by Daniela Bevilacqua (Equinox, 2024)
The publication From Tapas to Modern Yoga presents a groundbreaking exploration of yogic practices within ascetic traditions, offering a unique perspective on yoga’s evolution and contemporary manifestations. This scholarly work stands out for its innovative methodological approach, combining extensive fieldwork with rigorous textual analysis. The book’s primary focus on ascetics from four religious orders historically associated with yoga and haṭha yoga addresses a significant gap in academic literature, as these non-international practitioners have been largely overlooked in previous studies. By juxtaposing ethnographic data with historical sources, the author illuminates the layered meanings and practices accumulated over centuries, providing a nuanced understanding of yoga’s development. The work’s emphasis on ’embodied practices’ and its engagement with contemporary sādhus offer fresh insights into yogic traditions’ transmission, reinterpretation, and innovation. This comprehensive study not only contributes valuable knowledge to the fields of yoga studies, religious studies, and anthropology but also sets a new standard for research methodology in these areas, promising to stimulate further scholarly inquiry into this complex and evolving subject.
Creating a confrontation between textual sources and ethnographic data, the book demonstrates how ’embodied practices’ (austerities, yoga and haṭha yoga) over the centuries accumulated layers of meanings and practices that coexist in the literature as well as in the words of contemporary sādhus.
The first chapter provides a historical foundation, tracing Indian asceticism from Vedic and Brahmanical sources through various philosophical and religious streams. It examines the complexity of Hindu renunciation and the development of different yogic methods, emphasizing the importance of sampradāya (religious order) and paramparā (lineage) in shaping ascetic traditions. Moving to the social structure of asceticism, the second chapter focuses on four traditional sampradāyas: the Nāths, Daśnāmīs, Udāsīs, and Rāmānandīs. It analyzes the organization of ascetic society, motivations for joining, and the issue of female asceticism, highlighting shared symbolism among sādhus from different orders. The third chapter delves into the practice of tapasyā (austerities), linking it to the development of yoga and haṭha yoga. It provides a historical overview of austerities and their contemporary manifestations among sādhus, demonstrating how the concept of tapas has evolved over centuries to meet changing needs and contexts.
Haṭha yoga takes center stage in the fourth chapter, which examines its definitions and development in Sanskrit texts, as well as its presence (or absence) in vernacular sources. The chapter also explores contemporary sādhus’ understandings of haṭha yoga, offering new perspectives on the role and audience of haṭha yoga texts. The fifth chapter focuses on yoga as a sādhanā (spiritual discipline) for sādhus, examining external practices such as yama, niyama, āsana, prāṇāyāma, and pratyāhāra. It provides an introduction to the yogic body and pays special attention to āsanas, kriyās, and specific mudrās and bandhas important in ascetic practices. Inner yogic practices and their supports are explored in the sixth chapter, including the role of cannabis and mantras in ascetic traditions. It examines practices of dhāraṇā, dhyāna, and samādhi, as well as the concept of karma in the quest for mokṣa (liberation). The final chapter addresses the intersection of transnational, modern yoga with traditional ascetic practices. It examines how modern yoga influences sādhus’ practices, the impact of traditional orders on the international yoga community, and the role of social media in shaping contemporary yoga discourse among ascetics.