Is yoga for everybody? Answering this question depends on your understanding of yoga. And exploring this question can help us mature our understanding of the practice.
This question, and its answers, are intricate. Don’t read this at surface value!
On the one hand: Yes, yoga is for everyone
We have to remind ourselves: yoga is something far greater than physical postures. The physical poses are just a small percentage of what yoga means, and how it can be applied in our daily lives.
Yoga is a Sanskrit word that, in one understanding, means union. What are we uniting? The mind, body, and spirit. Our individual consciousness, to the universal consciousness. Yoga means oneness; that all things are one.
Just based on the implications of oneness, yoga inherently belongs to everyone (otherwise it wouldn’t be oneness).
We can be quick to reduce yoga to its various practices and rituals—but what’s core to the yogic teachings is that merely living in our own evolving consciousness state is also yoga. From the Vedic perspective, life and yoga are one in the same—implying again that yoga is for everyone.
But these points are all more of an esoteric understanding.
On a more practical level, yoga is for everyone because of the many paths available to embrace it. Beyond asana (physical postures), there are several Paths of Yoga, all leading to the same place: unity.
Paths of Yoga:
- Karma Yoga: This is the yoga of service or action, which can look like engaging with and supporting the community through generosity.
- Bhakti Yoga: This is the yoga of devotion, encompassing actions that help an individual celebrate and connect with the divine. Things like chanting, prayer, japa, kirtan—these are all forms of Bhakti Yoga.
- Gyana Yoga: This is the yoga of knowledge or self-realization. This path encompasses the study of self; the quest for knowledge. This can include scriptural study, or any action that leads an individual to more awareness of Self.
- Raja Yoga: This is the yoga of silence and stillness. This path is all about learning to master the mind and access the field of silence. Meditation is a fundamental aspect of this path.
- Tantra Yoga: This is the yoga of practice and technique. Tantra is a vast field of rituals that support our growth and expansion; that help us reach our full potential. Yoga postures (asana) are actually a part of this path.
Understand that this is just an overarching explanation of different ways an individual could interact with yoga on a practical level.
What we can see is that “yoga” doesn’t just mean: roll out your yoga mat and start making shapes.
This is one of the most brilliant aspects of yoga as an ideology—the ways of practicing yoga aren’t limited or exclusive. Whatever our natural interests may be, there is a form of yoga that aligns.
So in this sense, the answer to our question is: yes, yoga is for everybody. Whether it’s the availability of different paths, or simply understanding yoga as a “oneness” that includes all beings—in many ways, yoga is our birthright.
On the other hand: No, yoga isn’t for everyone
If when we say “yoga” we mean, physical postures—then yoga isn’t for everyone. This is important to consider.
Oftentimes, yoga enthusiasts will hear someone say they don’t like yoga, only to respond “well, maybe you just haven’t found the right teacher or the right style of yoga.”
It is unfair to assume that yoga postures are for the benefit of all individuals. Yoga postures are very effective at strengthening the body while creating flexibility and mobility. They’re also designed to help optimize the flow of prana, or life force/energy. But yoga postures aren’t the only form of this.
Dancing, swimming, climbing a mountain—there are tons of activities that keep the body fit and also promote the natural flow of energy. If a person doesn’t like asana, why should they do that over something else that resonates more?
It’s helpful to remember that asana, yoga postures, are not the end goal. Asana is intended to prepare the body for meditation. It’s extremely good at doing that. Other activities can also help prepare an individual for meditation and deeper yogic practices.
Have you ever gone for a hike and meditated at the top of a mountain? It’s just as spiritual of an experience.
Physical Contraindications
It’s also important to note that there are cases where practicing yoga asana, without anatomical knowledge and modifications, can amplify certain conditions in the body.
In other words, we shouldn’t assume that all yoga postures (as they’re most often taught) are for everyone.
For example… Individuals with hyper-mobility will need to modify postures to support their unique anatomy. Individuals with lower back and sacroiliac joint issues will likely need to modify to support their unique anatomy. Prenatal students and postnatal students… Students with chronic pain, conditions, injuries…. Will all likely need to modify to support their unique circumstance.
Sometimes, a walk really is more beneficial—physically, mentally, spiritually—than a yoga class.
The beautiful thing about yoga is that we don’t have to do the postures at all to still practice yoga. Back to the conversation of paths, there are so many ways to live a life of yoga.
The Bottom Line
If you love yoga, then it’s only natural to want to share that love. But it’s important to recognize: we all interact with yoga differently.
Yoga means oneness, and that means it’s for the benefit of all beings. But yoga also embraces diversity; it honors that each of our paths looks different. We may all be headed for unity—but the paradox is that there’s an infinite number of ways to get there.
It’s beautiful because that means your yoga practice, in all forms, is something that’s truly yours.
Bottom line: Yoga is for everyone, and it isn’t for everyone. If your understanding of Yoga is expansive—everyone is included. If your understanding of Yoga is limited—exclusivity is a natural outcome. Such is the invitation of Yoga, always: expand!