1 1510 114 IS THE "YOGA BOD" THE NEW SKINNY?: A COMPARATIVE CONTENT ANALYSIS OF MAINSTREAM YOGA LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE COVERS. AS YOGA HAS GAINED POPULARITY IN WESTERN CULTURE, CONCERNS HAVE BEEN RAISED ABOUT ITS INCREASED COMMERCIALIZATION AND ASSIMILATION INTO THE PREDOMINANTLY APPEARANCE-FOCUSED EXERCISE AND FITNESS CULTURE. IN THIS CONTEXT, THE PRESENT STUDY EXAMINED THE PHYSICAL APPEARANCE-RELATED CHARACTERISTICS (E.G., RACE/ETHNICITY, BODY SIZE, SHAPE, OBJECTIFYING APPAREL) OF 142 FEMALE MODELS AND THE MEDIA FRAMES OF 567 CAPTIONS (E.G., COMMERCIALISM, BODY COMPETENCE, HEALTH, WEIGHT/PHYSICAL APPEARANCE) FEATURED ON THE COVERS OF THREE WESTERNIZED YOGA LIFESTYLE MAGAZINES PUBLISHED BETWEEN 2010-2015. RESULTS INDICATED THAT MOST MODELS WERE WHITE, EMBODYING THE CONTEMPORARY "THIN-AND-LEAN" MEDIA FITNESS AESTHETIC. MODELS WERE ACTIVELY POSED WITH HIGH BODY VISIBILITY; AN APPRECIABLE MINORITY WAS PARTIALLY-CLAD IN SKIN-REVEALING OR FORM-FITTING UPPER-BODY ATTIRE. MEDIA FRAMES CONVEYING COMMERCIALISM AND BODY COMPETENCE WERE EQUALLY PRESENT. THE PATTERN OF EFFECTS TENDED TO REFLECT THE STRENGTH OF THE MAGAZINE TITLE'S ENDORSEMENT OF EXERCISE AND FITNESS CULTURAL VALUES. CLINICAL AND PUBLIC HEALTH IMPLICATIONS ALONG WITH FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS ARE DISCUSSED. 2017 2 647 41 DOWNWARD DOG BECOMES FIT BODY, INC.: A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF 40 YEARS OF FEMALE COVER IMAGES OF YOGA JOURNAL. THE PRESENT ANALYSIS INVESTIGATED TEMPORAL TRENDS IN PHYSICAL APPEARANCE ATTRIBUTES AND ATTIRE WORN BY FEMALE COVER MODELS OF YOGA JOURNAL MAGAZINE BETWEEN THE YEARS 1975-2015. COVERS FEATURING A SINGLE FEMALE MODEL (N=168) WERE CODED FOR: POSE ACTIVITY, AMOUNT OF BODY VISIBILITY, PERCEIVED BODY SIZE, BODY SHAPE, BREAST SIZE, SKIN EXPOSURE, AND REVEALING OR FORM-FITTING ATTIRE. WHEN COLLAPSED ACROSS ALL DECADES, THE MAJORITY OF COVER MODELS WAS ACTIVELY POSED WITH HIGH BODY VISIBILITY, RATED AS AT MOST LOW NORMAL WEIGHT, POSSESSED EITHER A "THIN/LEAN" OR "SKINNY/BONEY" BODY SHAPE, AND WERE "FLAT-CHESTED" OR "SMALL-BREASTED". GREATER BODY VISIBILITY, POSE ACTIVITY, THINNESS/LEANNESS, SKIN EXPOSURE, AND FORM-FITTING ATTIRE WERE FEATURED ON MORE RECENT YEARS' COVERS. FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT THE FEMALE "YOGA BODY" CONFORMS TO THE CONTEMPORARY THIN- AND-TONED MEDIA FITNESS IDEAL, PARTICULARLY RECENTLY, WHICH MAY PROMOTE OBJECTIFIED BODY COMPETENCE, AN UNHEALTHY DRIVE FOR LEANNESS, AND DISSUADE HIGHER WEIGHT WOMEN FROM CONSIDERING YOGA PRACTICE. 2017 3 65 26 A CONCEPTUAL MODEL DESCRIBING MECHANISMS FOR HOW YOGA PRACTICE MAY SUPPORT POSITIVE EMBODIMENT. YOGA PRACTICE HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH VARIOUS INDICES OF POSITIVE EMBODIMENT IN CORRELATIONAL AND INTERVENTION STUDIES. YET, SYSTEMATIC, THEORETICALLY-GROUNDED MODELS DETAILING SPECIFIC MECHANISMS BY WHICH YOGA SUPPORTS POSITIVE EMBODIMENT ARE LACKING. IN THIS ARTICLE, WE PRESENT A CONCEPTUAL MODEL THAT DESCRIBES MECHANISMS (I.E., MEDIATORS AND MODERATORS) THAT CAN BE USED