Taken as a whole, this anthology provides a comprehensive overview of the challenges facing yoga culture in the United States. The lived experiences of the authors as scholars and yoga teachers, many of whom are also members of marginalised communities, provide unique insights into these challenges. Notably, this collection moves beyond a purely scholarly approach, taking into account the physical practice of yoga and the way in which yoga has the potential to be a site for embodied social change that could greatly benefit vulnerable communities. This change, the authors argue, cannot be achieved without the conscious effort of those involved in the yoga community. Yoga, the Body,and Embodied Social Changeis an invaluable resource for those who want to instigate that change.

Sex Roles: A Journal of Research

Yoga, the Body, and Embodied Social Change invites us into a vibrant conversation about what yoga as a practice of freedom might look like. Drawing on rich narratives and research about yoga’s transnational history, this volume protests attempts to strip mine yoga, to reduce it to a windowless commodity. The book is essential reading for yogis, activists, and scholars who do not want to reinforce white supremacy and other exclusions. A celebration of a vital grassroots movement that honors the human body in all its manifestations, this book illuminates yoga as an act of resistance, a way of creating justice in our many communities.

Becky Thompson, Simmons College

This is an exciting and unique collection exploring feminist literature on yoga, body politics, mindfulness, and social justice. Berila, Klein, and Roberts bring together an impressively diverse and interdisciplinary array of authors—from academic fields such as Africana Studies, anthropology, education, English, health sciences, history, justice and social inquiry, political science, sociology, sports studies, and Women’s & Gender Studies, as well as craniosacral therapists, meditation and yoga instructors, and activists—to critically explore the gendered, racialized, and queer politics of yoga. Authors emphasize the liberatory potential of yoga, particularly for marginalized groups. It will be useful not only for feminist teachers and scholars, but also social justice activists and yogis.

Christa Craven, The College of Wooster