Daily Times

Despite the immense known benefits of yoga for human body, it is still seen as a woman’s deal for fitness. Historical evidences are quite contrary to this modern day notion that women are the preferred gender for practicing yoga.

In fact, traditionally yoga was only for men and forbidden for the women. Practiced strictly by monks or the royalty in India, Hatha yoga was configured only for a fit and healthy body. The transformational benefits of yoga soon were introduced to the public for cure and prevention of diseases and abnormalities. In the 19th century, yoga became popular among the general public, still the gurus refused to teach women. The first woman to be admitted to a yoga school in India was a westerner in the 20th century and that too at the request of an Indian royalty.

Indra Devi, known as the ‘first lady of yoga’, was the granddaughter of a Russian noble. She suffered a heart condition which was cured with yoga and she lived upto 102 years of age. Indra brought the ancient discipline of yoga to the West and taught Hollywood stars like Gloria Swanson, Greta Garbo and many Russian nobles.

As a child, I intuited that happiness only came to those that dared to follow their own path. I forged myself as an independent being, and I was never tied to a place, nor a religion

Indra’s western name was Eugenia Peterson. She was born in Latvia in 1899. Her family moved to Germany during the revolution in Russia and lost their fortune. Fascinated by India, as a young lady, she sold her furs and jewels to buy a ticket to explore the exotic country. “As a child, I intuited that happiness only came to those that dared to follow their own path. I forged myself as an independent being, and I was never tied to a place, nor a religion,” Devi wrote in her autobiography.

“As…a Russian aristocrat, she was no stranger to high society… Aided by an irresistible charisma, she befriended maharajas and gurus, diplomats and politicians, celebrities and socialites throughout her life,” writes Allision McNearney in her article: ‘The Wild Life of Indra Devi, the Woman Responsible for Your Yoga Obsession’.

Indra was practicing under the guidance of renowned yogi Sri Krishnamacharya, who helped to cure her heart condition. During this time she got interested in learning it. Sri Krishnamacharya was reluctant to teach her but at the request of a powerful Indian noble, he eased the restriction on training a woman. Indra was the first woman to be his student. She also became the first westerner to write a book on yoga and globalised yoga with her teaching.

Michelle Goldberg traces Indra Devi’s journey in her book ‘The Goddess Pose’ and gives her immense credit for being adventurous and confident in those times with yoga. Goldberg says in one place, “On the one hand, I think that yoga is a powerful practice … and there’s a lot of empirical research that shows that yoga is an excellent remedy for depression and anxiety and a lot of the things that she was suffering. But I think, at the same time, it gave her a purpose, and it gave her a mission”. Indra opened the doors for women to learn and cherish yoga. Subsequently, yoga stalwarts like the BKS Iyengar went on to teach women in India and around the world. His daughter Geeta became his protégé. Later GeetaIyengar inspired women from the around world and penned a book called ‘Yoga: a Gem for Women’.

Yoga has proved to be non-discriminatory to gender.

The author is a wellness and yoga expert. She can be reached at: aliya@aliyaagha.com