The Indian government is squaring off against overseas yoga and fitness instructors, accusing them of pirating practices that are thousands of years old.
In recent years, foreign yoga practioners in Japan, Europe and the United States have patented and copyrighted over 150 asanas, or yoga postures, which the Indian government alleges are lifted from classical yoga texts. Vinod Gupta, of the National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources, (NISCAIR) which is leading a $2 million project to digitally archive India’s traditional knowledge, including yoga and ayurveda, says the government proposes to challenge many of these trademarks and patents as well as seek to block future attempts. Since 1976, nearly 137 applications for yoga related patents and 2,635 trademark requests have been filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office. Yoga is a $30 billion-a-year industry in America and traditional medicines are also gaining popularity in the West. India was spurred to fight back against “bio-piracy,” protesting the exploitation of its traditional knowledge after a U.S. company secured a patent for healing wounds with turmeric and another patented a version of basmati rice. Seems all twisted up. |
A New Yoga Posture
