First off, please bear with me if I sound like a first-grader. I have never actually done naked yoga before, and to be honest, am not quite sure how I would feel being naked in front of a group of strangers, let alone being naked and doing yoga at the the same time in front of a group of strangers. Yes, that's right. Naked yoga is often done in group form, although you can just as easily do naked yoga in the comfort of your own home. Group Yogi's, however, say that defeats the purpose.

To understand the purpose of naked yoga, first think of what yoga is in general (clothed yoga, that is). In it's purest sense, yoga is more like a form of meditation, than it is a physical activity. In fact, yoga is about uniting the physical with the mental and spiritual. Yoga is communion with the All. And if the All is everything, well then, naked bodies shouldn't be exempt, should they?

And this is a good thing. Considering our society's hang-ups about being naked - usually associating nakedness with sex and shamefulness - we could all stand to experience some liberation on the "naked" front. This is what the practitioners of naked yoga say it's all about. Naked yoga is about moving out of self-consciousness and into Universal Consciousness.

If you ask me, this makes total sense. Just like meditation seeks to help us understand who we really are, naked yoga forces us to face who we really are - a spiritual and physical being. Especially in group form, celebrating everyone's unique form has a way of connecting one another on an equal level of humanity. Those who consistently practice naked yoga say the hardest part is the very beginning. But once you get into the action of doing and putting your focus in the breath and body, fear and self-consciousness is dissolved and liberation is achieved. I have to admit, when put that way, naked yoga sounds enlightening.

Author: Ry