Uploaded September 2023 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
“In Yoga, we are connected!” Examining the Fabric that makes Belonging
Jens Augspurger
Thursday, 6th July, 10:30–11:30am UTC
Spiritual tourism is, unlike other religiously motivated forms of travel, characterised by the specific attention that is placed on the personal growth of the tourist, i.e., their ‘inner journey’. The phenomenon aligns with the broader trend towards self-improvement, self-reference, and self-realisation that is occurring at the (now again) globalised intersection of religion, health, and wellness.
My research seeks to understand spiritual tourism by examining the interplay between the journey (act of travel), the journeyed (destination), and the journeyer (tourist). Using biographical approaches, I conducted research interviews with spiritual tourists who had returned from travel to India either before or at the start of the pandemic. The data suggests that my interlocutors maintained complex correspondences with the places they had journeyed to. Many of these destinations seemed unattainable at the time of the interview during the height of several lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.
In this talk, I will explore how the spiritual tourists often grappled with reflecting on their own impact and identity during their travels. I will then discuss the diverse ways in which my interlocutors have sought to maintain their connections to India, or Yogaland, whether through the computer camera-lens, their personal yoga practice, or imaginative acts of connection.
Jens Augspurger is a PhD Candidate at the Department of Religions and Philosophies at SOAS University of London and a member of the school’s Centre for Yoga Studies. His research is located at the various intersections of religion, power, and politics, with a specific focus on spiritual and yoga communities. Jens is also a survivor activist and co-founder of Project SATYA, an initiative dedicated to combating spiritual abuse, coercive control, and institutionalised violence within religious groups.
“In Yoga, we are connected!” Examining the Fabric that makes Belonging
Jens Augspurger
Thursday, 6th July, 10:30–11:30am UTC
Spiritual tourism is, unlike other religiously motivated forms of travel, characterised by the specific attention that is placed on the personal growth of the tourist, i.e., their ‘inner journey’. The phenomenon aligns with the broader trend towards self-improvement, self-reference, and self-realisation that is occurring at the (now again) globalised intersection of religion, health, and wellness.
My research seeks to understand spiritual tourism by examining the interplay between the journey (act of travel), the journeyed (destination), and the journeyer (tourist). Using biographical approaches, I conducted research interviews with spiritual tourists who had returned from travel to India either before or at the start of the pandemic. The data suggests that my interlocutors maintained complex correspondences with the places they had journeyed to. Many of these destinations seemed unattainable at the time of the interview during the height of several lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.
In this talk, I will explore how the spiritual tourists often grappled with reflecting on their own impact and identity during their travels. I will then discuss the diverse ways in which my interlocutors have sought to maintain their connections to India, or Yogaland, whether through the computer camera-lens, their personal yoga practice, or imaginative acts of connection.
Jens Augspurger is a PhD Candidate at the Department of Religions and Philosophies at SOAS University of London and a member of the school’s Centre for Yoga Studies. His research is located at the various intersections of religion, power, and politics, with a specific focus on spiritual and yoga communities. Jens is also a survivor activist and co-founder of Project SATYA, an initiative dedicated to combating spiritual abuse, coercive control, and institutionalised violence within religious groups.
