Fascist Yoga

The practice of yoga promises peace, self-realisation and release, thanks to the power of its 'mystic' Indian origins. But what if this is just hype? In Fascist Yoga, Stewart Home sweeps away the half-truths to tell a new origin story of modern postural practice.

Starting with the world's first modern yogi – a Californian escapologist who added Hindu fairy dust to circus exercises, this history reveals a community full of grifters, occultists and white supremacists, out to exploit and recruit via the medium of exercise.

From Aleister Crowley to Ezra Pound to Heinrich Himmler; cult leaders and brainwashed followers; TV celebrities and fake gurus, the story of yoga has involved some of the strangest currents of humanity with a dangerous understanding of wellness.