Black People Should Try Yoga
May 16, 2010I recently started doing kundalini yoga to help relieve chronic back pain. I knew it was also useful as a meditative device but I had largely discounted that facet of the practice. All of that mantra humming by Indians in their white robes and crossed eyes just seemed weird to me. Yoga just seemed reserved for Hindus and white women. Black people have traditionally been socialized to avoid sports and activities that mostly whites participate in. The same used to be true of tennis and golf and now look at how things have changed. Just because white people do it doesn’t make it uncool or gay. I was wrong about yoga. I’ve only been practicing it a few weeks now and I’ve found it strengthens your body and your mind if you do it properly and consistently. Everyone can benefit from yoga because there are so many different types. The problem is Americans have a tendency of bastardizing everything we learn from other cultures and commercializing it to make money. That robs it of the intrinsic value and cheapens it in the process. Yoga can do more harm than good if it’s done in the wrong way.
The reason I’m mentioning this is because black people have a lot of stress in general. We also tend to eat cheap unhealthy food. Yoga can help relieve stress and rid your body of some of the toxins we are ingesting that end up giving up various forms of cancer and heart disease. It can also help you re-focus your life so that your dreams become reality whatever they may be. It’s not power of positive thinking crap. It’s actually making your body work for your mind. As Americans we are too rooted in the physical and the material. Everything metaphysical and transcendent seems so far away to most of us. We say we are spiritual but that really doesn’t mean anything except we hate organized religion. Yoga is a way to physically connect with your spirituality. Black people need that now more than ever.
I know what you’re thinking. How do I get started and how much does it cost? Well it really didn’t cost me anything until I purchased a yoga mat which was under ten bucks. The rest was just time reading, watching videos and then actually performing the movements or kriyas and positions or sutras. You will become very familiar with “downward dog”. Three web sites I’ve been using are :
They have a lot of free podcasts plus you can download DVDs using torrent software. (You should buy them of course.) I like “Power Yoga” by Rodney Yee. That little Asian dude can bend himself up like a pretzel.
You think yoga is for wimps? Try kundalini. You’ll be flat on your face in twenty minutes even if you are in decent shape. Forget about P90X. Take it slow at first but you will see immediate results within just a matter of days if you are consistent and diligent in your practice. It’s time to clean out your body and your mind. I recently lost another member of my family to heart disease. He weighed around 300 pounds. This is no way for a great people like us to live. Garbage in, garbage out people.
I am a Black woman, and i started, doing Kundalin yoga 5yrs now, this was the best thing that happen to me, my whole life has changed i am much more healthy my way of life has completely changed, i feel whole and complete stress free and centered,i am more in tuned with my spiritual life. the clarity i receive spiritually is mind blowing,I was born a Christian and i never gain any understanding spiritually until i was awaken by my kundalini rising.We as black race have lost our connection to our true selves we have been programmed to looked down at other religion, but sometime times it is good to have a open mind and try new things, i felt so happy to read your article and i hope you contine to reach out, we all need to wake up and become centered and connected to our true self without that connection we would be filled with illness and self distruction.
I am an African American woman and I have taken yoga classes in the past. I experienced deep focus and relaxation, it even helped improve the my skills while I was learning to play guitar. I luv the art so much that I plan to become a yoga instructor in the next few months. My goal is to bring health options to my people and to show my people that there is a way to truly find contentment and happiness. Thank you for this article, for only another black woman would truly understand our struggle