Constructions Of Self And Other In Yoga, Travel, And Tourism: A Journey To Elsewhere
by Lori G. Beaman /
2016 / English / PDF
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This volume considers the phenomenon of yoga travel as an instance
of a broader genre of ‘spiritual travel’ involving journeys to
places ‘elsewhere’, which are imagined to offer the possibility of
profound personal transformation. These imaginings are tied up in a
continued exoticization of the East, but they are not limited to
that. Contributors identify various themes such as authenticity,
suffering, space, material markers, and the idea of the
‘spiritual’, tracing how these ideas manifest in conceptions and
fetishizations of ‘elsewhere.’ To deepen its analysis of this
phenomenon, the book incorporates a wide range of disciplines
including architecture, sociology, anthropology, philosophy,
women’s studies, religious studies, and history. While the book’s
primary focus is yoga and yoga travel, contributors offer up an
array of other case studies. Chapters delve into the complex
questions of agency and authenticity that accompany the concept of
‘spiritual travel’ and ideas of ‘elsewhere.’
This volume considers the phenomenon of yoga travel as an instance
of a broader genre of ‘spiritual travel’ involving journeys to
places ‘elsewhere’, which are imagined to offer the possibility of
profound personal transformation. These imaginings are tied up in a
continued exoticization of the East, but they are not limited to
that. Contributors identify various themes such as authenticity,
suffering, space, material markers, and the idea of the
‘spiritual’, tracing how these ideas manifest in conceptions and
fetishizations of ‘elsewhere.’ To deepen its analysis of this
phenomenon, the book incorporates a wide range of disciplines
including architecture, sociology, anthropology, philosophy,
women’s studies, religious studies, and history. While the book’s
primary focus is yoga and yoga travel, contributors offer up an
array of other case studies. Chapters delve into the complex
questions of agency and authenticity that accompany the concept of
‘spiritual travel’ and ideas of ‘elsewhere.’
