Week 4, Wednesday 5 November 2.30-3.30, OCHS Library
Dr Theo Wildcroft and Dr Barbora Sojkova
Yoga Studies in Five Minutes provides an accessible guide to the diverse and growing field of research into yoga as a social, historical and cultural phenomenon. Both leading scholars and innovative researchers offer 60 brief responses to questions that offer insights into the study of yoga, such as: Who was the first teacher of yoga? Is yoga Indian? What is parampara? Are there holy texts in yoga? What are the goals of yoga? Why do yogis hold their breath? The collection covers ancient history, modern developments, and contemporary issues, considers the diverse practices and philosophies of yoga in a range of contexts, and uses a range of approaches, from philology to anthropology to art history. The collection is useful for established scholars looking to broaden their understanding of this rapidly developing field, as well as for those new to the subject. The book is an ideal starting point for both independent study and the classroom.
At this book launch event, the two editors, together with a few of the contributors, will introduce the book, talk about the process of producing it, and read a few of the entries. This will be a relaxed event to celebrate the book’s publication, free to attend, and with a few nibbles to tempt you. Anyone is very welcome to join us.
Theo Wildcroft, PhD is a yoga teacher-trainer, writer and scholar who is interested in the democratization of yoga post-lineage, somatic literacy, meaning-making and the counter-culture. She is an Associate Lecturer at the Open University, UK, Visiting Lecturer in Dharmic Worldviews at the University of Chester, Fellow of the HEA, former Coordinator of the SOAS Centre of Yoga Studies, editor of the BASR Bulletin, an honorary member of the British Wheel of Yoga, member of the IAYT, a continuing professional development trainer and consultant for Yoga Alliance (E-RYT® 500, YACEP®), and Council Member for the American Yoga Council. She is the author of Post-lineage yoga: from guru to #metoo, co-writer of Leading Safe and Simple Yoga Nidras (coming soon), editor of Religion and the Sense of Self (also coming soon), and co-editor of The Yoga Teachers’ Survival Guide and Yoga Studies in Five Minutes.
Barbora Sojkova holds a DPhil in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (Sanskrit) from Balliol College, University of Oxford, where her research focused on human-animal relationships in Vedic Sanskrit literature. She is a qualified librarian (PgDip in Library and Information Studies, UCL, 2024) and has previously worked at All Souls College and the Bodleian Library, Oxford. She was a postdoctoral researcher in the MANTRAMS Project at the University of Oxford, working on the history of mantra in Vedic. She is also a certified yoga teacher and trainer focusing on history and philosophy of yoga.
