From the outside, it is a simple cube of gray concrete, one of many in Nilin, a small town west of Ramallah in the West Bank. In a few years, this modest building has become a rallying point for the women of the village. From 15 to 70 years old, for an hour, they meet there. In private, they leave their hijab in the locker room and put on comfortable joggers or tight leggings. They sit on the carpet, awaiting instructions from Jaleelah al-Rawaja, an almost fifty-something woman who is not lacking in energy. The yoga class begins, and the postures are linked: sun salutation, upside down dog, warrior …
"Remember to breathe deeply", reminds the professor in an energetic voice. Between each exercise, the participants take the opportunity to discuss with each other. Only the final relaxation interrupts the joyful cacophony. "Relax your body", advises Jaleelah al-Rawaja. The "Om" final (a sound considered as the primitive vibration of the universe in Buddhism and Hinduism) pronounced in chorus, we get dressed before leaving the studio. We improvise a breakfast based on flat bread, olives and labneh. Burning sage tea is poured into cardboard cups.
That morning, the women extol the benefits of yoga. Hisdeaya Nefea, divorced thirties, mother of three, who did not practice any sport before, summarizes: "As we breathe deeply, I feel the stress go away. " Another, Samira Mohtaz, nods. She was 22 years old and started doing it after the birth of her first child. "I was very tense and suffered from recurrent stomach aches, She testifies. Yoga rested me, I also discovered my body. "
A revealer of changes in society
Words that we hear all over the world at the end of yoga classes, the general impetus for this Indian discipline is undeniable. Founded in 2014, the Nilin studio is no exception in the local Palestinian landscape. Yoga is practiced in major cities such as East Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nablus, Hebron or Ramallah as well as in more remote corners of the West Bank.
Nahed Bandak welcomes this development. This Bethlehem native known to everyone in the small world of Palestinian yoga is one of the first local teachers. This 57-year-old woman has a sweet smile and a flexible, almost feline gait. "Yoga has revolutionized my life, it can also change that of others", She summarizes. Like all Palestinian practitioners, she knows that while the whole world loves yoga, discipline takes on another dimension in an area as affected by decades of conflict as the Palestinian Territories.
