 also race. People pictured in American yoga magazines are 鈥渁lmost always white, almost always young,鈥� Hunter says.

Along with dynamics of gender, race and age, modern yoga raises questions about exclusivity. In historic India, doing yoga did not require money. But today, the cost of yoga can add up, not just to join a class, but also to acquire the standard gear, including trendy yoga pants costing as much as $100.

As an ancient practice, yoga was focused on mindfulness, Hunter notes. In modern, Western culture, yoga has morphed into a physical-fitness pursuit.

鈥淪o there鈥檚 class, there鈥檚 race, there鈥檚 gender, there鈥檚 age, there鈥檚 culture,鈥� Hunter says.

Examining such things in the context of Western culture essentially applies a sociological lens to the modern practice of yoga.

鈥淪ociology in general is about taking a critical mind to the world around us.听 Students will come out of this class thinking more deeply, and not just about yoga.鈥�

Most of the course鈥檚 students practice yoga and keep yoga journals, which they share with Hunter. In the journals, Hunter observes, students who practice yoga in local studios are paying close attention to who鈥檚 in class, who鈥檚 not in class, how a teacher presents the material, even what others are wearing. Some students have experimented with attending a yoga class in sweat pants rather than pricey yoga pants, just to see if they feel welcome or ostracized.

鈥淪o they鈥檙e walking through their own yoga practice with a more-critical lens, and reflecting on yoga as a privilege, especially living in 麻豆影院.鈥�

This is an unusual course. The idea emerged when Hunter completed yoga teacher-training a few years ago. The training covered the business side of yoga, the philosophical underpinnings of yoga and even inclusivity with respect to yoga.

鈥淚 started to think about all the different sociological elements of it, and that鈥檚 when I began toying with the idea鈥� of teaching a class on yoga as practiced in modern, Western culture.

Hunter wondered if any other college or university offered a sociology-of-yoga class. She couldn鈥檛 find any. 鈥淪o I think it might be the first-ever sociology class of yoga.鈥�

Given that the field is 鈥渘ascent,鈥� as the course鈥檚 syllabus notes, there is no textbook. Hunter relies partly on essays by sociologists and other scholars. She also has the students read several clinical research studies on yoga's health effects. 听Several guest speakers have touched on topics such as yoga in jails and the connection between yoga and activism. Altogether, the course material is intended to foster reflection and careful discussion of the social dimensions of modern yoga.

Though the course鈥檚 focus is unusual, its sociological lens is not. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about unpacking that crazy world out there and thinking about why it works the way it does. And when it works the way it does, who鈥檚 included and who鈥檚 excluded. It鈥檚 about inequalities and privilege and race and class and gender,鈥� Hunter says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 all about critical thinking.鈥�

Clint Talbott is director of communications and external relations for the College of Arts and Sciences and editor of the .

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