TO GUIDE RESEARCH TO HELP ANSWER HOW, FOR WHOM, AND UNDER WHAT CONDITIONS YOGA PRACTICE MAY PROMOTE POSITIVE EMBODIMENT. BASED ON EXISTING THEORETICAL FRAMEWORKS AND EMPIRICAL FINDINGS, THIS MODEL SUGGESTS THAT (A) YOGA PRACTICE MAY CULTIVATE EMBODYING EXPERIENCES DURING YOGA (E.G., STATE MINDFULNESS), (B) THESE EMBODYING EXPERIENCES MAY BUILD STABLE EMBODYING EXPERIENCES THAT GENERALIZE BEYOND THE YOGA CONTEXT (E.G., TRAIT MINDFULNESS), AND (C) THESE STABLE EMBODYING EXPERIENCES MAY THEN PROMOTE EMBODYING PRACTICES (E.G., MINDFUL SELF-CARE). THIS MEDIATIONAL CHAIN IS LIKELY MODERATED BY THE YOGA CONTEXT (E.G., INSTRUCTIONAL FOCUS, PRESENCE OF MIRRORS, DIVERSITY OF BODIES REPRESENTED) AND YOGA PRACTITIONERS' SOCIAL IDENTITIES (E.G., BODY SIZE, PHYSICAL LIMITATIONS), SOCIAL AND PERSONAL HISTORIES (E.G., EXPERIENCES WITH WEIGHT STIGMA AND TRAUMA), AND PERSONALITY TRAITS AND MOTIVES (E.G., BODY COMPARISON, APPEARANCE-FOCUSED MOTIVES TO PRACTICE YOGA). USING THE STRUCTURE OF THIS CONCEPTUAL MODEL, WE OFFER RESEARCHERS IDEAS FOR TESTABLE MODELS AND STUDY DESIGNS THAT CAN SUPPORT THEM. 2020 4 2435 21 YOGA AND POSITIVE BODY IMAGE: A TEST OF THE EMBODIMENT MODEL. THE STUDY AIMED TO TEST THE EMBODIMENT MODEL OF POSITIVE BODY IMAGE (MENZEL & LEVINE, 2011) WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF YOGA. PARTICIPANTS WERE 193 YOGA PRACTITIONERS (124 IYENGAR, 69 BIKRAM) AND 127 UNIVERSITY STUDENTS (NON-YOGA PARTICIPANTS) FROM ADELAIDE, SOUTH AUSTRALIA. PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED QUESTIONNAIRE MEASURES OF POSITIVE BODY IMAGE, EMBODIMENT, SELF-OBJECTIFICATION, AND DESIRE FOR THINNESS. RESULTS SHOWED YOGA PRACTITIONERS SCORED HIGHER ON POSITIVE BODY IMAGE AND EMBODIMENT, AND LOWER ON SELF-OBJECTIFICATION THAN NON-YOGA PARTICIPANTS. IN SUPPORT OF THE EMBODIMENT MODEL, THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOGA PARTICIPATION AND POSITIVE BODY IMAGE WAS SERIALLY MEDIATED BY EMBODIMENT AND REDUCED SELF-OBJECTIFICATION. ALTHOUGH BIKRAM PRACTITIONERS ENDORSED APPEARANCE-RELATED REASONS FOR PARTICIPATING IN YOGA MORE THAN IYENGAR PRACTITIONERS, THERE WERE NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN IYENGAR AND BIKRAM YOGA PRACTITIONERS ON BODY IMAGE VARIABLES. IT WAS CONCLUDED THAT YOGA IS AN EMBODYING ACTIVITY THAT CAN PROVIDE WOMEN WITH THE OPPORTUNITY TO CULTIVATE A FAVOURABLE RELATIONSHIP WITH THEIR BODY. 2016 5 1166 23 EVALUATING THE IMPACT OF A BRIEF YOGA INTERVENTION ON PREADOLESCENTS' BODY IMAGE AND MOOD. YOGA IS AN EMBODYING ACTIVITY THAT PROMOTES BODY AWARENESS, BODY CONNECTION, BODY RESPONSIVENESS, AND APPRECIATION OF BODY FUNCTIONALITY, AND IT THEREFORE MAY BE A BENEFICIAL SCHOOL-BASED INTERVENTION FOR CHILDREN'S BODY IMAGE. THE PRESENT STUDY EXAMINED THE IMPACT OF A 4-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION ON PRE-ADOLESCENT GIRLS' AND BOYS' BODY IMAGE (BODY APPRECIATION, BODY ESTEEM, AND BODY SURVEILLANCE) AND MOOD (POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE AFFECT) 1-WEEK POST-INTERVENTION AND AT 6-WEEK FOLLOW-UP. BRITISH CHILDREN (N = 344; 54.4% FEMALE) AGED 