Nouf Marwaai Becomes The First Woman Yoga Master Of Saudi Arabia, Receives Padma Shri From Indian Government

Nouf Marwaai Becomes The First Woman Yoga Master Of Saudi Arabia, Receives Padma Shri From Indian Government

Long before India got its reputation for being anti-women, or its patriarchal notions or even the rising rate of  crimes against women, it was known as the place that gave birth to yoga. A place of sanctity and spirituality, India was famous for its history of ancient scriptures and yoga that came with a promise of enlightenment. Traveling from here, the art of yoga that many of us indulge in to appease and relax our senses, has spread its roots across the world, including Saudi Arabia.

Considering the origin of yoga is said to be Hindu, and this is widely debated, for the longest time, yoga as a practice was looked down upon in places like Saudi Arabia whose state beliefs are against the practises of any other religion. However, with the rule of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a culture of “open, moderate Islam” began to be cultivated, turning yoga into a sport.

And using this opportunity to enrich herself with the art was Nouf Marwaai, Saudi Arabia’s first woman yoga master to break past all stereotypes and decades of oppression. Awarded with the title of India’s fourth-highest civilian honour Padma Shri, on 15 August 2018, Nouf Marwaai’s story is not just about yoga, it is about her struggles and her will to get through them all.

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Using yoga as a way to make herself healthy again after having suffered through lupus and cancer, Nouf Marwaai’s will, determination and commitment towards yoga is what that led her to receive such a grand honour and become the first woman yoga master of Saudi Arabia to go down in the pages of history. Looking at her, more and more women shall come to the fore to be able to practice and exercise freely.

Her journey as she recalls, began in 1998, where due to health conditions she wasn’t allowed to do or move around much. That is when she started to get acquainted with yoga asanas. Even though in the beginning she couldn’t find yoga instructors in Saudi Arabia, and had to travel long distances to be able to get proper training, but the coming of  Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman changed a lot.

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Commending the rule of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Nouf mentions how ever since he came into power a lot of women have started to feel more empowered and enabled to discover all the fields that were earlier restricted from them. Also praising Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud, President of the Community Sports Federation, Nouf sheds light on how she had a major contribution in getting yoga passed along as a sport in Saudi Arabia.

Since then there has been no looking back for Nouf who has received Yoga Ratna award from Asian Yoga Federation and Yoga Person of the Year award from an Indian NGO and is delighted with being awarded the honor of Padma Shri. She says, “I am very thankful for the trust Indian government has shown by giving me this award as an appreciation of my work in the field of yoga.”

Also Read : Saudi Arabia Appoints 10 Women To Senior Positions At Two Holy Mosques. This Is A Milestone!

Sadhika Sehgal

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