Lebanese Ministry of Information
Hundreds are expected to gather in Beirut Sunday for a festival of yoga, highlighting the ever-growing popularity of the practice. For the third year in a row, the Nafas Association – a local nonprofit – will host the Beirut Yoga Festival at Pleine Nature, Mar Roukoz.
Turnout at the festival has increased each year according to Dalal Harb, the festival founder.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes, in 2014 I was expecting around 300 people, but then more 1,000 came … The evolution has been so impressive,” she told The Daily Star.
“[I wanted to] give people the chance to let go of anxiety and stress, and reconnect,” she added.
The success of the event is indicative of the rise of yoga in Lebanon.
“When I came back [to Lebanon in 2010] there were only one or two studios. But now, in five years we have 25 in Beirut alone. It’s really impressive,” Harb added.
Danielle Abisaab, the founder of Union Square Yoga studio and a teacher in Beirut since 2005, agreed with Harb and estimated there were more than 300 teachers in Lebanon today. “Yoga has proven itself all across the world, [it] will always grow,” she said. “It was only a matter of time [before] yoga was going to pick up in Lebanon as well. It’s been interesting to watch that evolution and acceptance.”
Harb attributes some of the success of yoga in Lebanon to a global phenomenon. “It has a trend element to it, but it’s deeper as well. People are becoming more aware of how to apply yoga to their lifestyle,” she said.
This trendiness has boosted the practice, but it’s also brought changes that could lose touch with the founding principles. “There’s a little bit of a performance element to yoga today,” Abisaab explained. “I understand you have to offer what people want and I’m not saying you have to go to India … But it’s just staying on the superficial layer.”
Originating in India, yoga is rooted in meditation. It gained a more physical emphasis as it evolved over the years, drawing on various influences and branching into the many different schools we see today.
Abdul Sattar Ouayda, a newly certified yoga teacher in Beirut, had just returned from a trip to India to study yoga when he spoke to The Daily Star. He explained that while he was initially attracted by the physical benefits, it was the meditative and spiritual elements that had the most impact.
“I was sitting at my desk all day [staring] at a screen and not doing anything physical. I had been wanting to try [yoga] out … and it was amazing … [but] my experience in India was just at another level.”
Coming back to Beirut was a rude awakening at first, Ouayda said, but yoga helped the transition. “The way things are in Lebanon, I think everyone would benefit from doing yoga – it’s so good not just for the body, but for the mind.”
Abisaab agreed that yoga could be particularly valuable for people living in Lebanon. However, for many, there’s still a view that yoga is the preserve of those with time and money. This is a misconception that Sarah Trad, who is opening a studio next month with her two co-founders, hopes to challenge. “It’s always the same people that have an awareness [of yoga] and I’m really hoping to spread it and make it accessible to everybody,” Trad said.
“I’m encouraged by free events where you see a lot of people going,” she added. She pointed out that there as a growing diversity in studios and the people attending classes. Trad said that with more studios, yoga would “democratize.”
While most agree that the slew of new teachers and studios is a positive, there are concerns about oversight and ensuring adequate safety.
“It can get a bit injury-prone at the moment because many of the classes are open to all levels,” said Alison Beckner, a long-time yogi who works with teachers and studios in Lebanon through her creative consulting agency Scout.
“It needs to be about educating, demystifying, and making it available in a way that is safe.”
Having practiced yoga in many countries, Beckner said she felt Lebanon had something special. “The fact that Lebanon is a melting pot makes it unique. I think [Lebanese] come into [yoga] a little more open to it.”
Harb expressed hope that Sunday’s event would also help draw more people to yoga by being “open to all, from the ‘new-to-the practice’ as much as to the ‘committed yogis.’”
The event will include classes in different yoga schools with leading teachers, family activities and stalls selling clothes, natural and organic Lebanese food and other products.
