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Is the Bikram series a victim of yoga snobbery?
May 7, 2010 By 31 Comments
About Kara-Leah GrantKL's the founder and Editor-in-Chief of The Yoga Lunchbox, mother to a toddler and passionate about both writing and yoga. She lives in Wellington, teaches yoga and is excited about heading make into the workplace. She also loves to cook while blasting dance music and reliving her go go dancing days.
You have it exactly. Precisely. You are saying what I have been observing for a few years now as a Bikram teacher and student. You might consider going to Bikram teacher training one day, too. I think you’d enjoy it and profit greatly from it. Oh, and how do I get into one of those workshops? Thanks.
I like Bikram yoga.
I think that there is a prejudice against it because of some of the experiences that I’ve had within the community: an underlying assumption that without the heat or sequence, it’s not real yoga; and even if it is real yoga, then it’s not going to do you any good unless you do this sequence, in heat, first. This tends to lead to the counter reaction of “nuh-huh! you are not real!”
That aside, I personally think it is appropriate to be critical in our practices. By this i mean using our reasoning and critical thinking skills. It is part of the picture of yoga practice–self inquiry.
For myself as a practitioner and teacher, I strive for focus and clarity, critically looking at how and whether my practice is grounded in the tradition, cultivated properly in the modern context, and grounded in grace.
If i find benefit in Bikram today, and practice it grounded in tradition, cultivated properly in the modern context, and grounded in grace–if i am practicing with focus and clarity, with openness–then that is yoga practice. Tomorrow it may be different, or it may not. But practiced with the right intention: Yoga is yoga is yoga.
I know I’ve been guilty of looking sideways at Bikram yoga. I’m not proud of it and I absolutely see it as a reflection of my own stuff, but I have reacted to the franchised nature of the Bikram approach and the celebrity stylings of it’s founder. But in my heart I know that yoga is ALWAYS about what we bring to it and what we are willing to let go of through it so I love this post. Thanks, Kara-Leah for getting us talking and thinking about topics like this. Excellent stuff!
Maybe one day I should go back and try another Bikram class. I only ever went to one and it put me off for years. But that was many years ago and I hope I’ve changed since then. I’m sure my experience these days would be very different as a result. Hmmm. I think it is time!
In three years of teaching Bikram Yoga I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard comments that range from not-so-nice to downright horrible. Bikram’s promise to us in training was to make us ‘bullet proof’, simultaneously letting us know that quite often students might not like us very much, to say the least, (simply because we as teachers became the messenger – holding up the cosmic mirror. The dreaded mirror that forces every student to not only see their own reflection, but to truly have to look deep inside themselves. Completely, no sugar-coating, no covering up, no denial, no excuses. The fear, doubt, sadness, insecurities…the list goes on… we all have come pouring out. And unfortunately, the most difficult thing in the world to do is change. Before Bikram Yoga, I would probably have never understood this, but I can understand where the so-called ‘snobbery’ comes from.
Thankfully, I now understand that the only way OUT is THROUGH…and the payoff, after the work, on the other side of all the stubborness, resistence, opinions and fear is nothing but acceptance, power and peace. 100% bulletproof.
http://wordisafunnyword.blogspot.com/2010/05/fk-bikram-yoga-thats-not-real-yoga.html
Hey all – so great to hear everyone’s perspective, from teacher side and student side.
Tony – Paul and Jaylee are going to be based in Australia (they’ve been on the road touring for years). I’m not sure if they’ll be doing more workshops, but they are working on a book covering off on all that material. Their website has just gone up, so doesn’t have a huge amount on it yet, but its http://inpowered.org
Jenifer – I love the quality of your comment – intention is everything!
Marianne – I’d be so interested to hear what you thought of Bikram now, a few years down the track. As with all yoga, a great teacher helps! Personally, I find the intensity forces me to work on the stuff I can easily avoid when I practice other styles.
Alexis – I love your article! And your writing style. And the extra juicy tidbits of inside knowledge you have about Bikram and his cars. Great comment too – I wanna be bullet-proof!
Acceptance, power & peace, bring it on!
