23-May-2012

Gender Shifts

Yin-Yang Revisited

For millennia, yoga culture favored the warrior monks who practiced self-restraint and spirituality with intensity. Nowadays, women outnumber men in most yoga classes. In love, work and play, the “fairer sex” exhibits the same passion for activities that were once reserved for the male gender. Men are also openly exploring their feminine side. So where does this leave the balance of yin-yang in the new millennium? Are men and women really narrowing the “gender gap” to mere biological function? Or, is there more that makes us different…and hopefully, complementary?

The duality of yin-yang that pervades the universe is still alive and well in the human race. Women still predominantly maintain the role of nurturers and creators of “civilized” activity. Men are still, for the most part, action-oriented doers. However, as traditional male-female behaviors blur and blend, the opportunity now exists for multi-dimensional possibilities in all of our relationships. So, let’s celebrate our differences and rejoice in our similarities—it’s all part of the Cosmic Dance!

Recommended: The Yin Yang Complex by Brendan Foley