Yoga Inc.

Swami Ramakrishnananda of the Vishwa Dharam Mandalam,New York,believes that yoga accessories dilute the essence of yogic teachings,and are not inspired by yoga,but by a consumerist society which pushes people to pursue the ideal of what they can be,”provided we buy the offered merchandise.

Developed for a practice that needs nothing more than space to lay a humble mat on,the array of accessories in the market is stress-inducing. Products in America broadly fall into three groups; essentials,absurd frills and specific inessentials. Essentials comprise basic mats and meditation cushions,ranging from $20 to designer varieties for $100. Available yoga kits are like McDonalds combo meals,with a value to premium offering. Premium kit comprises a thick deluxe mat,a zippered mat bag,a Mexican blanket,foam blocks and mat spray cleaner. Premium accessories include the likes of a $125 energy mat studded with acupressure lotus flowers,supposedly to promote pain reduction.

Absurd accessories are,plainly,absurd. Examples: Yoga-paws Mini Mats,priced at $35,are patented grips that fit over your hands and feet for complete control when practising yoga. They enable one to take their practice wherever they go without having to lug a large yoga mat 100 per cent satisfaction guaranteed with flexible freedom.

A clothing line coaxes us to unlock our inner OM by wearing apparels that are not in the least yoga-inspired. And if you want to stretch outside your regular mat,you can buy the circular mat that helps you in re-patterning habitual neurological pathways! Meditation kits resemble slumber kits with eye screens and silk pillows. Everything is clubbed under the expansive,saleable umbrella of yoga; from an eco-friendly change purse that stores money and keys in style to a Tibet luck journal,perfect to write notes throughout your spiritual journey,to jewellery,amulets and hair ornaments.

Hybrid forms of yoga like circus yoga and flying yoga promote the demand for special accessories like wrist support for power yoga,and anti-gravity yoga inversion swings for flying yoga.

Most yoga studios play to the American psyche of doing rather than being. Yoga teacher Donna Davidge says it is scary that teachers are unaware of yoga in its entirety as many are certified only through online certification courses. Instructors who have to earn a living hesitate to enlighten students about the spiritual current of the tradition,thus playing into the hands of retailers.

The embracing of yoga by celebrities like Sting,Gwyneth Paltrow,Jennifer Aniston,Bon Jovi and Heather Graham has also fuelled yoga retail. Bikram Choudhury,branded as the yoga star of Beverly Hills,rubs shoulders with Hollywood glitterati and maintains a fleet of Rolls Royce. Varied merchandise on his website add to the glamour quotient. This is in stark contrast to websites of Sivananda Vedanta Centers and the Integral Yoga Institute which have tomes filled with yogic wisdom written by gurus who inherited,imbibed and passed on the legacy.

David Frawley,scholar and teacher,expresses his views in the Yoga Journal: The yoga community in the West is at a crossroads. Its recent commercial success can be used to build the foundation for a more profound teaching,aimed at changing the consciousness of humanity. Or it can reduce yoga to a mere business that has no connection with its spiritual heart.