Thanks for joining the conversation.
Blessings,
KL
I think your negative reactions are due to the negative messages often heard in Bikram rooms. I have gone in and out of Bikram since the late 90′s and have practiced many types of yoga all over the world. I have never heard the degrading remarks that Bikram makes and his followers mimic in any other yoga. Why don’t you take a good look at the differences between Bikram and other types of yoga. If you have an open mind, you may see why people are rejecting the negative atmosphere in the hot rooms. I did and don’t do Bikram anymore because I like to feel good after my practice and go away with positive messages.
Hey Virginia,
I gotta admit – I’m not sure what you’re saying in your comment.
What negative reactions are you talking about? My reaction to Bikram yoga? Or other people’s?
I completely understand that Bikram is not the yoga for everyone. But this doesn’t mean that it’s not still yoga. And it doesn’t mean that Bikram can’t be a step along the path towards self-realisation.
It ain’t less than… just different. And like all yoga, our experience of Bikram is dictated by what we bring to it, as much as it is by Bikram brings to us.
Blessings,
KL
I guess that asking if Bikram is a “victim of snobbery” is a somewhat negative reaction, whether from your perspective or that of others in the yoga community. I experienced a learning curve during the years I spent in the hot rooms but from the beginning I questioned Bikrams attitude towards yoga, money and people in general. You may know he is linked with a long line of organizations which have been considered cults and has structured his franchise in kind. I don’t say its not yoga, nor do I think he does anything new. I have done yoga in 105 degrees outside in the tropics and it is the way the atmoshphere is naturally in those locations. I found that being sealed in a room artificilly heated with 25-30 people breathing in the oxygen and breathing out the CO2 is not healthy for me. Compound that with negative messages that some instructors feel a need to espouse, a streaming dialoge of mimicry and often teachers who seem to have control issues (trickle down) doesn’t make it healthy yoga either, albeit they are the same yoga postures which have been done for thousands of years. I dare say the snobbery I noticed is from within the Bikram camp towards other styles of yoga (read his last book), not so much from other yoga practicioners. Personally, Astanga is my preference no matter the temperature, as is fresh air when I practice. I like to mix it up with different schools of thought as all have a lesson to offer. Hence, I am not a fan of only doing dictated postures with dictated dialogue in rooms lacking fresh air under threat of losing a franchise if you dare to differ in opinion. Yoga is an individual journey, what works for one person may not work for everyone. Not necessarily snobbery but individuality.
Please note, I respect your opinion, but I had an email sent to me which linked me to this article so I am giving you my experience and response, not trying to persuade you but enlighten you as you have me.
Namaste,
Virginia
Hey Virginia,
Cool – thanks for coming back and adding to your comment. I’ve got a much clearer picture now!
I hadn’t considered that me asking if Bikram was a victim of yoga snobbery is a negative reaction of it’s own… and I guess it could be. Something for me to consider.
I’ve never met Bikram, and have only heard second or third hand people’s reactions/responses to him, so can’t say anything about him as a person. I’ve just experienced the yoga itself.
I haven’t read his latest book either, so will have to get my hands on a copy of that to educate myself further.
Thanks for weighing in – it’s great to hear from people’s personal experience.
Many blessings,
Kara-Leah
Thank you for keeping an open mind Kara-Leah. I have good friends whose income and livelyhood depend on teaching the Bikram way and they cannot be open to any ideas that are inconsistant with the franchise. I understand why I spent so many years in the hot rooms and I grew as a result. If the individual teachers/students were allowed to be themselves and practice to their particular strengths, everyone would benefit. Discovering and reinforcing these are a part of self discovery/realization and yoga is one path to fulfilling that mission. I also understand that when people are on that path, they are sometimes vulnerable to guru worship, it is a red flag for me. I have practiced with many positive and supportive individuals, as students and instructors, and I thank them all as I thank you for opening a dialoge where people can freely express their experiences. I only wish I lived closer to Wellington so I could enjoy a class with you.
Many blesings to you too,
Virginia
Hey Virginia,
If I was practicing yoga and had a closed mind… I’d be thinking there was something wrong with my practice!
