Elderly rural Chinese who embrace ancient art of yoga in region dubbed ‘The First Yoga Village in China’ become unlikely internet hit
- One senior yoga enthusiast has attracted 160,000 followers after posting videos of highly difficult movements online
Rural residents thought village secretary was trying to start a ‘cult’ when he first introduced the ancient Indian discipline to them
It’s an ancient exercise normally associated with India and while it’s popular among hipster urban white-collar workers in China, yoga has made a surprise – and expert – appearance among seniors in a remote mainland village.
About 200 kilometres from Beijing, tucked away in Yugouliang village, a group of senior yoga exponents perform highly difficult movements belying their advancing years. The average age of a Yugouliang resident is mid-60s.
A video of them exercising has attracted a lot of attention on Chinese social media, with a video receiving 76,000 likes on Kuaishou, a Chinese TikTok-like platform.
Posters online have dubbed the rural settlement “The First Yoga Village in China” amid the popularity of the videos.
The idea of practising yoga was introduced by Lu Wenzhen, 56, the village’s secretary, who was originally sent to the area to alleviate poverty.