Paper short abstract:

Drawing from online memoirs of Ashtanga teacher/practitioners, this paper discusses structural elements of Ashtanga practice and accreditation as influences on narratives of self-transformation and suggests that Ashtanga also offers a microcosm for examining aspects of healing through yoga.

Paper long abstract:

I examine yoga as a tool for self-transformation as depicted in online memoirs of authorised/certified Ashtanga teacher/practitioners located around the world. Ashtanga yoga comprises linked, set sequences of asana, distinct from other yoga forms through its emphasis on self-practice, routine, and the student/teacher relationship. A dominant theme of these narratives concerns the healing effects on body and mind of this disciplined system. A majority of practitioner-teachers report pre-Ashtanga experiences of psychological and physical suffering: stress and anxiety, addictions, eating disorders, traumatic emotional events, and near-fatal or seriously debilitating medical conditions or accidents. Their accounts depict this intensely physical practice as a route to recovery and mental balance, sometimes depicted as 'coming home' to oneself. Healing is understood to arise via a mind-body connection enabled by co-ordinating breath and focused attention in regular postural practice. The narratives also reveal how the teacher-student relationship, depicted in terms of parampara or lineage, determines a student's progression in their practice, with authorisation to teach bestowed only after the student has travelled, often numerous times, to study 'at the source' in Mysore, South India. While these structural elements of Ashtanga practice and accreditation contribute to shaping these narratives of self-transformation, Ashtanga offers a microcosm for studying narratives of healing through yoga. The trope of 'wounded healer' is evident not only within but also outside the online Ashtanga community, in blogs, Instagram, Facebook, and memoirs by popular and celebrity yoga teacher practitioners.