The Politics of Yoga: Religious Freedom, Governance and Biopolitics in Contemporary India

The aim of this chapter, through the method of “critical discourse analysis” (CDA) and the support of theories of “religious freedom” and of “governance of religious diversity,” is to contribute to the study of the social and discursive construction of yoga and nationalism in India under its current Hindutva agenda. More specifically, the chapter focuses on yoga’s deployment within Narendra Modi’s policies on religious freedom, governance of religious diversity and biopolitics. The chapter discusses how yoga is strategically deployed as a landmark element of Indian identity, which, according to the socio-cultural and political premises of Modi’s government, signifies Hindu identity. Analyzing 1. the establishment of the Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga, and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) and the promotion of the International Day of Yoga, 2. the government’s effort to advocate for yoga education and 3. the ‘United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) 2023 Annual Report,’ the chapter provides some preliminary sketches on Modi’s management of religious freedom, governance of religious diversity, and biopolitics in contemporary India. It thus contributes to unveil the interplay that exists between yoga, public institutions, Hindutva ideology, bottom-up violence (often times remaining unpunished) and the rising violation of religious freedom of religious minorities.