RUSSIA, June 30, 2015 (Times Of India): Close on the heels of India leading worldwide International Yoga Day celebrations, yoga classes have been banned in a central Russian city by the authorities to check spread of “religious occultism.” At the center of the crackdown are two studios holding classes for Hatha Yoga — a set of asanas or postures involving deep breathing and tough physical exercises, which as per Hindu mythology was first practiced by Lord Shiva. Yoga is known as an ancient Indian spiritual and exercise discipline to balance mind, body and spirit, however, yoga has become highly commoditized globally over the years and various schools and cults have sprung up in different parts of the world in its name.
In the first major crackdown abroad, the authorities in the central Russian city of Nizhnevartovsk have now asked the two Hatha Yoga studies — Auro and Ingara — to stop holding yoga classes in the municipal facilities of the city, as per the Russian media reports. Kommersant business daily reported that the Nizhnevartovsk officials have barred use of municipal buildings for yoga classes and have issued orders to the two studios on this. The Moscow Times reported that the order has been issued “to prevent the spread of new religious cults and movements.”
The authorities have also issued a letter to the heads of departments for physical culture and education, stating that hatha yoga was “inextricably linked to religious practices” and has “an occult character,” as per the Kommersant report.