The yoga journey is a fascinating one, and staying open to how what one needs changes over time is so vital. For me Bikram serves a particular purpose in opening my body and releasing long held tension. Yet I teach Prana Flow yoga, so my home practice is very different. And I LOVE Bhakti Yoga… kirtan rocks!
Great to chat.
Namaste,
KL
I have been doing Bikram for 9 years. At first it was all about the physical, but as time went on i began to notice the little things, such as focusing on my intent and blocking out all the distractions, concentrating on being in the moment and not anticipating what’s next, accepting that what i cant do today i might be able to do tomorrow or vice versa, appreciating my body for what it can do instead of focusing on what it cant (although after 9 years of not being able to do fixed firm drives me a bit crazy!), spill out into my everyday life. I felt a peace and acceptance in my work and my relationships and a desire to see what unfolds instead of forcing things to happen.
It used to bother me that people dont give bikram the respect it deserves, but i have learned to let it go, and sometimes people notice how calm i have become, and then i tell them about what bikram has done for me…
A class on the chakras and what each pose brings up, would be an interesting experience. There have been times that a pose would bring up a flood of emotion, and i would wonder what that was about. Thanks for this article!
Hey Desiree,
You describe so beautifully the process that Bikram yoga can take a practitioner on. Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing your story.
Blessings,
KL
Hi,
the irony of you article is that I think you will find Paul & Jaylee’s wonderful teaching is NOT Bikram approved!!!
To me, this being the most ironic part “Or trademarking and controlling his series because he does want to protect the integrity of the systematic effects on the body – all four of them.”
Hey Yogi,
It is wonderful teaching isn’t it? I’m so grateful for what Paul and Jaylee were able to share.
My sentence at the end is pure speculation from me – I’ve never met Bikram so all my knowledge of him is hearsay. I’ve got no idea what drives him to protect his series so ferociously. Surely he does acknowledge though that yoga affects more than just the physical body? And surely when he put the series together he was sequencing it with these subtle effects in mind too?
I’m just guessing though… I could be all wrong.
Many blessings,
KL
Well, one big motivator could be the $10,000US plus you pay to go to a Bikram training, pay for the overhead to use the venue, working 300 students at a time while milking volunteer trainers. Do the math. Then go figure the $10,000US franchise fee required to open a studio and having to hold Bikram prophet-like, mimic his words and copy his exact phrazing and style. Every couple of years you are required to pay for a refresher course and he will send a surprise visit of one or two of his lieutenants to enforce it. It looks like a good formula for Bikram and he comes from a long line of cults Gurus/mentors who understand the psychology of getting groups of people to breathe unhealthy air under physical duress and nod their heads to say how great it is. No one wants to admit the truth. All he had to do was sequence postures that have been around for thousands of years, tweak them a little, call it a copyright and sell it to people who have so much invested they can’t see the emperors clothes. They are loathe to admit they followed his lead without any scientific evidence of his claims, even though the contrary is so obvious. Those who realize it and say it outloud are ostracized, exiled and them followers will fiercely defend it to the point of drinking the cool-aid. Textbook cult programming, very lucrative and feeds a voracious ego.
I love yoga, sometimes postures similar to those Bikram uses and sometimes different ones. I love to hear instructors share their message about love, loving your body, loving your individuality, loving the universe and being a part of everything and everyone. I love seeing fellow students make gains one day and gracefully work through frustration on other days. I love yoga with music, with chanting, with birds singing. I love it with and without props. Warm rooms on cool days, cool rooms on warm days, outside above the equator, inside below the equator and vice versa. Its all good. Diversity in practic is nourishing for the soul as is sharing love and acknowledging the value in all practices, not just what the dictator and his minions espouse.
It sounds as if Paul and Jaylee found a way to break free of the bondage and offer their own gifts, which we all can develop when we are free to nurture it.
Practice with love and generosity, it feels so much better and everyone benefits.
Namaste,
Virginia
Hey Virginia,
So money’s the motivator you reckon? Could be, could be indeed. Who knows?
