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Alabama Education Dept. softening-up on yoga welcomed
 
Hindus have welcomed Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE) for its apparent softening-up on the subject of yoga, despite it being “prohibited” from state’s public schools.
 
Distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada today, called it a step in the positive direction. He urged ​State Board of Education President Governor Kay Ellen Ivey and State Superintendent Dr. Eric G. Mackey to completely lift yoga ban as this “prohibition” was clearly doing a disservice to Alabama’s K-12 public school students and denying them the valuable opportunities the multi-beneficial yoga provided.
 
Despite “Yoga prohibited to be taught/done on public school property before, during, or after school hours” in Alabama; various yoga linked programs appeared on the ALSDE website; Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, pointed out.
 
Website offered links to various yoga related iPhone/iPad Apps (saying “You can use these apps”) under “Resources” for Physical Education Teachers; including FitStar Yoga, Simply Yoga, Super Stretch Yoga HD, MINDBODY, Fitnet, Sworkit. Yoga is listed as a “supplementary intervention” under “Treatment and prevention of suicidal behavior in adolescents”.
 
“Social and Emotional Learning Roadmap for Reopening School” given on the website states: “Engage community partners in providing selfcare activities (e.g., yoga, exercise, mindfulness)”. “Covid-19 Plan” posted on its website, indicates: “Families will be offered and provided invaluable support networks and opportunities that promote self-care, education and empowerment”, which includes “Virtual Yoga”. Video titled “Kids Adaptive Yoga” is posted at two places on ALSDE website.
 
Under “Physical Education Elective Examples for Grades 9-12”, it is stated that
“stretching” can be included in the Course Content under “Fitness and Conditioning”; but a note below adds: Course may not be called Yoga; however, only Yoga technique poses/exercises and stretches may be included in the content.
 
Various public universities of Alabama had been reportedly offering yoga in some form to their students and some Alabama churches had also reportedly offered/announced yoga programs. If yoga was rewarding for the students of Alabama public universities, why Alabama was keeping it away from its K-12 public school students; Rajan Zed wondered.
 
Zed further said that yoga, although introduced and nourished by Hinduism, was a world heritage and liberation powerhouse to be utilized by all. According to Patanjali who codified it in Yoga Sutra, yoga was a methodical effort to attain perfection, through the control of the different elements of human nature, physical and psychical.
 
According to a report of US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: “Yoga is the most popular complementary health approach in the United States - used by 14.3% of the adult population, or 35.2 million people”. According to US National Institutes of Health; yoga may help one to feel more relaxed, be more flexible, improve posture, breathe deeply, and get rid of stress. Yoga was the repository of something basic in the human soul and psyche, Rajan Zed added.
 
Alabama State Department of Education Administrative Code 290-0400-40.02, however, states: School personnel shall be prohibited from using any techniques that involve the induction of hypnotic states, guided imagery, meditation or yoga.
 
It defines yoga as: A Hindu philosophy and method of religious training in which eastern meditation and contemplation are joined with physical exercises, allegedly to facilitate the development of body mind spirit.
 
A 2006 memorandum from State Superintendent of Education, still posted on ALSDE website, advises that: yoga not be offered during regular school hours or after regular school hours to public school students on a public school campus in Alabama.

Spain brewers association apologizes & recalls poster trivializing Lord Ganesh after Hindu protest
 
Association of Spanish Home Brewers (ACCE) has apologized and recalled the poster carrying image of Hindu deity Lord Ganesh to promote its “IPA Day 2020” event to be held in Burgos (Spain) on September 19; which protesting Hindus had called “highly inappropriate”.
 
Manuel Jim., ACCE (Asociación de Cerveceros Caseros Españoles) Secretary, in an email to distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed (who spearheaded the protest), wrote: We apologize, from the heart, for any inconvenience we may have caused. We never wanted to hurt any religious worship and we will recall all the IpaDay advertisements according to your indications. Of course, we will stop using this religious image from now to the future, and we will not use it again in any of our initiatives.
 
Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, thanked ACCE for understanding the concerns of Hindu community, which thought that such image of Lord Ganesh promoting a beer event was quite out-of-line.
 
Rajan Zed suggested that associations and companies should send their senior executives for training in religious and cultural sensitivity so that they had an understanding of the feelings of communities and customers when launching advertising campaigns or introducing new products.
 
Zed had said that inappropriate usage of sacred Hindu symbols or deities or concepts or icons for commercial or other agenda was not okay as it hurt the devotees.
 
Rajan Zed had indicated that Lord Ganesh was highly revered in Hinduism and he was meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to be used in a re-imagined version for pushing a beer event. Moreover, linking a deity with an alcoholic beverage was very insensitive, Zed added.
 
Brewer associations should not be in the business of religious appropriation, sacrilege, and ridiculing entire communities. It was deeply disrespectful of divine Hindu deity to be displayed on a poster promoting beer event with hops covering his head, beer mixing stirrer paddle in one hand and Erlenmyer flask presumably carrying yeast starter in another hand; Zed had emphasized.
 
Hinduism was the oldest and third largest religion of the world with about 1.1 billion adherents and a rich philosophical thought and it should not be taken frivolously. Symbols of any faith, larger or smaller, should not be mishandled, Rajan Zed had noted.
 
In Hinduism, Lord Ganesh is worshipped as god of wisdom and remover of obstacles and is invoked before the beginning of any major undertaking.
 
Non-profit ACCE, founded in 2009 and headquartered in La Palma (Murcia, Spain), is Spain’s national association of brewers united by “love of making beer at home”.
 
ACCE has reportedly proposed several beer related activities and contests at this “India Pale Ale Day 2020”, including a contest of selfie photographs.