“Spiritual bypassing” is the “all lives matter” of the yoga world
Yesterday I left a Zoom yoga class less than halfway through. That’s no big deal for a lot of people, but I’m also a yoga teacher so I will usually sweat through an even truly terrible session for the sake of camaraderie. It wasn’t the asana (the physical practice) or the interpretation of yogic philosophy that felt problematic. It was the fact that I have taken at least six classes with this person in the past three weeks and she’s only mentioned George Floyd’s name once. When another white teacher in the class said she was really stressed out about the state of the world, the teacher said, “That’s why this practice is so important right now. Fold your hands at your heart and let’s chant.”
Um. Nope.