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When toweling off after Vinyasa sculpt, it’s easy to forget that yoga is actually a thousands-of-years-old Hindu institution. But there are informed ways to honor the roots of it…and deepen your own spiritual transformation too.

The lights dimmed as I stepped onto my candlelit mat and smiled at my zen-seeking neighbors. After 14 years of yogic training in studios in Southeast Asia and alongside my family, I was so excited to try out one of the influencer-frequented fancy studios I’d seen all over social media. I closed my eyes, inhaling my arms up to the sky in tadasana (also known as mountain pose), thanking the Hindu god of the Himalayas as I stretched up onto my tiptoes, a bit closer to the divine powers.

But as class began, my heart dropped, then pounded out of my chest as the first sun salutation was interrupted by an abs circuit with the chant “Om Namah Shivaya” layered atop Ariana Grande’s “God Is a Woman.” I turned to my left and right, scanning the room to gauge whether I was the only person having this visceral reaction. Is this okay? Nobody else is reacting. Should I?

Don’t get me wrong—I love me some Ari, but not in conjunction with what translates to a Hindu chant worshipping the god Shiva. (I can’t be the only person who thinks it’s strange to meld the name of a Hindu god, a historic and sacred symbol of hope, with a pop song.) Every inch of me wished to fake a bathroom break and leave. But the model minority in me breathed through the discomfort. Spoiler: I didn’t end up using the other two classes I purchased.

For most of my life, my two-by-six-feet of mat space has been my sanctuary. Sure, as an Indian woman, I’m used to the classes I’ve taken in the Western world coming with an obvious and expected side of cringe—from people around me mispronouncing namaste to the out-of-place buzzing of Om, which is traditionally a purifying sound used to open and close a prayer (which yoga can be!).

But as I headed from the studio to the train station that day, all I could think was that my ancestors must’ve been rolling in their graves. The same words I had chanted at a temple with my family since I could speak were now being appropriated to accompany a Top 100 pop song. (I don’t want to make any assumptions, but I can only guess that most of my fellow students didn’t know they were chanting sacred mantras.)

Of course, I know that nobody starts a yoga studio, attends a class, or even buys a “Namaste in bed” shirt with ill intentions. In fact, I believe there are usually some really positive intentions driving anyone wanting to make yoga a focus. But when a way of life rooted in one of the world’s oldest religions morphs into a lifestyle option that alienates the very people whose culture gave rise to it, that’s problematic. And when affluent, non–South Asian individuals gain from this situation, I’m motivated to plead for change.

26% of people in a large survey conducted in countries around the world said they believe in yoga as a spiritual practice, not just an exercise.

This isn’t a call for every non–South Asian person to throw out their yoga mat and denounce a local studio. In fact, the last thing I want is to scare away anyone from doing yoga. Rakhee Morjaria, yoga teacher, author, and founder of Superarilife.com, shares my sentiment: “I couldn’t care less whether the person leading a class is Black, White, Indian, Spanish, Muslim, Christian, or Mormon,” she says. What this is a push for, though: taking a mindful approach toward your yoga (whether you’re teaching or attending!) by learning about the origins of what you’re doing, the meaning of the words you’re speaking, and how those come together to inform the yogic way of life. “What I care about is their depth of understanding,” Morjaria says. One of her most beloved teachers is “a six-foot-tall Jewish guy who knows all the Sanskrit words of postures and worships Sai Baba,” she says. “He has taught me more about Hatha Yoga [a classical practice that includes breathing, postures, and meditations to cleanse the body and mind] than anyone I know.”

That said, if you’re not familiar with Sanskrit or Hinduism, there’s plenty you can do to be more socially conscious. A few simple steps to consider right away: “Instead of saying Om, which has religious and spiritual implications, you can instead use mmm or just ahh,” says Raed Khawaja, cofounder and CEO of Open, a virtual yoga class space. “That way, you get the same energetic benefits of the high-frequency vibration in your body.” (Fact: Om isn’t a word at all—it’s a symbol that, when spoken, makes a sacred Hindu sound meant to spiritually connect you to the universe.)