If it is… does it matter? Is it bad? I can’t judge.
Do his actions emotionally hook us in some way? Disturbing our peace? If so, I wonder why? Maybe that’s the more interesting question? Why does this bother me so?
Many blessings,
KL
If money is the motivator then it will be a short lived thing indeed. The Rishis didnt even have a concept of money and Ayurvedic practitioners didnt charge their clients unless they were cured! Hows that for an idea?….imagine…if GP’s only got paid if they actually fixed or cured their patients…same for acupunturists, osteopaths, naturopaths, counsellors and maybe Yoga teachers too!
But we have to adapt to this day and age…of rents and petrol. Money for me is just another form of energy exchange.
Personally I think all yoga is good and any way in is good…some people will start with the purely physical and stay there, and others will begin to seek more…and if their teacher is not offering the more subtle practices of pranayama and meditation that its a bit of a shame…the students are really missing out….. but I just hope they strive to listen to their own inner guru or guide and continue to learn and grow and develop and discover ALL the aspects that Yoga has to offer….so much! A life time of learning….and not for any of us to condemn another student or teacher or tradition.
I have noticed that certain traditions attract certain personality types…..and if you get a good Iyengar or Bikram or Hot yoga teacher then great! Its fun! Its good for people to do SOMETHING …..depression is rising so much these days….even if the Yoga they go to is just asana…at least they’re doing something…shifting some blockages. And this may well open them up to more…in their OWN TIME.
But yes… I agree with some of these comments amde about money….we need to be very wary for the motivating factors…money and fame? Thats not yoga. Thats business and ego.
I think if the teacher has an open heart and can experience EMPATHY for their students thats the most important attribute.
Everyone knows you dont make money from Yoga teaching. However…abundance flows in different ways when the heart is in the right place and the intentions are pure.
Plus theres nothing wrong with the teacher being required to ‘upgrade skills’ every 2 years, as is by the Bikram organisation. I would be dissapointed if this wasnt a requirement to maintain ones accreditaion as a qualified yoga teacher.
Namo Narayan.
Adhyatma
Great comment Adhyatma… you model open-heartedness beautifully
KLx
Yea, I think it is money and ego.
I just had some friends staying with me who are in the process of opening a Bikram studio. The built-in customer base makes business sense but the hoop jumping to get a studio ‘approved’ is pathetic. I understand that they have so much invested that they feel a need to pursue the Bikram brand. My suggestion to them is to open a studio, operate like you live in the free world and ignore the harassment they get from Bikram Central. That’s what a lot of people are doing these days, it sounds like that’s what Paul and Jaylee do.
I don’t think the issue bothers me so much, its just the observation of human behavior. I like to share my opinions and occasionally respond to blogs that I find interesting. It is good for people to hear others’ experiences and open dialog is healthy. That’s the point of having a blog with comments, right?
Take good care,
Virginia
Hey Virginia,
Yep, brand is power and recognition which can translate well into students & cash for sure.
I wonder what the difference is between a studio that opens with Bikram-approved branding, and a studio that opens dishing up basically the same yoga, but without the brand?
You raise some very interesting questions, and I love it! Human behaviour is infinitely fascinating eh?
Many blessings from down here in NZ,
KL
Adding in a paper from the International Association of Yoga Therapists on the effects of hot yoga – very interesting and probably a bit more helpful than several of my A&P lectures on how the body maintains homeostasis: http://www.iayt.org/site_Vx2/publications/articles/hotyoga.aspx?AutoID=&UStatus=&ProfileNumber=&LS=&AM=&Ds=&CI=&AT=&Return=
I’ll add I’ve never taken a Bikram class, though I knew some lovely teachers of the style back in the day and now too, because the whole set up seems to reduce individuality of the teachers in some way. Also, while I love set sequences for short, set times, basic exercise theory is based on science showing that the body requires new movements and altered sequences for optimal strengthening benefits. I wouldn’t be surprised if the same were true for stretching.