9-11 YEARS WERE RECRUITED FROM FOUR SCHOOLS, TWO OF WHICH WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO THE YOGA INTERVENTION AND TWO TO A PHYSICAL EDUCATION CONTROL CONDITION. OVERALL, GIRLS REPORTED GREATER BODY IMAGE CONCERN AND NEGATIVE MOOD THAN BOYS. UNEXPECTEDLY, BOTH GROUPS REPORTED INCREASED BODY APPRECIATION, BODY ESTEEM, AND POSITIVE MOOD, AND DECREASED BODY SURVEILLANCE AND NEGATIVE AFFECT FROM BASELINE TO POST-INTERVENTION AND/OR FOLLOW-UP. BOTH GIRLS AND BOYS IN THE YOGA INTERVENTION EVALUATED THE SESSIONS VERY FAVOURABLY; THE MAJORITY DESIRED TO PARTICIPATE IN MORE LESSONS. POTENTIAL EXPLANATIONS FOR THESE FINDINGS ARE DISCUSSED. 2018 6 1878 32 REALIZING YOGA'S ALL-ACCESS PASS: A SOCIAL JUSTICE CRITIQUE OF WESTERNIZED YOGA AND INCLUSIVE EMBODIMENT. IN THE 21(ST) CENTURY, THE ANCIENT MIND-BODY PRACTICE OF YOGA HAS SURGED IN POPULARITY AMONG WESTERN ENTHUSIASTS FOR ITS NUMEROUS HEALTH BENEFITS. PARTICULARLY, A GROWING EVIDENCE BASE SUPPORTS YOGA FOR CULTIVATING POSITIVE EMBODIMENT AND REDUCING RISK FOR DISORDERED EATING. NEVERTHELESS, AMIDST ITS RISE ARE CONCERNS ABOUT YOGA'S DEPARTURE FROM ITS SPIRITUAL FOUNDATIONS AND INCREASING ASSIMILATION INTO THE APPEARANCE- AND COMMERCIAL-DRIVEN EXERCISE AND FITNESS CULTURE. CONSEQUENTLY, AN EXCLUSIONARY IDENTITY HAS BEEN PERPETUATED IN SHAPING NORMS SURROUNDING WHO CAN AND DOES PRACTICE YOGA, WHICH CONTRADICTS EARLIER EGALITARIAN VISIONS OF A YOGA FOR ALL. THEREFORE, WE ADOPT A SOCIAL JUSTICE LENS IN OFFERING A FOCUSED ANALYSIS OF THE INTERSECTION OF YOGA, EMBODIMENT, AND INCLUSION FOR SELECT MARGINALIZED SOCIAL IDENTITIES TYPICALLY UNDERREPRESENTED AMONG YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND IN YOGA SCHOLARSHIP. DATA ARE SYNTHESIZED FROM BOTH QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE SOURCES AND INTEGRATE AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW CONFINED MEDIA REPRESENTATIONS OF "THE YOGA BODY" AND OTHER PRACTICAL CONSTRAINTS MAY UNDERMINE THE PERCEIVED ACCESS TO THE PRACTICE FOR MEMBERS OF DIVERSE GROUPS. WE CONCLUDE WITH INVITING FUTURE CONSIDERATIONS TOWARDS FOSTERING MORE INTERDISCIPLINARY COMMUNITY-BASED RESEARCH PARTNERSHIPS AMONG THE VARIETY OF STAKEHOLDERS INVESTED IN ADVANCING THE ACCESSIBILITY AND INCLUSION OF YOGA AND POSITIVE EMBODIMENT FOR ALL BODIES. 2020 7 2175 21 THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON FUNCTIONALITY APPRECIATION AND ADDITIONAL FACETS OF POSITIVE BODY IMAGE. THIS STUDY INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON FUNCTIONALITY APPRECIATION, AND THE POTENTIAL MECHANISMS THAT COULD EXPLAIN THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON ADDITIONAL FACETS OF POSITIVE BODY IMAGE. YOUNG ADULT WOMEN (N=114; MAGE=22.19) WERE RANDOMISED TO A 10-WEEK HATHA YOGA PROGRAMME OR WAITLIST CONTROL GROUP. PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED MEASURES OF FUNCTIONALITY APPRECIATION, BODY APPRECIATION, BODY COMPASSION, APPEARANCE EVALUATION, SELF-OBJECTIFICATION, AND EMBODIMENT AT PRETEST, MIDTEST, POSTTEST, AND 1-MONTH FOLLOW-UP. FOLLOW-UP DATA COULD NOT BE