在以色列,瑜伽是"革命性的"

In 1997, Rachel Kolberg was newly married, pregnant and living in Tel Aviv when she went to her first yoga class. It was a revelation. Her husband, Avraham, soon began practicing with her. "I was looking for some spiritual support," he says. "Yoga gave that to me." Seven years later, the couple opened their own studio, determined to introduce yoga to fellow Orthodox Jews in Beit Shemesh. They teach Iyengar yoga, a discipline that encourages the use of props to assist with poses. While yoga is increasingly popular in Israel, Avraham says, it is "revolutionary" in their neighborhood. Their Students, taught in single-sex classes, are encouraged to come as they are, even in day clothes or long skirts, if necessary. The Kolbergs say yoga helps people who spend long days in prayer and study and aren’t physically active. But, Rachel says, "in our studio, we will never have practices that contradict our religion, such as mantras and chanting." Julie Bosman

1997年，蕾切尔·科尔伯格(Rachel Kolberg)刚结婚，她怀孕了，住在特拉维夫，她去上了第一节瑜伽课。她获得了启示。丈夫亚伯拉罕(Avraham)很快开始和她一起练习。“当时我在寻找某种精神支持，”他说，“瑜伽让我获得了这种支持。”七年后，这对夫妻开了自己的瑜伽馆，决心把瑜伽介绍给贝特谢梅什的正统犹太人。他们教的是辅助瑜伽，这个瑜伽分支鼓励练习者使用小道具来帮助做到某些姿势。亚伯拉罕说，虽然瑜伽在以色列越来越流行，但是在他们的社区，它是“革命性的”。他们是男女分开授课，鼓励学生们随意穿着，需要的话，甚至可以穿日常服饰或者长裙。科尔伯格夫妇说，瑜伽可以帮助那些长时间祈祷和学习、基本不运动的人。但是，蕾切尔说，“在我们的瑜伽馆，我们永远也不会做那些与我们的宗教相抵触的事情，比如念佛教中的祷语或经文。”

Year the Kolbergs opened their Beit Shemesh yoga studio: 2004

科尔伯格夫妇在贝特谢梅什开设瑜伽馆的时间：2004年

Students who practice at the studio each week: Roughly 100

每周在瑜伽馆练习的学生人数：大约100人

Ratio of female to male students: Three to two

男女生人数的比例：2：3