I believe that it is very important to take care of our bodies and treat them with respect. I also believe that one cannot deny the mental, physical, and overall health benefits of the practice of yoga. You get to quiet the mind and let all the wordly distractions go, it has helped me with balance, immunity, digestion, circulation, physical benefits, much slower to anger, stress, and worrying. However; from the little research I have done on yoga it seems that it started just as something they would do to loosen up their bodies to prepare for meditation. The more recent research I have found is that yoga is almost like treating yourself as a God or deity. This scares me....there are poses in yoga where they say you are bowing to yourself. I don't know what the "third eye" is about and do not participate in that. I also do not participate in the bowing at the end and saying "Namaste". They say that Namaste means "the light in me honors and respects the light in you". It seems like a very nice phrase or a good "mantra", but I don't know enough about the underlying meaning and treating ourselves as deities. I guess my question is whether yoga is ok to do if you believe that God is the one and only God. Is it a tricky tactic of the devil to lure people away from God, unknowingly?
What do you guys think?
Just as my pup naturally moves into downward dog to stretch his muscles each morning (usually accompanied by a very cute yawn), so too can we find some darn good naturally beneficial muscular movement in pursuit of yoga. Sun salutations never take me away from the awe of creation. Triangle pose makes me recognize my limitations as a human. In with the good, out with the bad brother. Just breath. The religious aspect of yoga is as unnatural as the religious aspects of following Christ (check the discussion about Christianity being a the RIGHT religion).
ReplyDeleteI love this question. I had a high school student (when I mentored students) tell me how it is a sin to do Yoga. Confused because Yoga gave be 2 units in college I asked him why. I guess he was told by a former bible study leader that it was opening yourself up spiritually, and this is dangerous. While I do believe participating in religious activities can be dangerous.
ReplyDeleteI do not think Yoga, as practiced by most Americans is dangerous. Celebrating Christmas or Easter does not save you. Nor should stretching your body and learning how to relax kick you out of the kingdom. Yoga has lost its spiritual meaning.
A Christian shouldn't practice the religious aspects, just as a Christian shouldn't commit a pilgrimage to Mecca. But that doesn't mean you can't travel to Saudi Arabi (if that's what your into).
I knew a Yoga instructor once who was really into the more religious aspects of Yoga. I questioned her on this topic, and she argued that Yoga does indeed flow from the more religious tradition, but that the more popular styles of Yoga emphasize health over religious practice. It sounded to me like you could do it any way you want to, following any motivation religious or otherwise.
ReplyDeleteIf you take a class, it might be worth it to question the instructor - let him/her know your faith convictions. Probably they'll have a few suggestions of how you can keep practicing Yoga without compromise.
Another idea: I spent some time in India with a group of Christians there. "Namaste" is the common greeting, as common as saying "hello" here, but there are alternatives to be spoken among believers. One of the ones we used was "jai Masih ki" (Jah-yeh-ma-see-kee), which literally means "Victory to the Massiah." If you do Yoga with other Christians, this might be a fun way to greet one another.
Great question and great responses.
I like that Clint. Jai Masih Ki ya'll. Regarding the varied forms of yoga's religious expressions, I occasionally participate in a sculpt yoga class and during our sessions we often get a dose of hip hop, which means that my religious associations to yoga could be colored by the philosophies of such iconic spiritual leaders as Snoop D.O. double G. So I wonder, what is yoga? Can I rock to Snoop while holding bridge pose and still claim that I'm doing yoga?
ReplyDeleteWell, I've done a little bit of research on this this week (consisting of reading wiki and talking to a yoga instructor) and it appears that the American version of yoga is as diverse as whatever instructor is teaching/leading the class. Furthermore, the religious aspect of it, which stems from Hindu and Buddhist traditions, are themselves quite divergent from each other. For example, in these traditions there is no agreement as to what the term yoga actually means and no one is quite sure of its original purpose.
