Patent yoga?

[fushigi]

I'm as much for intellectual property rights as the next guy, but this seems a bit extreme:

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued 150 yoga-related copyrights, 134 patents on yoga accessories, and 2,315 yoga trademarks. There's big money in those pretzel twists and contortions - $3 billion a year in America alone. It's a mystery to most Indians that anybody can make that much money from the teaching of a knowledge that is not supposed to be bought or sold like sausages.

It's a traditional method of exercise and self-healing that dates back thousands of years. Nobody knows who the original inventor was, and I'd say if "She'll be Comin' Around the Mountain" is old enough to be in the public domain, so should ayurvedic medicine.

The idea that Indian practitioners of yoga positions who have been studying for decades might suddenly have to pay royalties for poses that have been passed through their families for centuries is offensive to the point of being hysterical.

fushigi

[nilan3000]

Any idea who has patented them?

[fushigi]

Yeah, mostly Indians abroad. Doesn't make it any less unbelievable.

[Kuldeep]

Let Patent office declare Yoga as "Not Patentable". This to my mind is simplest solution.

You are very correct, in India techniques and practice of Yoga are thousands and thousands years old traditional performances which have been beneficial to human anatomy and mind in many many ways. The true inventors are gone and gone for ever. This claim of invention should not therefore go to anybody. Let whole humanity get benefited without any personal benefits to any preacher.

Once again, I say let Yoga be a "Not Patentable Commodity, or Technique" !!!!:)

[nilan3000]

I just think the government is pissed off that multinational pharmaceutical companies make billions of dollars with the traditional methods that the indian sadhus discovered and India doesnt get a single penny in return.

But yoga is something that shouldnt be patented. Its for everybody.

[5010]

Would you consider dynamic combinations of traditional asanas to be new inventions if the combo isn't documented?

[Scribbler1]

Then you'd have to prove your version of Yoga is indeed something new. I believe that is one of the criteria for a patent, improving an existing technology or product.

[Kuldeep]

Quote by: nilan3000 I just think the government is pissed off that multinational pharmaceutical companies make billions of dollars with the traditional methods that the indian sadhus discovered and India doesnt get a single penny in return. But yoga is something that shouldnt be patented. Its for everybody.

Not an individual or group patent both traditional methods of Aurvedic medical practices or Yoga for that matter should be a national or geographic patent right benefit.

Nilan, you right share from pharmaceutical companies profit should go to Nation having such traditions.

[nilan3000]

Well I dont mean that the government is entitled to a certain share of the pharmaceuticals' profits, what I mean is these discoveries were made for the benefit of everybody. What the companies have done is put a lid on this knowledge and said "if you want to use it, you got to pay us for it", which is wrong.

[5010]

Patents are designed to protect someone from stealing another person's idea and making money from it. Any traditional yoga cannot be someone's idea. But just because yoga has existed for thousands of years doesn't mean there are no new methods attainable. But I agree, the patent office should reject anything that was in practice before.

[Kuldeep]

Patent office has to be that much educative about the traditional practices in all the regions world over, yoga in particular. This does not seem to be easy and ananomolies in granted patents as regards Yoga are inevitable. So, as said ealier as well, Yoga as a rule, should not be a patentable commodity, rather India the originating country of Yoga should get share for the efforts its ancestors have put in to develop the Yoga technique!!!

[fushigi]

Kuldeep, what do you think about letting the India government's response--to patent all known yoga techniques? This will result, eventually, in yoga being a state-owned enterprise for India.

[Kuldeep]

fushigi, fine thankyou very much for your such type of open minded suggestion. This would be fantastic idea to make that practiable. I rather wonder what Govt of India has been doing all these years since 1947 or, other rulers like British and other kings of various dynasities!!!

Well, as regards my thinking, Govt. of India should develop a separate Institute; say under the ministry of art and culture, whose main aim should be to frame and compartmentalise the huge yogic knowledge database and develop skill/expertise of demonstration to practice old Yogic techiques. Such skills should be then patented in most of the world leading countries. This way the benefit of such great anicent treasure is harvested by world masses alike and India in particular.:)

[nilan3000]

Quote by: Kuldeep fushigi, fine thankyou very much for your such type of open minded suggestion. This would be fantastic idea to make that practiable. I rather wonder what Govt of India has been doing all these years since 1947 or, other rulers like British and other kings of various dynasities!!! Well, as regards my thinking, Govt. of India should develop a separate Institute; say under the ministry of art and culture, whose main aim should be to frame and compartmentalise the huge yogic knowledge database and develop skill/expertise of demonstration to practice old Yogic techiques. Such skills should be then patented in most of the world leading countries. This way the benefit of such great anicent treasure is harvested by world masses alike and India in particular.:)

But how would that solve this problem in any way? The problem here is that knowledge that was created for everybody is being patented. This scenario would still not prevent that outcome.