Yoga and Male Power

Everywhere today on the front line of culture, we see a swashbuckling, uber-masculine presence that prizes itself on control and domination. It’s a mindset that assumes superiority, breaks rules, and acts without restraint. If left unchecked, masculine power can devolve into lies, violence, greed and sexual misconduct. These are the very same psychic “poisons” cautioned against on the path of yoga. Since its origins, yoga practice has put forth protocols for men to channel their physical and psychic energy. Meditation, postures and pranayama are strategies to move internal energy and counter the potentially harmful projection of  a headstrong, egocentric will. In most hatha yoga texts, this “channeling” of life-force is described as the internalization of semen. It represents the practice of directing physical energy not toward domination but toward the realization of good-will for all.

In yoga, true strength and potency are know as virya. Virya is the transmutation of energy away from personal gain toward virtuous action. What we need today is for more men to hone their power into altruism, loving kindness, empathy and generosity. Our modern day masculinity crisis can best be addressed by practice, that is, a practice to embody generosity and big-heartedness. What we need today is positive, empowering male role models, dedicated not toward conquest but toward care.