Statement on the founder of Bikram Yoga

The founder of Bikram Yoga was the subject of civil lawsuits concerning sexual assault and discrimination and was found liable in civil court in the United States. We condemn these acts and wish to express our sympathy to everyone affected. There is no personal glorification of this individual in our studios. You can read here why we continue to teach the sequence he popularised.

The yoga world is not the only field with such cases, but it has unfortunately seen its share: “inventors” or leading figures who have been unable to handle the fame, success and attention that came with the success of their message. These are almost always men, and those affected by their actions are almost exclusively women. Other well-known names from the yoga world include Amrit Desai, Kausthub Desikachar, John Friend, Pattabhi Jois, “Yogi” Bhajan and Swami Muktananda.

The teachings they developed, or often adopted from their own teachers, were generally established before the later intoxication with power set in, and often generations of teachers earlier. These men were often a kind of medium through which a teaching was promoted and spread, but not its embodiment, let alone always practitioners of their own teachings. The writings and content they developed contain valuable, health-preserving and therapeutic material that would be lost if it were seen and condemned solely in the context of these men.

We are convinced that it is necessary to distinguish between the Bikram Yoga method and its founder, of course with full respect for those affected and with open discussion of the abuse. By addressing this openly, we set ourselves apart from others who do not. Our teachers and millions of people worldwide have practised Bikram Yoga for decades and are aware of its therapeutic effects. But we are also aware that the man who adopted these teachings from his teacher and carried them out into the world was found civilly liable for his abuse.

Kathi, founder of the Yoga College we took over in 2020 – today Feelgoodstudio 1150 – in her own words:

“You can imagine how shocked and outraged I was when the first discussions about Bikram and his appalling behaviour came to light. I was aware that he was brusque and at times uncouth, but what I heard, and read in various studio-owner forums, was simply too much for me. From the start I was never a blind follower of anyone’s wisdom or ideas, but it soon became clear to me that the Bikram name and the dogmatic style of his teaching were not right for me or my yoga school. Since 2004 (when I did my Bikram Yoga training) I have attended many more teacher trainings, countless workshops, retreats and sadhanas. I have learned a lot, and all of it is reflected in our wonderful yoga school. For me it is first and foremost about community, belonging, balance and wellbeing at Yoga College. Many years ago I changed the name from Bikram Yoga College to Yoga College to distance myself from Choudhury, the man and abuser. It still makes me very sad that this has brought not only our community but, unfortunately, yoga itself into disrepute in part, when it has so much power to heal! That is why we clearly separate the man from his system, the 26 postures plus 2 breathing exercises, which he himself adopted from Bishnu Ghosh, his teacher.”

— ENGLISH —

The founder of Bikram Yoga was the subject of civil lawsuits concerning sexual assault and discrimination and was found liable in civil court in the United States. We condemn these acts and wish to express our sympathy to everyone affected. There is no personal glorification of this individual in our studios. You can read here why we continue to teach the sequence he popularised.

The yoga world is not the only field with such cases, but it has unfortunately seen its share: founders or leading figures who have struggled to handle the fame, success and attention that came with the spread of their teachings. These figures have almost invariably been men, while those affected by their actions have predominantly been women. Other well-known names from the yoga world include Amrit Desai, Kausthub Desikachar, John Friend, Pattabhi Jois, “Yogi” Bhajan and Swami Muktananda.

The teachings developed by these figures, or often adopted from their own teachers, were generally established before the later abuse of power began, in many cases generations earlier. These men often served as the medium through which a teaching was promoted and spread, but they were not necessarily its embodiment, nor did they always practise what they taught. Their writings and teachings contain valuable material related to health, wellbeing and therapeutic practice that would be lost if it were viewed and judged exclusively through the actions of these individuals.

We believe it is necessary to distinguish between the Bikram Yoga method and its founder, while treating those affected with full respect and addressing the abuse openly. By speaking about this openly, we distinguish ourselves from others who do not. Our teachers, along with millions of people worldwide, have practised Bikram Yoga for decades and recognise its therapeutic benefits. At the same time, we acknowledge that the man who adopted these teachings from his own teacher and introduced them to the world was found civilly liable for his abusive actions.

Kathi, founder of the Yoga College that we took over in 2020, now Feelgoodstudio 1150, in her own words:

“You can imagine how shocked and outraged I was when the first discussions about Bikram and his unacceptable behaviour came to light. I knew he could be abrasive and sometimes uncouth, but what I heard and read in various studio-owner forums was simply too much for me. I was never someone who blindly followed anyone’s wisdom or ideas, but it soon became clear to me that the Bikram name and the dogmatic nature of his teaching were not right for me or my yoga school. Since 2004, when I completed my Bikram Yoga training, I have attended many other teacher trainings, countless workshops, retreats and sadhanas. I have learned a great deal, and all of that is reflected in our wonderful yoga school. For me, the most important things are community, belonging, balance and wellbeing at Yoga College. Many years ago, I changed the name from Bikram Yoga College to Yoga College to distance myself from Choudhury, the man responsible for the abuse. It still makes me very sad that this has brought not only our community but yoga itself into disrepute to some extent, when yoga has so much power to heal. That is why we clearly distinguish the man from his system: the 26 postures and two breathing exercises, which he himself adopted from his teacher, Bishnu Ghosh.”