RUSSIA CITY OFFICALS BAN YOGA FOR BEING TOO MUCH LIKE ‘RELIGIOUS CULT’?

NIZHNEVARTOVSK, Russia - Local officials in a city in Russia have banned yoga from their community buildings, likening the practice to a religious cult.

Yoga studios in the town of Nizhnevartovsk received letters from city officials telling them yoga classes should no longer be practiced in municipal facilities, the Moscow Times reported.

The Aura and Ingara Hatha yoga studios both lease space at the public stadium.

The city’s First Deputy Head Sergei Levkin wrote to the Russian head of social and youth policy, asking her to take all necessary measures to stop Hatha yoga lessons from taking place at 
the stadium.

Levkin reasoned the move was crucial “in order to prevent the spread of new religious cults and movements.”

Another letter was sent to the heads of the physical culture and education departments.
It describes Hatha yoga as “inextricably linked to religious practices” and having “an occult character.”

Nizhnevartovsk is the second-largest city in Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug.
It is part of the Russian federation, and has a population of more than 260,000 people. 
The region produces more than half of Russia’s oil.

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