Eefa Shroff, yoga teacher to the Bollywood stars, urges practitioners to read books such as The Patanjali Yoga Sutras, The Hatha Yoga Pradipika, Light on Yoga, and the Shiv Samhita. (You can get them all on Amazon or anywhere you buy books.) And if you’re a teacher, Morjaria recommends a fresh approach to your classes. “Rather than go in with a super-planned agenda, try to watch and adjust, with full awareness of your students. That’s how masters teaching yoga in India used to do it—they wouldn’t even do the poses. We’ve lost some of that along the way.”

You might (virtually) vet a friend’s date before their IRL meetup; you can do the same for your next yoga class instructor. Read their bio on the studio’s site to find out if they got their teacher training in Asia or from an Asian-led program, and if it was in a traditional form of yoga, like Hatha. That said, not every conscious and mindful yoga teacher ticks those boxes. One of my favorite yoga classes is led by a Black woman, and I have no idea where or in what type of yoga she trained. I just love her class approach and, most important, feel seen in the way she leads.

Feeling “meh” about a how a fitness locale has put its own spin on yoga—but still wanna attend class? Maybe it’s the only studio in your area, or your workout buddies love the brunch spot next door. The onus shouldn’t be on you to sacrifice your flow. Personally, when I’m in a class and starting to feel uncomfortable, I do a breathwork (known as pranayama) that one of my first gurus taught me nearly 14 years ago. I inhale through my nose for four seconds, hold it, then exhale out of my mouth for eight. It forces me to focus my energy inward.

While yoga isn’t about calling out who is right or wrong, you also don’t have to feel afraid to speak to the teacher about your emotions afterward, Morjaria says. “I welcome these conversations because then everyone learns,” she says. “And you never know, you may feel far more comfortable having talked about it than walking away feeling tense.” So true.

As the self-proclaimed Goldilocks of yoga classes, I love the way Open applies modern techniques like breathwork and music-based movement to traditional yoga without straying toooo far from the fundamentals. ($20/month)

Whether I’m doing a dance cardio class or winding down for a pre-bedtime meditative sesh, this reversible mat is my go-to. Not only does it double beautifully as decor when I’m not using it, but its nonslip coating is a sturdy foundation for my downward dogs.

The leggings, woven from fibers made of recycled plastic water bottles and fabrics, are the softest I’ve worn, and the bright-hued patterns and designs are inspired by the founder’s Indian-Pakistani heritage.

Another incredible bonus? Making the conscious decision to expand your knowledge of yoga will enhance your own connection to it—bringing you closer to yoga as a way of living, rather than just a series of poses. As much as yoga is about letting go and surrendering to the moment, there’s a common misconception that it’s only about that. In fact, Morjaria recalls that yoga was, once upon a time, taught through a sort of one-on-one mentoring process. A student would go to a guru (a word meaning “leading from the dark to light”) who would assess their character and help them to evolve their behavioral patterns. The ultimate goal was to get in touch with your soul and energy to the point where the external world had no effect on you. How special is that?

“When we look back at the way in which yoga was historically taught, it was simple and stripped back,” Morjaria says. It involved simple clothing, simple movements. “Meditate, practice, meditate, practice—there was no room for fuss, and a deep focus on getting the basics right,” she says. But there is a hard side to yoga, she points out, “which many people don’t choose to embrace because it can, in many ways, demand changes and sacrifices from the comfortable life we live.”

I bonded with Morjaria over the fact that yoga actually made us a lot more disciplined and conscious in our lives off the mat. For example, I am trying to make a concerted effort to say no to anything that feels excessive in my life, from fair-weather friends to the freebie gifts I’m lucky enough to receive as an editor—and, really, anything else that doesn’t fully fill my spirit.

Maybe, for you, this means you actually take an interest in Hinduism, stop by your local Hindu temple and just sit (yep, on the ground) and listen to some prayers to see how they feel to you. If it doesn’t feel right, no problem at all—that may mean you choose to opt out of saying Om or namaste in your next class. Or, like me, maybe you’ll try to strip some of the excess from your life—and travel the world with a backpack to release your need for material things. (Come on, let’s think big, people!) Wherever your next-level flow takes you, I know you’ll be fulfilled by your efforts to go deeper. Just don’t tell your boss that I’m the reason you quit your job to join an ashram.