ReplyDeleteoh, here is an article about an article written by some catholics about christian mediation in comparison to Buddhist approaches to meditations found in some sorts of yoga...
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspects_of_Christian_meditation
Clint - I like your point about questioning the instructors. From the classes I have taken and the questions I have asked, I always seem to get a different answer from each person. This goes along with Dave's point that the American version of yoga is as diverse as whatever instructor is leading the class. I am not comfortable with this. I agree that many Americans practice yoga for the physical aspects rather than spiritual, but disagree that the spiritual aspects have been removed from yoga practiced in America. In the classes I have attended, there is too much occuring that no one seems to have an agreeable explanation for. "Enlighten Up" is a movie about yoga that is entertaining, but shows the lack of clarity. http://enlightenupthefilm.com/
ReplyDeleteI also found myself going to yoga when I was feeling stressed or overwhelmed to calm myself down. Just as I disagree with people popping anti-anxiety medicine when their life becomes a bit stressful, I also feel convicted for personally dealing with stress by yoga rather than retreating to God with it. I do not, however, have any problems with stretching on my own at home :)
I come from a Catholic background and in my search for the truth I studied about many religions, and ended up becoming a Yoga Teacher before I received Christ as my personal Savior. I studied 3 years of Yoga teachings and have a good idea of the depth of it's Philosophies. I would be radical in regards to any new age involvement.
ReplyDeleteEven if the person who practices or teaches does not get into the spiritualism from which it has been originated, it still has its roots in the practices of Hinduism and other oriental religions. It's designed to develop one's awareness of self and it takes you through the mind to try to "untap" the energy physical (and spiritual) centers in the human body, which their teachings say are like valves to the supernatural and the universe...In reality is a cult and the way the devil tries to divert us as an angel of light from seeking God and instead glorify nature (even our own) and millions of gods which are created by men and then, believed by them...
I personally feel totally uncomfortable taking any participation in these kind of "exercise" apparently innocent and innocuous. The Bible tells us not to give any occasion or opportunity to the devil, and certainly we shouldn't open ourselves to some unknown force or entity that may be attached to this teacher, in the invisible realm, which we cannot see.
We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against the powers and principalities of the prince of the air, in this age an time... These are for real, not just stories...I know that greater is HE that is in us, but should we then put our God to test...and if we obey HIS commands we will not give a chance or heed to false doctrines or any thing that may originate and lead to it.
In my own experience the relaxation and apparent peace that comes from meditation does not set one free from emotional bondage or heal any past wounds; it only gives an illusion or temporary relief, but in the end becomes a trap to greater disillusion and it lead me to depression, and then to a major questioning for the reasons for being incarnated, to a lie which explains it as an everlasting evolution of ones soul through never ending lives, reincarnating as animals etc...It brings emptiness and despair, which almost drove me to commit suicide. In spite of all this internal mess, because of the enlightenment and new "deep knowledge" and personal extra censorial experiences (just as illusionary as using drugs) it made me separate myself and believe to be superior and more powerful human, that only lead to more confusion and pride. I was hurting inside and couldn't admit to anyone, since it would have put me in a level of immaturity and tag me as a "heavy" and unwanted company. It's all about self and denies that there's a day of judgement coming when we will face GOD and sin is just a matter of perception...
Dangerous ground... so why start on it?
It took me years to clean all the brain washed untruthful ideas all the new age practices put in my mind...
Thank God I was rescued by Holy Spirit. HE knows all things and reveal to us, even the deep things of GOD so... I praise HIM for setting me free from seeking self; forever: to trust and only rely on the Word of Truth, to know HIS power as I grow in knowing Jesus Christ as my Father and might friend.
PS. I hope you understand (excuse me if not.. English is my second language) what I said and pray the Holy Spirit leads you in every decision and choices you make...
Thanks for sharing that, Adriene. Just read an article from Yahoo.com and a lot of folks would agree with you...
ReplyDeletehttp://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101007/ap_on_re/us_rel_southern_baptists_yoga