Yoga and Religion

I can't believe I'm going here. But, when I once talked about yoga in a Facebook status, someone told me they wouldn't do yoga because it was against their religion. Uh...no... I consider myself a Christian, just the same as them, and I couldn't see how something so fantastic for your body and stress levels could be that touchy of a religious NO NO. I understand that it is in some ways connected to and was founded through Hinduism.  But I know very little...So Google I did....And I found some...interesting info.

"Is Yoga a religion that denies Jesus Christ? Yes. . . .Christianity cannot be integrated with yoga and remain Christian. To think otherwise imperils the Christian truth and faith. As the managing editor of 'Hinduism Today,' Sannyasin Arumugaswami, remarks, 'Hinduism is the soul of yoga 'based as it is on Hindu Scripture and developed by Hindu sages. Yoga opens up new and more refined states of mind, and to understand them one needs to believe in and understand the Hindu way of looking at God. . . . A Christian trying to adapt these practices will likely disrupt their own Christian beliefs'.' (http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/yoga.htm) 

But just as a suspected...American Yoga practitioners actually feel a lot differently.

"Yoga is not a religion. It has no creed or fixed set of beliefs, nor is there a prescribed godlike figure to be worshipped in a particular manner. Religions for the most part seem to be based upon the belief in and worship of things (God or godlike figures) that exist outside oneself. The core of Yoga’s philosophy is that everything is supplied from within the individual. Thus, there is no dependence on an external figure, either in the sense of a person or god figure, or a religious organization.

The common belief that Yoga derives from Hinduism is a misconception. Yoga actually predates Hinduism by many centuries. Ancient seals unearthed in the Indus Valley provide clear evidence of widespread Yoga practice earlier than 3,000 B.C.E. The techniques of Yoga have been adopted by Hinduism as well as by other world religions. Yoga is a system of techniques that can be used for a number of goals, from simply managing stress better, learning to relax, and increasing limberness all the way to becoming more self-aware and acquiring the deepest knowledge of one’s own self. 

The practice of Yoga will not interfere with any religion. Many American Yoga Association students who have practiced Yoga intensively for many years continue to follow the religious traditions they have grown up in or adopted without conflict." (http://www.americanyogaassociation.org/general.html) 

But regardless of what certain Christian organizations are saying about the fact that you CAN NOT separate the Hindu from the yoga...I think you can. For me, my moments for doing yoga? Is not just about stretching, and become one with myself (although, it certainly has helped me become more in tune with my body)...but it's my quiet time.  It's my time to think about life, to pray about things, and NOT THINK AT ALL. And frankly, I see nothing wrong with that.

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(I found a lot of crappy quacky stuff I just had to share below...)


"Christians should think twice before heading to the local gym for a yoga class. " (WHAT? WHY?)


"It is not recommended that Christians practice yoga since the intention of yoga is a path in order to attain salvation. . .Your body will most likely become much more flexible by doing yoga, and so will your mind. As one can see, Yoga is more than just a physical exercise.  We as Christians do not want to make our mind more flexible.  We do not want to leave our mind open to false teaching."  (What's wrong with making your mind more flexible to new learning?? I'm not saying false teaching...But exercise is great for learning in general!)


I could go on and on about all the crazy I found online.  Yoga is what YOU make of it for your life and what works for you. I have found a way to practice it without it compromising my beliefs. Do what's best for you!