If the teachers you took the workshop with were in NZ again, I’m sure I’d go along – I love the energy bodies, as you know! But that does work back to intention: if poses have this power, it is up to the teachers to bring it to our knowledge, as they or we as students are interested/able. And any and all poses can be sequenced for an effect on the subtle bodies. Actually, that’s a component of a teacher workshop I want to lead someday, maybe sooner than later…
Hey Jessica,
GREAT link, with some awesome information – thank you!
Blessings,
KL
Yes, thats a really good link. The other aspect of working out in a 105 degree sealed room is physilological gas exchange. You are breathing in O2 and breathing out CO2 so with 30 people doing it simultaneously. For 90 minutes you are getting diminished oxygen. When the room is hot, the concentration of O2 molecules decreases further and even more so when the room is humid. You need oxygen to process ATP, the biological reaction which creates energy for the body to burn. If you diminish the oxygen you work in an anoxic state and aren’t able to increase muscle or benefit like you would if you had clean fresh air to breathe. Kind of like doing yoga while smoking a cigarette. You can do it but are you getting a full benefit and is it doing some damage what you are breathing into your lungs? I noticed that when I was doing Bikram every day I did not improve my physical capabilities at the rate I am used to and didn’t experience serenity or spritual growth or information. The instructors repeat the same script which becomes meaningless after a while. When I returned to doing other yoga, I quickly built lean muscle mass, weight dropped off and my mind was clearer and receiving messages and information that were serene and stimulated spiritual growth. Also different muscle groups, previously neglected by a daily Bikram practice, were making themselves known. I mix it up with whatever is available where ever I am living or working and can find really special experiences ad hoc. If I am in NZ in winter, I may even go to a Bikram to get warm and see my old friends. But I know just enough about gas laws, anatomy, physiology and physics to know that Bikram doesn’t understand the science of gas exchange but that doesn’t seem to bother him or his followers.
Namaste
Hey Virginia,
Fascinating information – thank you so much for sharing. I’d never considered how much oxygen might or might not be in a hot, humid room full of people doing Bikram. Greta to read of your experiences.
OH Yes their are many differences between the new “Yogas” including Bikram; some being nothing more than calisthenics. You might as well go to a gym and use a bunch of machines.
Hey Bernie,
I guess it’s like anything – the energy & intention you bring to a thing is what makes it what it is… so anything can be turned into meditation just by being completely present. Even lifting weights. And so in time, instead of doing yoga, we become yoga….
Interesting article! I was a student of Bikram for years and loved what it gave to me at the time, but then I became a teacher and realised how much I was missing out and was never given the opportunity with ANY Bikram studio (Auckland, Tauranga, ChCh, Dunedin) to delve deeper into my ‘practise’.
I think the Bikram series is very clever and as someone said previously totally hooks students in through their ego, however the main issue I have with Bikram and that now as a teacher I ‘shudder’ at, is the dialogue that ‘apparently ‘must be adheared to. Fancy telling a student to ‘lock’ out any of their joints or to tell students during a backbend to ‘go back, way back, fall back’ without proper guidance to how students should assimulate any asana without injury. To me this is serious and dangerous and a complete lack of respect to students and their bodies. And I have been to so many Bikram studios around NZ and only 1 teacher diverted from the dialogue to show how to get into and out of the camel…only 1 teacher…not a good ratio and I know for a fact that she had trained under another discipline before training in Bikram.
As my teacher says “the Sandlewood is slow at matuering and gets stronger the older it gets, where as the Papaya tree grows and produces fruit quickly but it doesn’t last long” ….
Hey Jess,
The dialogue brings up many, many questions. What is said, and what is heard and enacted can vary widely from student to student, depending on their experience level. Does it work? Does it create injury? Does it harm bodies? Is there any difference in injury rates between Bikram and other styles of Hatha Yoga? I don’t know…
Wow …..I loved every word of your article….this is exactly how I feel..thank you for expressing it so clearly…..I am off to Bikram TT in two weeks……this gave me even more resole to keep open and curious and enjoy every moment. And may then I will go visit Paul & Jaylee . Thank you
Helen
Hey Helen,
How exiting! I wish I was off to a nine week training… such a magic time. Enjoy!
KL