Yoga and the Jews

The ancient practice of breath control, meditation and body postures known as yoga has been part of the global lexicon for decades. In the Jewish and Israeli world, it has been shaped and repurposed to benefit nearly every stream of life. While discussing the relationship between modern Jews and yoga might seem to mimic that famously narrow focus of searching for the Jewish connections to all things, no matter how tenuous, it also seems natural for an ancient people to be drawn to an ancient practice.

Yoga arrived in Israel not long after the country's inception and drew a strong following in the 1960s and ‘70s from soul-searchers seeking new ways to improve their bodies and expand their minds. Today, the Indian-derived practice has evolved and branched out to reach a broader range of Israelis of every age, from soldiers to schoolchildren, Tel Aviv hipsters to New-Age hippies, and even some in the Orthodox and ultra-Orthodox communities.

As we approach Sukkot, it seems appropriate to explore the connections between yoga and the holiday, and how Jews today relate to this time-honored pursuit.

Some might say the connections are a bit of a “stretch” (pun intended), but Jerusalem-based yoga instructor Ayo Oppenheimer Abitbol begs to differ. “Sukkot is a grounding holiday, yet it’s also about leaving your comfort zone to commune outside in nature,” she noted.

“Much like in yoga, the Jewish holidays, we reflect on ourselves in the present moment while aspiring to ascend to our ‘higher self,’” she explained. “One of the key commandments of Sukkot is aliyah l’regel, a pilgrimage by foot to Jerusalem that parallels our spiritual ascent, as well as a physical practice that encourages connection, reflection and awareness of the world around us during the holiday.

”Ayo has been teaching yoga for more than a decade, and has been practicing for over 12 years. Her rooftop yoga studio in the heart of the eclectic Nahlaot neighborhood attracts a wide variety of students.

Her approach to yoga is to bring her students back to connect to the world around them, allowing them the freedom to become at peace with their bodies, their minds and with nature.

She further describes how yoga and Sukkot share a common goal. Sukkot is z’man simchateinu,“the time of our rejoicing,” when we are commanded to be joyful. Yoga is largely a practice of finding peace – and Ayo believes that from peace, joy can emerge.

“Sukkot comes at a really interesting time of the year,” she said. “We are just finishing up this really intense time of the holidays. Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur bring up these heavy questions: ‘Who am I?’ and ‘What do I want to be?’ Sukkot then arrives as a great opportunity to rejoice and let go of your own thoughts, a chance to be in a state of joy. Yoga practice shares those values. It allows us to transcend the weight of our thoughts and to be present with ourselves and with those around us.

“Yoga is about noticing the moment and slowing down, and Sukkot is very much connected to this,” she said. “The strongest therapeutic elements of yoga get us out of our own minds, or those looping stories that we repeat in our heads. And one of the great parts of Sukkot is this approach of, ‘You did all your work and you did all this reflecting. Now quiet the mind and get out of your story and be in this moment.”