Striking a balance

Metropolis serves as hub for yoga enthusiasts, who strive to find means to relieve pressure from their fast-paced urban ways, He Qi reports.

As night falls beneath the bronze archway of the Peace Hotel on Nanjing Road pedestrian street, and in the glow of the early morning light, the melodious strains of a jazz saxophone drift over the 34,518 mother-of-pearl bricks of Century Square. In this vivid setting along Shanghai's Huangpu River, the timeless elegance of the Bund intertwines harmoniously with a modern-day yoga gala.

The two-day event, launched on Sept 6, drew hundreds of yoga enthusiasts from over 10 countries, serving as the grand finale of the 5th Shanghai Yoga Lifestyle Festival, which kicked off in June.

Among the attendees was Oksana Petrenko, a Ukrainian yoga instructor living in Shanghai for a decade, who regularly attends local yoga events.

"Living in such a big city like Shanghai is crazy. It's mind-blowing. The fast-paced lifestyle puts a lot of pressure on our bodies," Petrenko says. She first discovered yoga as a student in Shanghai through event organizer BYMB, and later became a teacher.

"Yoga can bring us to a point where we can slow down and concentrate a bit more on our breathing and the feelings and sensations in our bodies. We can tune into it and then return to ourselves."

Beyond being a gathering for yoga practitioners, the gala showcased a key trend — the fusion of yoga with Eastern and Western cultures and music.

A three-act Sound and Yoga Integration performance, co-created by global artists and top yoga masters, wove in jazz, Mongolian throat singing and natural sounds. This unique format guided participants on a spiritual journey that resonated with Shanghai's multicultural DNA, reflecting how yoga has evolved from a simple fitness activity to a holistic cultural experience.

"Yoga in Shanghai integrates Western fitness science, Chinese health preservation wisdom, and Indian philosophical spirit, forming a Shanghai-style culture that embodies an open, inclusive, innovative, and sophisticated lifestyle," says Ye Weiwei, founder of BYMB, highlighting this evolution. "We hope such events will encourage more urbanites who previously paid little attention to fitness and wellness to participate."

Dominique Renucci, acclaimed French yoga master and educator, offers insights into the increasing popularity of outdoor yoga.

"Yoga is a dynamic and active practice," she says.

Her own journey of recovering from a severe accident through yoga has deepened her belief in its healing power.

"Outdoor yoga is part of the practice's tradition. Hundreds of years ago in India, people often practiced in forests," she says. "The main challenge is the heat, but otherwise, it remains a valuable practice."

Zhang Jingxue, an eight-year yoga practitioner, echoes this sentiment: "Outdoor yoga offers fresh air and beautiful surroundings, which made me gradually fall in love with practicing yoga regularly."