This week I am going to do something a little different. Instead of going through an object that has been culturally appropriated, I am going to talk about a couple of different practices that have been appropriated, almost to the point where I’m not entirely sure if I can still call it appropriation.
First, I am going to discuss yoga and portions of AAVE. I won’t be using many sources, as the information I have comes from a few of my black friends and me as we’ve had extensive discussions about these topics, but I will provide some links for further reading.
As I am sure you all know, yoga is an exercise that is heavily prevalent across the world. Yoga studios, online classes, apps, and YouTube videos all offer the opportunity for people to participate in this beautiful mindfulness workout. I have vivid memories from school or teachers or even the administration leading us through yoga routines in order to reduce stress. However, what you may not know, is that yoga comes from an ancient Hindu spiritual practice, which you can read more about here.
Yoga has gotten so far removed from its roots however, if I were to ask you to think of a person who does yoga, it wouldn’t surprise me if your first thought was a blond white woman in leggings and a neon/pastel workout top. The history of yoga has been so forgotten, that there are even people making Christan Yoga videos, and implying that yoga was initially secular. That would be like if I made a Hindu crucifix.
The attempts to connect yoga to its roots are weak at best. They either come off as ingenuine and mocking (they seem superficial and aesthetic based rather than educational) or straight up disrespectful, such as when yoga companies sold yoga mats with the Ohm symbol on them when it is inherently disrespectful to put one’s feet on anything religious. At this point, there are so many people who participate in yoga and view it as secular and noncultural, and so few who know where it comes from, that even though it is appropriation, it seems impossible to still claim it for Hindus as the culture surrounding it has changed so much in the modern world.
Black people face something similar with portions of AAVE. AAVE stands for African-American Vernacular English, and is sometimes described as “ghetto” or a “blaccent.” It dates back to the times of slavery, and you can read more about its history and its importance here and here.
There are some common terms from AAVE that have been popularized through social media, such as lit, woke, sis, miss ma’am, squad, and many more. While it is still pretty clearly cultural appropriation, as black people are constantly looked down on for speaking AAVE but others use it to seem cool and trendy they are praised, some of the terms have become so mainstream, like twerk or basic, that many forget where they come from. They have been so ingrained in colloquial English, that once again going back and acknowledging their roots or abstaining from their roots seems impossible. However, I would still encourage my readers to learn the history of these words and try and abstain from adding more to their everyday vocabulary.
There are other examples of traditions that are headed down this path, such as smudging, which you can read about here, here, and here; manifestation, which you can read about here and here; and mendhi, which you can read about here and here.
For BIPOC like myself, it is incredibly disheartening to see the things we would have been called weird for participating in or looked down on for using, become so mainstream. It rips our culture away from us, and it honestly feels like there is no way to get it back.
It is already hard to navigate existing in one’s culture when you are surrounded by something else, but to have your culture take and sold, while you are forgotten about, is a whole other pain and it truly creates a feeling of helplessness.
Every time I hear a non-desi say that they own a yoga studio, I have to push down the protests that rise within me because I know that it’s no longer something I can call my own. The most I can do is try and bring awareness to its history, so even a few can learn about all the beautiful cultures our modern society gains from.
Thank you for joining and come back next week to learn how to turn cultural appropriation into cultural appreciation.
I have to say I disagree with your interpretation of yoga… I understand that the initial iteration of yoga was designed around a very secular & sacred concept, but there is something about it that does not exist within your other blogs: it presents tangible benefits to humans. What I mean simply is that yoga does make a lot of people feel physically and mentally better, so wouldn’t it make sense to adopt a nonsecular version of it so that the general public can reap its benefits (I’m not necessarily talking about clout or money, but instead, just general healthiness)? Similarly to if a culture invented an important medicine developed in a secular nature and given religious meaning, other cultures and civilizations should still be entitled to its benefits. I don’t mean to be disrespectful, I just disagree is all.