ANALYSED DUE TO HIGH LEVELS OF ATTRITION. THE REMAINING DATA SHOWED THAT, COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP, WOMEN IN THE YOGA PROGRAMME EXPERIENCED LOWER SELF-OBJECTIFICATION AT MIDTEST AND GREATER EMBODIMENT OVER TIME. FURTHER, ALL PARTICIPANTS EXPERIENCED IMPROVEMENTS IN BODY APPRECIATION, BODY COMPASSION, AND APPEARANCE EVALUATION OVER TIME, REGARDLESS OF THEIR ASSIGNED GROUP. LOWER SELF-OBJECTIFICATION CONTRIBUTED TO IMPROVEMENTS IN BODY APPRECIATION AND BODY COMPASSION. IN ADDITION, GREATER EMBODIMENT CONTRIBUTED TO IMPROVEMENTS IN BODY APPRECIATION, BODY COMPASSION, AND APPEARANCE EVALUATION. CONTRARY TO OUR EXPECTATIONS, YOGA DID NOT LEAD TO INCREASED FUNCTIONALITY APPRECIATION, NOR WAS FUNCTIONALITY APPRECIATION A MEDIATOR OF THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON POSITIVE BODY IMAGE. INSTEAD, LOWER SELF-OBJECTIFICATION, AND GREATER EMBODIMENT, DROVE IMPROVEMENTS IN POSITIVE BODY IMAGE. 2020 8 401 11 BEYOND THE TRADITIONAL APPROACH TO TEACHING ANATOMY FOR YOGA. CONTEXT: THE TRADITIONAL APPROACH TO TEACHING ANATOMY FOR YOGA, WHILE SYSTEMATIC, IS OFTEN INEFFECTIVE. METHODS: A UNIQUE APPROACH TO TEACHING ANATOMY FOR A YOGA TEACHER TRAINING SEMINAR IS PRESENTED, FOUNDED ON THE PRINCIPLES OF THOMAS MYERS' ANATOMY TRAINS. LAB ACTIVITIES ARE DETAILED AND BLOOM'S TAXONOMY IS APPLIED TO ENSURE STUDENTS ARE ENGAGED IN HIGHER LEVEL THINKING AND APPLICATION. CONCLUSION: GOING BEYOND THE TRADITIONAL APPROACH TO TEACHING ANATOMY FOR YOGA CAN BE EXTREMELY REWARDING FOR STUDENTS AND TEACHERS ALIKE. 2015 9 1614 20 MIND AND CONSCIOUSNESS IN YOGA - VEDANTA: A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS WITH WESTERN PSYCHOLOGICAL CONCEPTS. STUDY OF MIND AND CONSCIOUSNESS THROUGH ESTABLISHED SCIENTIFIC METHODS IS OFTEN DIFFICULT DUE TO THE OBSERVED-OBSERVER DICHOTOMY. CARTESIAN APPROACH OF DUALISM CONSIDERING THE MIND AND MATTER AS TWO DIVERSE AND UNCONNECTED ENTITIES HAS BEEN QUESTIONED BY ORIENTAL SCHOOLS OF YOGA AND VEDANTA AS WELL AS THE RECENT QUANTUM THEORIES OF MODERN PHYSICS. FREUDIAN AND NEO-FREUDIAN SCHOOLS BASED ON THE CARTESIAN MODEL HAVE BEEN CRITICIZED BY THE HUMANISTIC SCHOOLS WHICH COME MUCH CLOSER TO THE VEDANTIC APPROACH OF UNITARINESS. A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE TWO APPROACHES IS DISCUSSED. 2013 10 407 21 BIOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE OF PIEZOELECTRICITY IN RELATION TO ACUPUNCTURE, HATHA YOGA, OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE AND ACTION OF AIR IONS. PIEZOELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES SUCH AS PROTEINS, NUCLEIC ACIDS AND MUCOPOLYSACCHARIDES ARE REVIEWED IN THIS PAPER. IT IS INDICATED THAT THE STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS OF THE HUMAN BODY COMPOSED OF THESE PIEZOELECTRIC SUBSTANCES ARE CAPABLE OF TRANSDUCING A MECHANICAL ENERGY INTO AN ELECTRIC CURRENT. SUCH A TRANSDUCTION MAY BE BROUGHT ABOUT BY MOVEMENTS OF AN ACUPUNCTURE NEEDLE, OSTEOPATHIC MANIPULATIONS; HATHA YOGA POSTURES OR ACTION OF NEGATIVELY CHARGED AIR IRONS. IT IS POSTULATED THAT ELECTRIC CURRENT INDUCED