122 Spirituality Studies 2 Current State of Research Yoga has attracted increasing academic attention across disciplines such as religious studies, anthropology, sociology, psychology, and health sciences. Traditionally, yoga has been understood as a spiritual discipline aimed at cultivating mental clarity and liberation, most prominently articulated in classical texts such as Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtras, where bodily practice plays only a marginal role (Yoga Sūtras 2:29, 2:46–2:48). However, historical research demonstrates that yoga has never been a static system and has undergone multiple reinterpretations across time and cultural contexts (Singleton 2010, 15–19; Jain 2014, 13–15). The term traditional yoga in this study refers to the plurality of pre-modern South Asian yogic traditions whose primary orientation was spiritual transformation and “liberation” (Sa. mokṣa), rather than physical fitness or health optimization (Mallinson and Singleton 2017, 3–6). This framework encompasses both the classical system of Rāja Yoga and the diverse traditions of Haṭha Yoga, as well as parallel spiritual paths that are not primarily centered on physical practice. Within this context, Rāja Yoga is understood in relation to the interpretative framework popularized by Swami Vivekananda in his Raja Yoga (1896), where he re-presented the teachings of the Yoga Sūtras as a universal method of meditation and mental discipline (Vivekananda 1896, quoted in Jain 2014, 147). Although Vivekananda’s formulation belongs historically to the early modern reform period, it drew upon classical sources. It significantly shaped Western understandings of yoga as a primarily meditative and spiritual path. In pre-modern Haṭha traditions, physical techniques were generally presented not as ends in themselves, but as preparatory means for higher states of realization. The Haṭhapradīpikā explicitly states that Haṭha Yoga serves the attainment of Rāja Yoga (Haṭha Yoga Pradīpikā 1:2). In this sense, Haṭha Yoga functioned as a tool for stabilizing the body and breath to facilitate meditative absorption and liberation. Beyond these systems, additional spiritual paths described in the Bhagavad Gītā – such as Bhakti Yoga, Karma Yoga, and Jñāna Yoga – represent fully developed yogic approaches that do not necessarily prioritize physical practice (Flood 1996, 86–94). The difficulty in defining a singular “traditional yoga” stems from its long, internally diverse history (Mallinson and Singleton 2017, xii–xxi). The term is therefore not used here to denote a single unified system, but rather a constellation of spiritual disciplines whose common denominator lies in the transformation of consciousness and orientation toward transcendence. By contrast, modern yoga refers to the historically recent configurations of yoga that emerged in the second half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. During this time, the presentation, pedagogy, and social function of yoga underwent significant transformation (Singleton 2010, 5–6). T. Krishnamacharya systematized dynamic forms of āsana practice (Singleton 2010, 176); Shri Yogendra promoted structured instruction for lay practitioners; and Swami Kuvalayananda subjected yoga techniques to scientific and physiological investigation (Singleton 2010, 115–118). Through these processes, yoga gradually shifted from an ascetic and initiatory discipline toward an institutionalized, pedagogical, and partially secularized practice (Singleton 2010, 117–118). In the Czech context, modern yoga also acquired specific historical contours. During the period of political normalization (1968–1989), state authorities primarily tolerated forms of yoga framed as methods of health promotion or physical culture rather than explicitly spiritual disciplines. In the 1970s, instructor courses became institutionalized, and a standardized teaching model was established – one that continues, in various adaptations, to shape Czech yoga education today. The comprehensiveness and duration of instructor training in modern yoga illustrate its varying levels of complexity. For example, Iyengar Yoga adheres to a traditional path that hearkens back to Patañjali’s Yoga Sūtras, and the qualification process takes at least six years under the supervision of a certified mentor-instructor (Iyengar Yoga 2026). Other authorized styles, such as Forrest Yoga (Forrest Yoga 2026), intentionally separate the postural repertoire of modern yoga from its traditional Indian origins, and focus solely on the physical yogic practice (Hamed 2021, 379). The qualification cycle for this style is twenty-seven days long. In comparison, the complete requalification course in the Czech Republic amounts to 150 hours (Kurzy MŠMT 2026) and usually takes 14 days, distributed over seven weekends. Unlike the Czech Republic, however, it has not been found that yoga teaching regulation is common worldwide. According to the available sources, neither Australia nor
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTUwMDU5Ng==