Competitive Yoga

“Competition is the foundation for all democratic societies.
For without ‘Competition’, there is no democracy.” — Bikram Choudhury

What is a yoga asana championship?

Asana is a Sanskrit word which means posture or pose. Hatha yoga is physical yoga in which an individual performs asanas (postures). A yoga asana championship is a competition in which individuals perform a series of yoga asanas and, using standardized judging criteria, are given scores to determine who amongst the participants is the champion. It is structured much like a gymnastics competition with regards to the performance of the asanas, however the scoring for a yoga asana competition also includes elements that reflect the character of the individual as a whole—physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. For example, points are awarded for the overall attractiveness of the physical body and its proportions as well as the grace and poise of the individual.

Why have a yoga competition?

Yoga competitions are a long standing tradition in India that spans thousands of years and take place almost daily. The yoga asana championships promote yoga by creating the propulsion for dedicated yogis all over to rise to be the best they can be physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. The stage is set to allow these yogis to inspire the rest of us and the community at large to learn more about yoga and how its regular practice can help each of us be a healthier, happier and better person.

Yoga as an Olympic Event

Yoga organizations worldwide have been campaigning to turn yoga into an Olympic event. Yoga would be the biggest Olympic event ever, as it can be done anywhere, at any time with no necessary props. That means that any country, regardless of how rich or poor, regardless of its geographical location, could be represented in the Olympics. This fits in beautifully with the Texas Yoga Asana Championship's mission to heal the world. Yoga as an Olympic event would create the most widespread opportunity for expanding awareness of yoga and all of its myriad benefits. While not every yoga practitioner nor every yoga discipline will take part in formal competitions, all stand to benefit from the heightened awareness that the competitions generate.

What is the Texas Yoga Asana Championship?

The Texas Yoga Asana Championship (TYAC) is one of many regional yoga competitions taking place throughout the United States and internationally to qualify competitors for the annual international Bishnu Charan Ghosh Cup Championship which will take place in February, 2008 in Los Angeles, California. The judges are looking for the man and woman that will best represent yoga to the world.

The TYAC is dedicated to the promotion of yoga throughout the world. It advocates the practice of hatha yoga as a means to heal and strengthen the physical body while learning to control the mind and breath. Its mission is to heal the world, bringing peace and well being one person at a time through the practice of yoga. It is only through inner peace that outer peace can be achieved and spread. Inner peace requires a union between body, mind and spirit that, along with the myriad benefits of a regular hatha yoga practice, is the ultimate goal of hatha yoga.

Healing the world is an undeniably lofty goal by any standard. While yoga has been around for thousands of years, it wasn’t until the last century that it spread outside of India, and now it is already well established in many countries. With this foundation in place and the recent explosion in the popularity of yoga, TYAC knows that world peace is more attainable than ever. TYAC’s vision is to unify the entire yoga community by emphasizing this common goal and appreciating the benefits unique to the various disciplines of yoga.

For more information on competitive yoga, visit the TYAC website:

www.texasyogachampionship.com