I was in a Hot Yoga class, and the instructor was guiding us through the routine. At one point, he directed us to do what is traditionally called the superman pose, but instead of saying superman or superwoman, he said superhuman. I suppose this is what some might call politically correct yoga!
I understand that we live in a society that is more aware of language and inclusivity, and it caught my attention that someone may have raised a concern about the pose being called “superman.” I get the intention behind it, but is the name really that significant of an issue? The pose is named after the comic book character Superman, who is a man. So I don’t quite see the concern.
If there were a pose resembling a move by Wonder Woman and it was named after her, I would not have a problem with that either. When I am told to go into Utkata Konasana, or the goddess pose, I do not think it is offensive simply because I am male or because of any religious connotation. It is just the name of the pose. You get what I mean?
Honestly, it does not affect me either way, and maybe I should not even be writing about this since this site is all about fitness, and I do not want to take away from that with social topics. You can always visit NYCTalking for that! Still, I thought it was an interesting thing to share.
Someone clearly cared enough to bring this up in the yoga community. For me, I do not mind. I can do the goddess pose all day and do not feel like my identity is threatened in any way. People’s sensibilities are different, and some are more sensitive than others. That is all. I just thought it was worth sharing because I found it curious.
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