瑜伽傳入台灣的全球化脈絡：施為者的觀點

The Global Contexts in the Transmission of Yoga to Taiwan: The Perspective of Agent

自19世紀末起，瑜伽在印度掀起了一股復興的運動，並開展了瑜伽全球化傳播的浪潮。1970年前後瑜伽開始傳入台灣，經過半個多世紀的發展，如今瑜伽已經成為台灣社會中健康、治療及靈修實踐的流行選項。本文從施為者的觀點，透過訪談和其他相關資料，發現瑜伽傳入台灣的過程中有三種施為者是重要的貢獻者，即跨國移動（包含留學、旅遊、工作或以瑜伽為目的四種機制）的台灣人、向國際宣教的瑜伽教團以及來台的外商企業。這些施為者把瑜伽引進台灣的行動，都是沿著經濟和／或文化全球化的既有通道，而他們傳播瑜伽的行動又擴展了經濟和／或文化全球化的範圍與力道，此一過程即是「結構與行動」的二元性之例證。針對瑜伽傳入台灣的全球化脈絡之分析，本文先以實際案例說明三種類型施為者各自引進瑜伽的背景與過程，以及所引進的瑜伽類型和特徵；其次，探討施為者引進瑜伽的全球化脈絡的特徵；再進一步以台灣做為接受者的角度，勾勒出所有施為者引進瑜伽的跨國路徑，以具象化的方式呈現瑜伽全球化的局部網絡，其中以印度和美國為瑜伽全球化網絡為兩大輸出國。瑜伽在台灣是全球的瑜伽部落中相當活躍的成員。12

Yoga, originated from ancient Indian traditions, has initiated its global transmission to the world since the late 19th centuries. Yoga was firstly introduced to Taiwan circa the year of 1970. Till now, yoga in Taiwan has flourished and become one of the popular practices for health, healing, and spirituality. This paper applies the perspective of agent on how yoga came to Taiwan and finds out three types of agents contributing to the introduction of yoga to Taiwan. The first type of agents is Taiwanese enacting cross-country migration for the purposes of studying, traveling, working, or learning yoga; the second type of agents is the organizations of denominational yoga conducting the international mission; and the third type of agents is the foreign yoga enterprises introducing new yoga schools to Taiwan. The actions of three types of agents have been intertwined with the contexts of economic and/or cultural globalization, while their actions of bringing yoga to Taiwan, in turn, expand the scope and strength of economic and/or cultural globalization. This process is an exemplar of the duality of structure and agency. This paper illustrates how the three types of agents brought the various schools of yoga to Taiwan and what triggers off the globalization of yoga. Furthermore, I will outline the routes of cross-country transmission of yoga via the three types of agents and show the global network of yoga in term of the recipient of Taiwan. In this global network of yoga, India and the USA are two main suppliers of exporting yoga. Yoga in Taiwan has been active in the global yoga tribe.