In most yoga circles, the practice is associated with mind-body fitness, spiritual enlightenment, and personal growth. Yoga instructors often tell their students not to compare themselves to the person on the next mat, that true yoga is about honoring your body's limitations as well as its abilities. As long as you execute a posture correctly, you will receive 100% of the benefits, regardless of the depth you are able to reach.

How, then, does competitive yoga fit into this culture?

Some yogis may be surprised to learn that competitive yoga even exists, but the Bishnu Charan Ghosh Cup, an international yoga competition, has been held annually since 2003. The competition draws yogis from around the world, including the United States, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Japan, Singapore, and China.

In the competition, each participant must execute seven yoga postures within three minutes. Five of the postures are mandatory; the other two are competitor's choice. Participants are judged on strength, balance, flexibility, alignment, difficulty of the optional poses, and overall presentation.

The Ghosh Cup — named for the Indian yoga master who taught Bikram Choudhury, who would later create the popular practice of Bikram yoga — is organized by the World Yoga Federation, a non-profit organization dedicated to spreading the knowledge and benefits of yoga throughout the world. The World Yoga Federation and its child organization, the United States Yoga Federation, were established by the founders of Bikram yoga — which helps explain why the Ghosh cup is often most popular among Bikram students. The Ghosh Cup is not directly associated with Bikram yoga, however, and practitioners from any style of yoga are welcome to participate.

Proponents of competitive yoga say that the purpose of the championship is not to beat the opponent, but to improve your own practice — that the competitions are really just an opportunity for yogis to demonstrate their skills. This contention is easily challenged by the fact that there are clear winners, who do in fact receive trophies, but the concept of competitive yoga is nothing new — yoga competitions have been held in India for centuries.

According to Rajashree Choudhury, founder of the United States Yoga Federation and Bikram's wife, competitive yoga encourages participants to deepen their yoga practices and helps attract newcomers to the tradition. The ultimate goal of the US Yoga Federation is to qualify yoga as an Olympic sport by the year 2020.

The Ghosh Cup has been met by significant resistance by many in the yoga community. Some scorn the idea of yoga as a sport and believe that an emphasis on physical ability may frighten off people who are interested in yoga, but are less flexible or athletically inclined. Some teachers have spoken out vehemently against the practice, stating that competition is contradictory to the basic teachings of yoga — that the ultimate goal of yoga is spiritual enlightenment, not physical mastery.

What do you think? Should yogis have the opportunity to demonstrate their skills, or is competitive yoga contrary to the very purpose of the practice?