Yoga In Modern India: The Body Between Science And Philosophy

Product Descriptionyoga Has Come To Be An Icon Of Indian Culture And Civilization And It Is Widely Regarded As Being Timeless And Unchanging. Based On Extensive Ethnographic Research And An Analysis Of Both Ancient And Modern Texts, Yoga In Modern India Challenges This Popular View By Examining The History Of Yoga, Focusing On Its Emergence In Modern India And Its Dramatically Changing Form And Significance In The Twentieth Century. Joseph Alter Argues That YogaS Transformation Into A Popular Activity Idolized For Its Health Value Is Based On Modern Ideas About Science And Medicine.ReviewThis Is The First Time Indian Modern Yoga Has Received Such Sustained, In-Depth Treatment By A Reputable And Well-Informed Scholar. Much Of The Book Is Quite Accessible To The General Reader, And Many Of AlterS More Theoretical And Analytical Interpretations Of Modern Understandings Of Yoga, Health, Medicine, The Body, And Truth Claims Are Novel And Stimulating. Highly Recommended. - Elizabeth De Michelis, Director, Dharam Hinduja Institute Of Indic Research, Cambridge University; Yoga In Modern India Is A Mine Of Thought-Provoking Propositions In Regard To The Historiography Of Classical And Modern Writing On Yoga. Well Written, It Provides Detailed And Frequently Provocative Analyses Of Particular Yogic Ideas And Practices That Contribute To A More Sophisticated Discussion About The Status Of Modern Yoga In Its Various Guises Over The Last One And A Half Centuries. - Waltraud Ernst, University Of Southhampton, Author Of Plural Medicine, Tradition, And Modernity, 1800-2000 --Criticalthis Is The First Timeindian Modern Yoga Has Received Such Sustained, In-Depth Treatment By A Reputable And Well-Informed Scholar. Much Of The Book Is Quite Accessible To The General Reader, And Many Of AlterS More Theoretical And Analytical Interpretations Of Modern Understandings Of Yoga, Health, Medicine, The Body, And Truth Claims Are Novel And Stimulating. Highly Recommended.(Elizabeth De Michelis, Director, Dharam Hinduja Institute Of Indic Research, Cambridge University ) --Criticalabout The Authorjoseph S. Alter Is Professor Of Anthropology And Research Professor At The University Center For International Studies, University Of Pittsburgh. He Is The Author Of The WrestlerS Body, Knowing Dil Das, And GandhiS Body.