Resources for a better understanding.
With more and more academic research about yoga being published, finding good sources of information online is increasingly important. A group of scholars looking at yoga and based in the social sciences and humanities have therefore got together to develop a web-based resource for those interested in this field.
This initiative is run by a group of established scholars who conduct research on yoga which formed at the Yoga Darśana, Yoga Sādhana international yoga conference in Kraków, Poland in May 2022. Their aim is to develop a website that offers information about the best quality yoga-related research in the humanities and social sciences.
The 4th International Yoga Darśana Yoga Sādhana conference:
Authenticity, Authority and Adaptation
27-29 May 2026
Paris, France
Programme Announcement
The 4th International Yoga Darśana Yoga Sādhana conference will take place in Paris beginning Wednesday May 27 at 1:00 p.m. with official proceedings ending at 6:00 p.m. Friday evening May 29, 2026. The events are being organized in collaboration with the Center for South Asian and Himalayan Studies (CESAH) at the School for Advanced Social Sciences (EHESS – École de hautes études en sciences sociales) in Paris.
Latest Reflection
Interview with Suzanne Newcombe and Raphaël Voix
The 4th Yoga Darśana Yoga Sādhana Conference The 4th International Yoga Darśana Yoga Sādhana Conference convenes 27–29 May 2026 at EHESS Paris, organized by CESAH. Theme: Authenticity, Authority and Adaptation—examining how yoga traditions establish legitimacy, transmit knowledge, and negotiate transformation across time and place. Bridges philological and ethnographic approaches. Host: Raj Balkaran Guest: Suzanne Newcombe and Raphael Voix Date: 9th March 2026
Yoga Research Mailing List
list@yogaresearch.org is a new email discussion group providing a forum for academic discussion among professional scholars of Yoga Studies.
Membership of the list is mainly open to scholars with an advanced degree and whose primary field is yoga studies. Sending a short academic CV is a requirement for approval.
Featured Researcher Profile
Dr Seth Powell
Seth Powell is a scholar of Indian religions, Sanskrit, and yoga traditions, who earned his PhD in South Asian Religions at Harvard University. His dissertation comprised a critical edition, translation, and detailed study of a 15th-century Sanskrit yoga text from south India known as the Śivayogapradīpikā—which uniquely combines yoga, ritual, and devotion. He also works on the visual and material culture of yoga in premodern India, uncovering yoga’s past through temple sculptures, with a special focus on the Deccan region. Seth is the founder and director of the online educational platform, Yogic Studies, which provides extensive courses and training in Yoga and South Asian Studies to students worldwide. He is also the host of the Yogic Studies Podcast. Publications 2023. “A Lamp on Śivayoga: The Union of Yoga, Ritual, and Devotion in the Śivayogapradīpikā.” PhD diss., Harvard University. Proquest (37375898). 2023. “Yogi Sculptures: Complex Āsanas Across the Deccan.” In Yoga and the Traditional Physical Practices of South Asia: Influence, Entanglement and Confrontation. Edited by Daniela Bevilacqua and Mark Singleton. Journal of Yoga Studies (4): 85–111. 2018. “Etched in Stone: Sixteenth-century Visual and Material Evidence of Śaiva Ascetics and Yogis in Complex Non-seated Āsanas at Vijayanagara.” Journal of Yoga Studies (1): 45–106. 2018. “The Ancient Yoga Strap: A Brief History of the Yogapaṭṭa.” The Luminescent.