This is title and abstract of my forthcoming book chapter. You can download a free copy of the PDF, here.
The primary field of enquiry is the transnational USD 4.75 trillion-dollar wellness (tourism) industry. Today, Yoga is instrumentalized in service of the soft power ambitions of the Indian state. “Yogaland,” is an allegorical toponym used to refer to the transnational consumption-scape where Yoga is consumed. The topic is “Yoga nationalism,” which explicates the Yoga hybrid heuristically referred to as Applied + Yoga. This refers to the sentiment that Yoga can solve the “climate crisis.” The reason for this is that…
Updated June 18, 2021 (Added Rules of Address from Nāṭyaśāstra, and examples from Ṛgveda and Kṛṣṇayajurveda)
Susanna Barkataki appears to have a solid grip on the novel X+Yoga hybrid of “Woke Yoga.” How does someone claiming to honor yoga’s roots have such selective inclinations as to what these roots might be? It’s almost as if the process of decolonizing yoga is just a neo-colonial attempt to claim control, at least of the narrative, ultimately for collective healing. The real kicker is how often colonially-constructed narratives are re-installed as the decolonized history and development of yoga. …
The distinction between “Vedic Sanskrit,” which is anything but pure and precise, is different to the later, refined Classical Sanskrit, which itself has multiple layers. This is the reason why scholars can show how various sections of texts were likely composed and inserted later, as the language used is identifiably different.
If the reader is curious, here is some of the original “language of Yoga,” which one could apply some sort of intersectional critical deconstructionist literary theory.
Below are portions of three Vedic poems, the translations are provided by Stephanie Jamison and Joel Brereton. The first excerpt is taken from the eleventh poem of the second “book” of the Ṛgveda. It clearly shows the virtues extolled in getting drunk, excited, and tending to a clear culture of “toxic masculinity,” which anticipates accumulating wealth, power, and prestige through success in battle.
Drink and drink the soma, o Indra, our champion! Let the exhilarating soma-pressings exhilarate you. As they fill your cheeks, let them strengthen you.
When properly pressed among the Paura, (the soma) has helped Indra. 2,011.11
We inspired poets have abided by you, Indra. Serving according to the truth, we would gain insight. Seeking your help, we would create for ourselves a proclamation of your praise. On this very day, we would be those to be given wealth by you. 2,011.12
Indra, might we be those of yours who are accompanied by your help, since, seeking your help, we make…
Language loss in the Indian Himalayas
This was a DRAFT, which became published in some other articles, like this one in the Wire. Not all of it was included and most of the images were left out. So, this version presents a more comprehensive picture.
Language-killer = bhāṣā-hantṛ
As a consequence of the global popularity of yoga, there is an unspoken threat to the marginalised languages of South Asia, such as the Central Pahari languages, Garhwali and Kumouni. This occurs via the banal support and shared appreciation that Hindus, Hindu supremacists and global yoga consumers have for the Sanskrit language.
Drinking for courage, forging ahead, stealing cattle, and humiliating losers
By “battle,” what I mean is the metaphorical battle over the narratives curated on behalf of Yoga. Often, the popular and official narratives that are shared and repeated grow in legitimacy, as time passes. Yet, it is often the case that instead of facts, factoids circulate. In some small way, these irregular posts intend to attenuate the -oids in the fact-…that is, the intention is to address factoids and separate them from the facts.
While it appears commonly held, there is a belief that “namas te” is somehow this ever present term found across the Vedic canon of texts. This…
Double-consciousness and the branding of BIPOC Yoga
Patrick McCartney CC-By Attribution 4.0 International
As relative levels of disposable incomes rise it enables more participation in leisure behaviors within the global wellness industry. There is a curious overlap between the consumption of both yoga-inflected lifestyles and skin whitening products, which occurs through the pursuit of spirituality, wellness, beauty, and social justice activism.
What this essays intends to explore is the correlation between the rising consumption of yoga lifestyles and skin whitening products, which is complicated through the activation of yoga as an instrument for social justice through the broader…
Patrick McCartney © 2020 All rights reserved
This essay has two parts. The first discusses Sanskrit’s relative rankings within the 2011 and 2001 Indian censuses. The second is a discussion of how Sanskrit is operationalized for strategic soft power applications related to faith-based development.
Part 1: Sanskrit in the Census
As far as historical linguists and sociologists are concerned, Sanskrit became a second language around the beginning of the post-Vedic Period (ca. 500 BCE). This shift, from being a “mother tongue” to becoming a second language is described as a shift to a post-vernacular phase. …
