I had the unique opportunity to spend several days at the ashram of Yogi Amrit Desai in Florida, now in his mid 80s. Here is why it is important to record his story:
In 1960, he started the present yoga movement in USA by establishing the largest teacher training centers outside India. Tens of thousands of teachers were trained and certified by him. But later, his own Western disciples removed him in a scandal, and the hijacking of his institution went unnoticed by Indians. In other words, he was abandoned.
The new management of his centers gradually morphed yoga into an Americanized version. Many distortions took place. His former American students became the new leaders and were presented as the pioneers. Many "new age" white gurus were thus born, while their Indian guru was kicked out of his own institution.
He now runs a modest size ashram in Florida. His contributions were revolutionary in US cultural history. Yet he is largely unknown.
I decided to bring his side of the story out for the general public. There are some critical insights that came out. The interviews were edited and put into 9 parts below.
1) The Pioneering Days of American Yoga: Click
2) How Yogi Amrit Desai's Hatha Yoga integrates Ashtanga Yoga: Click
3) Controversies on Yoga's Appropriation & Mis-appropriation by Westerners: Click
4) How Yoga Helps Americans Solve Social Problems Like Addiction: Click
5) Can Living Gurus be Replaced by Technology? Click
6) Society must be detoxed by force & intervention: Click
7) Western collective ego continues to assert even after individual ego is surrendered: Click
8) American Myth is undergoing its latest crisis, needs dharmic missionaries: Click
9) How Gurus must prevent collective U-Turns of Western students: Click
No comments:
Post a Comment