The China-India Yoga College has become a huge success in China, drawing thousands of followers to its free lessons on the ancient Indian physical and spiritual practice.
The country’s first yoga college was opened last November in Kunming and is based in the Yunnan Minzu (Nationalities) University.
Lu Fang, Deputy Director of the college, said more than five dozen full-time students have completed yoga sessions and nearly 3,000 people have participated in free yoga sessions offered by the college. “Several companies and government offices invited our teachers to teach yoga during celebrations such as the International Women’s Day,” Mr. Lu told state-run Xinhua news agency today.
Mr. Lu said a growing number of people wanted to learn from Indian yoga masters. “They not only learn yoga positions, but also sutras, philosophy, culture and dining habits from the Indian tutors.”
Han Mingxue, who took lessons and became a Chinese yoga teacher in the college, said, “I only knew about Iyengar style, but after extensive learning with Indian tutors, I have come to a much deeper understanding of yoga.”
Velusamy Subbulakshmi, who went to China from India’s Krishnamacharya Yoga Mandiram, has spent five months giving yoga lessons. She said it was not hard to communicate yoga culture with Chinese learners.
“The Chinese Taiji (shadowboxing) has a great deal of similarity with yoga,” she explained.