BY STIMULATION OF THE SPECIFIC SITES ON THE SURFACE OF HUMAN BODY FLOWS TOWARDS THE INTERNAL ORGANS ALONG THE SEMICONDUCTIVE CHANNELS OF BIOLOGIC MACROMOLECULES. ELECTRIC CURRENT INDUCED EITHER BY THE PIEZOELECTRIC TRANSDUCTION OR DIRECTLY APPLIED FROM AN EXTERNAL SOURCE MAY IN TURN STIMULATE INDIVIDUAL CELLS IN THE TARGET ORGAN. INVOLVEMENT OF ELECTRICAL PHENOMENA IN REGULATORY MECHANISMS ON CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LEVELS IS DISCUSSED. 1977 11 2809 13 YOGA THERAPY: BUILDING A HOLDING ENVIRONMENT FOR SOMATIC AND PSYCHE CHANGE. DRAWING ON IDEAS FROM D.W. WINNICOTT AND THE WORK OF QUAKER THEOLOGIAN PARKER PALMER, THIS ARTICLE DISCUSSES THE CONCEPT OF A HOLDING ENVIRONMENT, ITS REFINED UNDERSTANDING IN THE LITERATURE OVER THE YEARS, AND HOW IT CAN BE OPTIMALLY USED IN YOGA THERAPY. THE EVIDENCE SHOWS THAT EFFECTIVELY ESTABLISHING A HOLDING ENVIRONMENT CAN FACILITATE BOTH SOMATIC AND DEEP STRUCTURAL CHANGE IN A CLIENT, FACILITATING HEALING FROM PRIMAL WOUNDING AS WELL AS THE POTENTIAL RECONNECTION TO THE TRUE SELF. 2015 12 1284 39 GOT YOGA?: A LONGITUDINAL ANALYSIS OF THEMATIC CONTENT AND MODELS' APPEARANCE-RELATED ATTRIBUTES IN ADVERTISEMENTS SPANNING FOUR DECADES OF YOGA JOURNAL. YOGA HAS BECOME AN INCREASINGLY COMMON HEALTH PRACTICE AMONG U.S. ADULTS OVER THE PAST DECADE. WITH THIS GROWTH IN POPULARITY, YOGA-RELATED PRINT MEDIA HAVE BEEN CRITICIZED FOR SHIFTING AWAY FROM YOGA'S TRADITIONAL PHILOSOPHIES AND PROMOTING A THIN, LEAN IDEAL PHYSIQUE REPRESENTING THE "YOGA BODY." THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO (A) ANALYZE THE PRESENCE AND CONTENT OF ADVERTISEMENTS OVER THE 40-YEAR PUBLICATION HISTORY OF YOGA JOURNAL MAGAZINE AND (B) EXPLORE FEMALE ADVERTISEMENT MODELS' SOCIO-DEMOGRAPHIC AND APPEARANCE-RELATED ATTRIBUTES OVER TIME. RESULTS SUGGESTED THAT YOGA JOURNAL NOW CONTAINS SIGNIFICANTLY MORE ADVERTISEMENTS FOR FOOD, NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS, AND APPAREL AND FEWER ADVERTISEMENTS FOR MEDITATION AND NUTRITIONAL PRACTICES THAN IN ITS EARLY YEARS OF PUBLICATION. MODELS WERE MORE FREQUENTLY RATED AS WHITE AND IN THEIR 20S AND 30S IN RECENT YEARS OF PUBLICATION. TRENDS IN MODEL BODY SIZE MATCHED SHIFTS IN CULTURALLY DOMINANT BODY IDEALS OVER TIME. IMPLICATIONS AND FUTURE RESEARCH DIRECTIONS ARE CONSIDERED. 2017 13 128 19 A PILOT YOGA PHYSICAL EDUCATION CURRICULUM TO PROMOTE POSITIVE BODY IMAGE. WE EXAMINED THE EFFECTS OF A PILOT YOGA-BASED PHYSICAL EDUCATION (PE) CURRICULUM BY TESTING FOR CHANGE IN TRAIT BODY SURVEILLANCE, PHYSICAL SELF-WORTH, AND BODY APPRECIATION. FURTHER, WE EXAMINED THE RELATIONSHIPS AMONG CHANGE IN BODY IMAGE VARIABLES AND THE ROLE OF STATE MINDFULNESS IN PREDICTING STATE BODY SURVEILLANCE DURING CLASSES. ADOLESCENTS PARTICIPATED IN 12 WEEKS OF YOGA-BASED (N=20; MAGE=16.45, 90% FEMALE) OR TRADITIONAL (N=23;MAGE=14.52, 57% FEMALE) PE. RESULTS SHOWED SIGNIFICANT (P=.004), MODERATE DECREASES IN TRAIT BODY SURVEILLANCE AND MINIMAL NONSIGNIFICANT (P=.11) INCREASES IN PHYSICAL SELF-WORTH. CHANGE IN TRAIT BODY SURVEILLANCE WAS INVERSELY RELATED TO CHANGE IN PHYSICAL SELF-WORTH AND BODY APPRECIATION IN YOGA PARTICIPANTS. MULTI-LEVEL MODELING ANALYSES REVEALED THAT MORE MINDFUL STUDENTS ALSO SURVEYED THEIR BODY LESS DURING CLASS. INTENTIONALLY STRUCTURED YOGA PARTICIPATION MAY SUPPORT POSITIVE BODY IMAGE AMONG ADOLESCENTS. 