Artis Smith started teaching Wakanda Yoga after seeing “Black Panther,” which he says “shook off the limits I had put on myself.”
Artis SmithThere’s always been Warrior 1 pose and Warrior 2 pose. Now there’s Wakanda Warrior pose. Well, sort of.
Inspired by the movie “Black Panther,” a yoga teacher in Norfolk, Virginia, has started teaching “Wakanda Yoga,” named for the fictional kingdom featured in the Marvel superhero blockbuster.
Artis Smith hasn’t created any poses specific to the classes (he might consider adding an arm-crossing Wakanda Forever salute), but he calls them afrofuturistic, pacing them with African drumming and incorporating poses influenced by ancient Egyptian Kemetic yoga. Afrofuturism refers to a movement in literature, art and music that reclaims and reinvigorates depictions of the black experience.
Triangle pose … with a beat.
Artis SmithThe film starring Chadwick Boseman as King T’Challa had a powerful impact on Smith, the son of a minister.
“As a boy I loved Superman but couldn’t identify with him because I’m black,” he said. “I didn’t realize how strong an effect that had on me, until the same little boy who saw Superman all those years ago watched ‘Black Panther.’ A switch turned on in me that I didn’t know was off.”
After leaving the theater, Smith dove into African music, and had a visceral response.
“I came across a recording of Zulu warrior voices, and I cried, because I was ashamed of being ashamed of who I am. I didn’t know what the voices were saying, but it felt like they were saying, ‘It’s OK, it’s OK.'”
That’s when Wakanda Yoga came to Smith, who’s been teaching yoga for five years and focuses on ashtanga, a vigorous style often practiced in a heated room.
The Wakanda Yoga classes take place five days a week, for all levels of practitioners.
The response has been enthusiastic, Smith said, and he now plans to take Wakanda Yoga on the road as part of what he’s calling The Woke Tour.
“One of the messages of the movie was to step into your power,” he said. “Yoga is something that can help us to do that.”
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