© © Philip Toledano / Trunk Archive
Once, only men were allowed to practice yoga.
June 16, 2023
Margit Hiebl
Men and yoga – an ancient relationship that today seems to be full of potential again.
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There's already a certain irony of history: Actually, yoga was initially a male domain. The first yogis were concerned with meditation and breath control, philosophy and spirituality, to be closer to the gods. The physical component with the asanas, the yoga postures, was added later. Women had no access to the teachings, they were not allowed to learn and practice yoga.
All the great masters were men, who generally also refused to accept female students. It was not until the 1930s that a woman, the Lithuanian Eugenie Peterson, known in India as an actress under the name Indra Devi, managed to gain access to instruction. She later moved to California and became the Godmother of Yoga – Greta Garbo and Marilyn Monroe were among her enthusiastic students. Thus, the strict yogi philosophy of the scholars opened up to a western women's world seeking ambitious physical exercises for the optimization of the figure .
In the New Age era and the hippie years, more male protagonists found their way to yoga in search of enlightenment – often personalities from the music scene, from the Beatles to Yehudi Menuhin. Today, yoga is part of the training for many athletes: Whether NFL quarterback Tom Brady, golfer Martin Kaymer, or the German national soccer team – all practice the sun salutation.
Nevertheless, yoga has not really arrived in the male world to this day. According to a GfK study, the proportion of men among yogis is just one percent. The inhibition threshold seems to be high. What is the reason for this? Are men afraid of making a fool of themselves in front of the concentrated female flexibility? Do they shy away from esoteric fuss with the scent of incense sticks? Is yoga too unsporting? Don't want to venture into unknown territory? Probably a bit of everything, confirms Sandra Jahn, a medically certified yoga teacher with her own studio (male participation over 50 percent) in Munich.
Often men use the excuse: I'm much too stiff and inflexible to do yoga.
A yoga master once responded to the question of which asana to practice: You have to do what you can do least. It actually makes sense, because if he weren't stiff and inflexible, he wouldn't need to come.
Men don't like to embarrass themselves; how do they find a safe entry?
Beginners, especially male ones, often feel more comfortable in individual lessons or small groups. Otherwise, I am not for gender separation – but in this case, I also find a men-only group sensible, where they can find their energy and engage in something new.
Does it make a difference whether a man chooses a female or male instructor?
Yes, but I don't want to evaluate this difference positively or negatively. There is simply a different energy, and that's good. Regardless of gender, the person should fit, and also – I experience this again and again – the humor. Because yoga doesn't have to be too sacred and reduced, it can also become worldly.
Which yoga path is good for men?
Ideally, you start with classic Hatha Yoga, dealing with the bodylearns the alignment, tries to penetrate the individual postures. This happens by practicing them often and understanding how the foot must be placed or how to open the chest, how long one must stay in the posture to feel something. For one person, this might be after eight breaths, for another, after thirty.
In my experience, it doesn't help to overload someone spiritually when they don't even know what an asana looks like. Better to move from the gross to the fine, i.e., train perception through the body, integrate the breath, and then move into softness, such as with a nice final relaxation. You can build on that. Most beginners are certainly physically oriented at first. How much of a mindful or spiritual path it becomes is then in everyone's hands. But initially, it's about planting the idea that you spend time with yourself and allow what happens.
What should beginners avoid at first?
I find flows of any kind problematic, especially for beginners. Because you can't learn the individual posture and the perception of the posture.
Can everyone do yoga?
Yoga is like a big toolbox with an incredible number of tools. It is the teacher's job to fish out the right tool from the box for his or her student at the right moment.
What mistakes do men often make?
That they go into a challenge. Yoga is not a competition, certainly not against oneself, but rather an integration of strengths and weaknesses. The goal is perhaps also to become a bit wiser by understanding that one does not exclude the other. Sure, you can set a goal, like getting your heels on the ground in 'Downward Dog.' But: You must always be aware that your own breath and physical ability set the pace.
How do athletes benefit from yoga?
By doing something that feels very different, but soon they feel it is a good complement. However, they have to allow themselves a certain phase of frustration, because they are usually good at physical activities. Athletes have developed muscles but are often not good or mindful in stretching. Golfers benefit from twisting poses, bikers from forward bends and hip-openers, runners also from heel-sitting poses. But taken out of context, the poses make little sense. Ideally, after running for an hour, you would do yoga for an hour.
How long does it take to learn yoga?
I don’t know it yet! (laughs) It’s not about mastery, but about being on a journey together. Where’s the end? You don’t know, I don’t know. But the more often you’ve taken the path, the faster you’ll find it again.
If you do only one exercise a day, which one should it be?
The 'dog,' because it includes everything: head circulation, core activation, leg stretching, arm strengthening. There’s nothing better. You don’t have to do the exercise for thirty minutes, as yoga master B.K.S. Iyengar recommended – ten minutes are already challenging. And in this mundane pose, you’ll go through various phases, from being annoyed to feeling strained. But in principle, anyone can do the 'dog,' even if you don’t immediately get your heel to the ground. And you can do the exercise with shoes on, in any outfit.
