On Yoga: The Architecture of Peace

It’s taken yoga several thousand years to journey from a handful of monasteries dotting the Himalayas to the myriad studios of London, Lower Manhattan, and beyond. Whether bathing with holy men in the Ganges or joining the chorus of a thousand voices chanting “om,” photographer Michael O’Neill decided to devote himself to experiencing and recording the world of yoga at this critical juncture in its history. The result is a powerful photographic tribute to the age-old discipline turned global phenomenon, with over 250 million practitioners united in physical, spiritual, and mindful practice worldwide.

Now brought together for the first time in the new book On Yoga: The Architecture of Peace (TASCHEN), this extraordinary body of work tells the story of yoga as it’s never been told before, with nearly two hundred photographs, most of which have never been seen. To mark the book’s publication, the Rubin is hosting a talk with O’Neill, Ashtanga teacher Eddie Stern, who contributed essays on the role of yoga in contemporary culture, and Bob Roth, one of the most experienced and sought-after meditation teachers in America. They will discuss the book and what O’Neill calls “the architecture of peace . . . a series of postures that bring the practitioner closer to touching the infinite.”

A book signing will follow the conversation.

Image credit: Michael O’Neill

About the Speakers

Michael O’Neill has photographed the cultural icons of his time, from Andy Warhol to the Dalai Lama, for publications including the New York Times Magazine, Rolling Stone, and Vanity Fair. He has had solo shows of his work at Visa pour l’image (Perpignan, France), II Mes Internacional da Fotografia (São Paulo, Brazil), and Houk Friedman (New York). His photographs reside in the collections of the Walker Art Center among other museums. For the last decade he has immersed himself in the culture of yoga, turning his lens on the origins and essence of this ancient and timeless spiritual practice.

Eddie Stern is the founder of Ashtanga Yoga New York and the Broome Street Ganesha Temple in New York City. He co-publishes the philosophy journal Namarupa: Categories of Indian Thought and is a co-creator of the violence reduction program called Urban Yogis.

Bob Roth is one of the most experienced and sought-after meditation teachers in America. Over the past 40 years he has taught transcendental meditation to many thousands of people and authored an authoritative book on the subject fittingly titled Transcendental Meditation, which has been translated into twenty languages. Roth currently serves as the executive director of the David Lynch Foundation, a charity that has brought meditation to more than 500,000 inner-city youth in underserved schools in 35 countries, veterans and their families who suffer from post-traumatic stress, and women and children who are survivors of domestic violence.