2017 14 623 15 DHARMA, YOGA, TANTRA. IN THE MID-20TH CENTURY, SELVARARAJAN YESUDIAN (1916-1998), WHO WAS BORN IN INDIA TO A CHRISTIAN FATHER, A PHYSICIAN, AND SPENT MOST OF HIS LIFE IN SWITZERLAND, COAUTHORED (WITH ELISABETH HAICH) A BOOK ENTITLED YOGA AND HEALTH; SINCE THEN, THE COUPLING OF THESE TWO WORDS HAS LARGELY DEFINED THE MEANING OF YOGA IN THE WEST, ESPECIALLY IN PROMOTIONAL LITERATURE FOR URBAN YOGA SCHOOLS AND HEALTH-CLUB PROGRAMS. AUTHENTIC INDIAN TRADITIONS HAVE INDEED AFFIRMED THE THERAPEUTIC BENEFIT OF YOGA, BUT THEY HAVE CONSISTENTLY SEEN YOGA AS A "THERAPY OF THE SOUL," A WAY OF "QUIETING THE AGITATIONS OF THE HEART," TO THE END OF PERCEIVING THE ULTIMATE WITHIN THE SOUL AND, IN RELIGIOUS TERMS, OF REALIZING UNION WITH GOD. THIS PAPER WILL EXAMINE SOME CLASSICAL YOGA TEXTS IN RELATION TO SPIRITUAL REMEDIES FOR SUBSTANCE MISUSE AND OTHER FORMS OF ADDICTION AND CHEMICAL DEPENDENCY. 2013 15 2494 19 YOGA AS MEDICINE: UNDERSTANDING BHUTANESE REFUGEE PERSPECTIVES ON HEALTH AND HEALTHCARE. BHUTANESE REFUGEES IN THE U.S. OFTEN STRUGGLE TO ACCESS CULTURALLY COMPETENT HEALTH TREATMENT. ADDRESSING THIS PROBLEM REQUIRES UNDERSTANDING HOW REFUGEES PERCEIVE THEIR HEALTH AND HEALTHCARE NEEDS. SINCE 2015, A COMMUNITY AGENCY HAS IMPLEMENTED COMMUNITY-BASED, PEER-LED SUPPORT GROUPS FOR BHUTANESE REFUGEES, WITH 17 GROUPS IN 2018-2019. THIS STUDY DESCRIBES THE AGENCY'S QUALITY ASSURANCE EVALUATION THROUGH GROUP LEADER FEEDBACK, OBSERVATION REPORTS, AND FOCUS GROUPS. THE RESULTS OF 46 QUALITY ASSURANCE DOCUMENTS SHOW THAT THIS GROUP OF BHUTANESE REFUGEES PERCEIVE THEIR HEALTH THROUGH THE MIND-BODY CONNECTION, VIEWING PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH AS LINKED AND SUPPORTED BY YOGA, MINDFULNESS, EXERCISE, NUTRITION, AND CREATIVE EXPRESSION. 2021 16 409 24 BLENDING MARTIAL ARTS AND YOGA FOR HEALTH: FROM THE LAST SAMURAI TO THE FIRST ODAKA YOGA WARRIOR. THIS PAPER INTRODUCES THE CASE STUDY OF ODAKA YOGA, AN INNOVATIVE STYLE OF POSTURAL YOGA BLENDED WITH MARTIAL ARTS ELEMENTS WHICH EMPHASIZES THE IMPORTANCE OF PRACTITIONERS' HEALTH AND PROCESSES OF SELF-TRANSFORMATION AS PIVOTAL TO THE SCHOOL'S ETHOS. MORE SPECIFICALLY, THE PAPER EXPLORES HOW ODAKA YOGA'S PHILOSOPHICAL BACKDROPS AND PRACTICAL REPERTOIRE, COMPOSED BY A MIXTURE OF "EXOTIC" RESOURCES SUCH AS BUSHIDO, ZEN, YOGA, AND A CONSTANT REFERENCE TO THE OCEAN WAVES AND BIOMECHANICS, CONSTITUTE A VERY SPECIFIC VISION OF HEALTH AT THE INTERSECTION OF WESTERN SCIENCE AND ESOTERIC KNOWLEDGE. THEORETICALLY, THE PAPER BORROWS FROM JENNINGS' THEORY OF MARTIAL CREATION AND ENRICHES IT WITH SOME OF THE CENTRAL ANALYTICAL TOOLS PROPOSED BY THEORISTS SUCH AS BOURDIEU AND FOUCAULT. METHODOLOGICALLY, IT RELIES ON A MULTIMODAL APPROACH INCLUDING DISCURSIVE ANALYSIS OF THE SCHOOL'S PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS, INTERVIEWS