KRI Yoga Research
THE RATIONALE FOR YOGA RESEARCH
By
Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, KRI Director of Research
Although
some research exists for Yoga, and Yoga is to some small
extent being applied in a few institutional settings,
much more research is needed to facilitate its full
incorporation
As the recently appointed
Director of Research for the Kundalini Research
Institute (KRI), my role is to coordinate scientific
research in Kundalini Yoga and to serve as a resource
for Kundalini Yoga researchers and instructors. Some of
the plans for the research component of KRI are to
provide access to a database of scientific research
citations, to develop and facilitate communication and
collaboration between those interested in researching
Kundalini Yoga, to promote and inspire new research and
documentation of the benefits of Kundalini Yoga, and to
provide support for Yoga instructors to bring Kundalini
Yoga programs to institutional settings and special
populations.
 Historically, Yoga practice has been restricted
to narrow segments of the population, and
has not achieved wide acceptance within the
medical, educational, and corporate communities
as having potential preventive and therapeutic
health benefits. The extension of Yoga to these
institutions would dramatically broaden its
influence, and expand its potential to transform
society.
With
widespread practice across many populations,
Yoga could have a deep positive impact on the
physical and psychological health of society as
a whole. Despite Yoga's current popularity and
the many personal benefits experienced by those
who practice it, such "anecdotal" evidence is
insufficient to facilitate the full
incorporation of Yoga into the healthcare and
educational systems.
As with any new practice or
treatment being considered by the medical
community, carefully designed and executed
research studies that convincingly and
scientifically demonstrate the effectiveness of
Yoga will be required before it can be broadly
applied to a large number of populations
(children, the elderly, diagnosed medical and
psychiatric disorders, etc.) and institutions
(hospitals, schools, offices, etc.).
Although some research exists for Yoga, and
Yoga is to some small extent being applied in a few
institutional settings, much more research is needed to
facilitate its full incorporation.
 On a more local level, those of
us applying Kundalini Yoga to special
populations and in institutional settings would
benefit from a more research-oriented approach
in documenting our results. Such documentation
will serve as a foundation for future research
projects. Furthermore, analysis of this
information will alsoprovide constructive
feedback to determine the strengths and
weaknesses of our programs, thereby helping us
refine and improve our programs and their
benefits. If you are teaching yoga in a
specialized setting or with a special population
and wish to consider documenting the
improvements and changes occurring in students
with Kundalini yoga practice, please feel free
to contact me.
Research is an intensive
process that relies heavily on personnel and is
therefore expensive. Although most biomedical research
is funded by government agencies, such funding has
recently become more difficult to acquire, and research
funding for this particular kind of research has always
been more difficult to get than that for conventional
medical research. Private contributions and donations
are an important supplement to government research
grants in the funding of biomedical research. If you are
aware of yoga students/practitioners who might be
interested and have the means for potentially funding
Kundalini Yoga research, please let this opportunity be
known to them.
Reprinted with permission of
Kundalini Rising Winter 2006-2007
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