Yoga Inc: A Journey Through The Big Business Of Yoga
Has Yoga gained massive popularity but lost its good karma? Does the aerobic workout that we now call Yoga have anything to do with the ancient spiritual tradition? And why does “hot Yoga” leave so many people cold? At the launch of Yoga Inc: A Journey Through The Big Business of Yoga (Penguin Group Canada), author and filmmaker John Philip will provide a sidesplitting yet eye-opening multimedia tour of the trends now sweeping the industry, from the dizzying array of fashion accessories available at large “McYoga” chains to high profile yogis like Bikram Choudhury.
Once a province or gurus and renunciation, today’s yoga is practiced and endorsed by the likes of Madonna, and making some people very rich. Commercialization, legal wrangling and fierce competition now swamp the industry. It’s the western way, but is it yoga? Yoga Inc. is a book by John Philip based on his widely popular documentary of the same name; the first film to explore a fundamental question; can yoga survive this war between the sacred and the Profane with its good karma intact?
Using extraordinary interviews, thoughtful analysis and eye-opening anecdotes, Yoga, Inc. offers an entertaining exploration of the widening gulf between traditional and modern yoga. Yoga may be aimed at enlightenment but here in the Wild West it’s a very different story. Modern yogis take home gold cups and cash prizes. Gurus copyright their yoga styles, kicking off heated lawsuits. Yoga chains are popping up everywhere, putting smaller studios out of business. In the yoga marketplace, everything is up for grabs, from yoga shoes (despite the fact yoga is practiced barefoot) to chakra panties. Yoga is making some people rich and famous, but is it really yoga?
Yoga, Inc. starts out by charting the colorful and often hilarious trajectory in the west of this once-obscure, esoteric discipline, from early accounts that demonized yoga as occultism to the modern depiction of yoga as a package that provides all that’s needed for living a full and righteous modern life.
The book’s most unique feature is an examination of the controversial trends now sweeping the industry through the lens of the yamas, the ethical principles at the heart of traditional yoga. The closest thing to religious creed yoga has to offer, the five yamas are often called the “Thou Shalt Nots" of yoga, and translate roughly as Thou Shalt Not Harm, Thou Shalt Not Lie, Thou Shalt Not Steal, Thou Shalt Not Lust and Thou Shalt Not Be Greedy. Examining each of the yamas separately and in depth offers a revealing snapshot of capitalism and spiritualism colliding head on.
At its heart Yoga, Inc. is a search for answers; what does the ancient, inwardly-focused discipline of yoga have in common with the celebrity-driven, corporate-backed, body-obsessed, high-priced workout we call yoga? And Should yogis be held to the high moral standard intrinsic to traditional yoga?
John Philip is a writer and filmmaker whose most recent documentary Yoga, Inc. examined the clash of spiritualism and capitalism within the yoga industry. The film premiered at the prestigious Hot Docs Documentary Festival and was an official selection of the Jerusalem, Canadian Sport, Guelph Film Festivals and Leipzig Film Market, among others. John’s previous feature doc RUDYLAND was acquired by HBO and premiered on Cinemax in January 2003.
Previously, John served as New York editor of Australian GQ magazine and as Channel Seven Australia’s North American correspondent, working with such talent as George Clooney, Howard Stern and Quentin Tarantino. He also wrote and produced two shorts films and two off-Broadway plays. John grew up in Adelaide, Australia, and now lives in Brooklyn with his wife, two ridiculously adorable sons and luminous daughter.