WITH THE FOUNDERS AND OTHER KEY TEACHERS, AND OBSERVANT PARTICIPATION OF PRACTITIONERS' APPRENTICESHIP PROCESSES. MORE SPECIFICALLY, THIS PAPER DISCUSSES THE BIRTH OF ODAKA YOGA AS OCCURRING AT THE INTERSECTION OF ASIAN MARTIAL ARTS AND YOGA, AS WELL AS THE FOUNDERS' BIOGRAPHICAL TRAJECTORIES FROM THE WORLD OF COMPETITIVE MARTIAL ARTS AND FITNESS, TO YOGA; IT THEN TURNS TO AN EXAMINATION OF ODAKA YOGA'S CONCEPTION OF HEALTH AS A MIXTURE OF THE WESTERN BIOMEDICAL MODEL AND THE SUBTLE BODY MODEL OF ASIAN TRADITIONS SUCH AS YOGA AND MARTIAL ARTS. IT ARGUES THAT THE CONCEPTION OF HEALTH PROMOTED BY THIS SCHOOL GIVES RISE TO THE ODAKA YOGA WARRIOR, THE IDEAL-TYPICAL PRACTITIONER WHOSE BODY IS SIMULTANEOUSLY EXPOSED TO THE MEDICAL GAZE AND ITS IMPERATIVES OF CONTROL, KNOWLEDGE, AND MANIPULATION; WHILE IT ALSO DEIFIES IT, AS IT IS ANIMATED BY THE ELUSIVE FLOWS OF ENERGY (QI OR PRANA) THAT PROLONGED PRACTICE AIMS TO MASTER. THE PAPER CONCLUDES WITH A REFLECTION ON HYBRID CONCEPTIONS OF HEALTH AND THE UBIQUITOUS ROLE OF HEALTH DISCOURSES AND NARRATIVES ACROSS SOCIOCULTURAL DOMAINS. 2020 17 1955 8 SELF - REALIZATION THROUGH THROUGH VEDANTA AND YOGA. THE SEEKER OF ULTIMATE TRUTH NEEDS THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE PRACTICAL SIDE OF VEDANTA PHILOSOPHY, THE FIVE KOSHAS OR SHEATHS BEYOND WHICH THE ATMAN, THE SELF REMAINS. THROUGH VEDANTA AND YOGA ONE CAN TRANSCEND THESE LAYERS IN A SYSTEMATIC MANNER TO ATTAIN SELF REALIZATION - ULTIMATE REALITY. 1983 18 653 23 EATING DISORDERS, EMBODIMENT, AND YOGA: A CONCEPTUAL OVERVIEW. YOGA AND ITS RELATION TO EMBODIMENT AND DISORDERED EATING HAS ONLY RECENTLY RECEIVED RESEARCH ATTENTION. NEVERTHELESS, EARLY RESEARCH INDICATES THAT YOGA IS AN EFFECTIVE TOOL IN THE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF EATING DISORDERS. IT IS ASSUMED THAT YOGA AMELIORATES EATING DISORDER SYMPTOMS AND FACILITATES A SHIFT FROM NEGATIVE TOWARDS POSITIVE BODY IMAGE AND WELL-BEING BY CULTIVATING POSITIVE EMBODIMENT (I.E., THE ABILITY TO FEEL A SENSE OF CONNECTION BETWEEN MIND AND BODY). IN ORDER TO PROVIDE THE CONTEXT OF THE CONSTRUCTS OF DISORDERED EATING, EMBODIMENT, AND YOGA, THIS ARTICLE PRESENTS A BRIEF OVERVIEW AND CONCEPTUALIZATION OF THESE CONSTRUCTS. THE THREE MAJOR EATING DISORDERS AND CURRENT TREATMENT METHODS ARE DESCRIBED. FURTHER, THE PHILOSOPHICAL ROOTS AND THEORETICAL MODELS OF EMBODIMENT ARE DELINEATED AND THEIR COMMUNAL CORE FEATURES ARE OUTLINED. LASTLY, THE ORIGIN, BASIC PRINCIPLES, AND MODERN INTERPRETATIONS OF YOGA ARE DISCUSSED. 2020 19 1310 26 HEALING MYTHS, YOGA STYLES AND SOCIAL BODIES: SOCIO-LOGICS OF YOGA AS A HEALTH PRACTICE IN THE SOCIALLY STRATIFIED CITY OF MARSEILLE, FRANCE. DRAWING ON PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION AND INTERVIEWS IN TWO YOGA STUDIOS IN THE HIGHLY SOCIALLY STRATIFIED CITY OF MARSEILLE, FRANCE, THIS PAPER EXPLORES THE UNDERSTANDINGS OF YOGA AS A HEALTH PRACTICE THAT EMERGE AT THE INTERSECTIONS BETWEEN YOGA STYLES AND THEIR SOCIAL CONTEXTS OF CONSUMPTION. ITS INSIGHTS EMERGE FROM THE COMPARISON OF THREE MODERN YOGA