Yoga as political thought and practice

Traditionally, the focus has been on two spheres of yoga practices, commonly identified as the psychophysical and the philosophical. These two spheres of yoga have been made famous over millennia, more so by charismatic individuals like Vivekananda and Iyengar, who, doing the last century, brought these kinds of yoga globally renown. But yoga is more than just these two spheres; it has an enduring third sphere of political thought and practice, which extends beyond the two regimes of psychophysical practice and a school of philosophy.  

Combining textual reading and archival work, Sunila Kale and Christian Novetzke have teamed together to chart the political conceptualization of yoga, the third sphere, which controls one’s antagonists as well as the conditions that antagonize. The third sphere of yoga emerged as a political thought and practice through history, long drawn into it during the late classical, medieval, and early modern periods. Scholars suggest that during much of these periods, many of those were adept at psychophysical yoga were also warriors. These yogis wielded power in the worlds of war, intelligence, and diplomacy, including Akbar, who had a special fascination for it.  

Yoga and politics have remained inseparable over the long duration of time in history. It is undoubtedly a point of pride for the country, a monumental sculpture at the Indira Gandhi International Airport depicting each position of the Surya Namaskar is a visual presentation of this political soft power.  

The location of the sculpture is apt because the yoga position has long existed within the world of politics and power. It emerged as the quintessential form of postural yoga, a kind of subdued resistance to colonial rule popularized by the Raja of Aundh, Bhawanrao Shriniwasrao Pant Pratinidhi, during the early 1920. The Yoga of Power examines various aspects of yoga to suggest its role in both psychophysical practice and political strategy.  

It is a brilliant piece of scholarship on the enduring tradition of thought and practice, where yoga, religion, and politics intersect. It defines yoga as a means, method, and technique shared between a subject and an object which is expressed as a dialectic of power. However, yoga has remained secular in both dualist and nondualist philosophical and theological schools of thought. It is shared by Hindus seeking the true self, by Buddhists seeking no-self, by Muslims seeking allah, or by atheists seeking to chill. As a result, the psychophysical application to the mind-body problem crosses the barrier of religions and remains widely relevant as a practice.        

Both professors at the University of Washington, Kale and Novetzke provide a rare masterful insight connecting mythological yoga with modern political thought. Although the concept of yoga as political thought was sublimated, its ubiquitous proliferation on yoga mats has remained dominant. Mahatma Gandhi used yoga to rupture the boundaries between public and private and sought to redefine the language of politics through his attire. The Father of the Nation used yoga as an intramural political force, to shed new light on political thought and history. 

The Yoga of Power scans a period from 1400 BCE to notice how yoga as a political thought endured through history, and how it has been appropriated now with the rising swell of nationalism. Yoga is now referred to as a product of India’s premodern education system and is cited as a mode of ‘internationalization’ by way of a subject that has global recognition. It is predominantly conceived as a mode of public health, which echoes the Raja of Aundh’s understanding of the Surya Namaskar as medicine for public health.  

Its chequered history notwithstanding, yoga is a preeminent technology of the self for which the State has crafted institutional mechanisms for its support and promotion. Yoga as philosophy comes to share space with yoga as politics. The implication of history should guide the aspiring yogi to engage the psychophysical practice in its sociopolitical context. The book presents yoga as a political thought and practice that intersects with yoga as philosophy and psychophysical practice. The Yoga of Power has shed new light on the political history of thought, which can guide the reader to view yoga differently. 

The Yoga of Power
by Sunila Kale and Christian Lee Novetzke
Columbia University Press, New York
Extent: 256, Price: $35.

First published in the Outlook on June 28, 2025.