STYLES THAT WERE DEVELOPED FOR WESTERN ENGLISH-SPEAKING CULTURAL CONTEXTS - IYENGAR, BIKRAM AND FORREST - AND WHICH DIFFER IN FORM BUT ALSO IN THE CHRONOLOGY OF THEIR EMERGENCE ON THE GLOBAL YOGA MARKET AND THAT OF THEIR RECEPTION IN FRANCE. THESE THREE YOGA STYLES ARE ALSO BRANDED THROUGH CONTRASTING MYTHOLOGIES OF TRANSFORMATIONAL HEALING, AND THE AIM OF THIS PAPER IS TO EXPLORE HOW A BRAND CONCEPTUALIZATION OF YOGA AS A HEALTH PRACTICE RELATES TO OR RESONATES WITH THE EMBODIED EXPERIENCES OF PRACTITIONERS, AND TO THE SOCIO-CULTURAL CONTEXTS IN WHICH PRACTITIONERS AND THEIR PRACTICES ARE EMBEDDED. THE PAPER CONTRIBUTES A NEW CASE STUDY TO THE GLOBAL YOGA SCHOLARSHIP AND TO A POORLY STUDIED FRENCH YOGA SCENE, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, IT CROSS-EXAMINES THE DISCOURSES THROUGH WHICH A YOGA STYLE IS BRANDED, THE WAY IT IS TRANSMITTED, AND THE SOCIAL CONTEXT AND SOCIAL POSITIONING OF THE INDIVIDUALS WHO PRACTICE IT. COMBINING PERSPECTIVES ON THE BODY, NARRATIVE AND RITUALS, IT IDENTIFIES HOW YOGA HEALING IS CONSTRUED IN RELATION TO GENDER, ETHNICITY AND CLASS AND THE POINTS OF CONSENSUS AND DISSENT THAT EMERGE FROM THE ENCOUNTERS BETWEEN FRENCH SOCIAL BODIES AND EXOGENOUS YOGA STYLES. 2021 20 486 24 CLINICAL HYPNOSIS AND PATANJALI YOGA SUTRAS. THE TRANCE STATES IN YOGA AND HYPNOSIS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH SIMILAR PHENOMENA LIKE RELAXATION, DISINCLINATION TO TALK, UNREALITY, MISREPRESENTATION, ALTERATIONS IN PERCEPTION, INCREASED CONCENTRATION, SUSPENSION OF NORMAL REALITY TESTING, AND THE TEMPORARY NATURE OF THE PHENOMENA. WHILE SOME RESEARCHERS CONSIDER YOGA TO BE A FORM OF HYPNOSIS, OTHERS NOTE THAT THERE ARE MANY SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TRANCE IN YOGA AND THE HYPNOTIC TRANCE. THE PRESENT STUDY AIMED TO FIND SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TRANCE STATES OF HYPNOSIS AND PATANJALI'S YOGA SUTRAS. THE TRANCE STATES WERE COMPARED WITH THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE PHENOMENA OF TRANCE, AND THE THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUES AND BENEFITS OF BOTH. AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE CONCEPT OF TRANCE IN PATANJALI'S YOGA SUTRAS WAS GAINED THROUGH A THEMATIC ANALYSIS OF THE BOOK FOUR CHAPTERS ON FREEDOM BY SWAMI SATYANANDA SARASWATI. THIS LED TO AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE CONCEPT OF TRANCE IN THE YOGA SUTRAS. THE OBTAINED CONCEPTS WERE COMPARED TO THE CONCEPTS OF TRANCE IN HYPNOSIS (OBTAINED THROUGH THE LITERATURE ON HYPNOSIS) TO INVESTIGATE WHETHER OR NOT THERE EXIST SIMILARITIES. THE FINDINGS OF THE STUDY SHOW THAT THERE ARE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THE TRANCE IN HYPNOSIS AND THE TRANCE IN PATANJALI'S YOGA SUTRAS IN THE INDUCTION AND DEEPENING OF THE TRANCE STATES IN HYPNOSIS AND THAT OF SAMADHI, THE PHENOMENA PRESENT IN HYPNOSIS AND THE KINDS OF SIDDHIS THAT ARE OBTAINED THROUGH SAMADHI, AND THE THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUES AND THE THERAPEUTIC PROCESS IN PATANJALI'S YOGA SUTRA AND HYPNOSIS. 2013