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Can yoga be Christian?

Jainarayan

Jainarayan

ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय
Staff member
Premium Member
The short answer is yes, yoga can be Christian. Call it meditative prayer, flexibility exercises. Christianity has a 2,000 year history of meditative prayer by hermits who lived in desert caves and had little to no contact with others.

In Hinduism there are whole theological treatises on yoga that go light-years beyond meditation and postures, of which I have less than no knowledge.
 
IsmailaGodHasHeard

IsmailaGodHasHeard

Well-Known Member
TouchedbytheLord said:
The short answer is yes, yoga can be Christian. Call it meditative prayer, flexibility exercises. Christianity has a 2,000 year history of meditative prayer by hermits who lived in desert caves and had little to no contact with others.

In Hinduism there are whole theological treatises on yoga that go light-years beyond meditation and postures, of which I have less than no knowledge.
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Oh, okay. That is cool.
 
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Valjean

Valjean

Veteran Member
Premium Member
Yoga is orthodox Hinduism, so, no, it can't be Christian.

Sorry:shrug:

Perfectly non-denominational to practice asanas, though.
 
Valjean

Valjean

Veteran Member
Premium Member
Hatha's still Yoga.
Don't be fooled -- all those asanas are just a treatment modality to make you one with the universe.:eek:
 
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InChrist

InChrist

Free4ever
[FONT=&quot]I have to agree with Seyorni, I don't believe yoga can be Christian because I think yoga [/FONT][FONT=&quot]literally means “yoking”. It refers to union with Brahman (the impersonal force that the Hindus call “God” ). There are several kinds and schools of Yoga (Hindu and Buddhist), and various techniques, but all have the same purpose of reaching union with the Absolute. The positions and breath control are intended as aids to Eastern meditation. Yoga is designed specifically to induce a state of trance which supposedly allows the mind to be drawn upward into a yoking with Brahman or a merging with Nirvana. The goal of Yoga is self-realization. [/FONT]
 
Vinayaka

Vinayaka

devotee
Premium Member
Hatha yoga is like the gateway to bigger things. Although it may seem harmless at first, the calming of the mind that goes with it will naturally lead to deeper thoughts and realisations, some of which may be contrary to Christian doctrine. It could oput you apostate to your faith without you even knowing it.

As a Hindu, I would advise you to stick with your Christianity. Less confusion for you.
 
Madhuri

Madhuri

RF Goddess
Staff member
Premium Member
InChrist said:
[FONT=&quot]I have to agree with Seyorni, I don't believe yoga can be Christian because I think yoga [/FONT][FONT=&quot]literally means “yoking”. It refers to union with Brahman (the impersonal force that the Hindus call “God” ). There are several kinds and schools of Yoga (Hindu and Buddhist), and various techniques, but all have the same purpose of reaching union with the Absolute. The positions and breath control are intended as aids to Eastern meditation. Yoga is designed specifically to induce a state of trance which supposedly allows the mind to be drawn upward into a yoking with Brahman or a merging with Nirvana. The goal of Yoga is self-realization. [/FONT]
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I think the Christians who meditate and practice Yoga also believe something similar, about connecting with the Absolute. The difference is that they see Jesus or the Abrahamic God as the absolute, so they believe they are connecting with Him. Of course, if Yoga actually works as it is meant to, and if the Abrahamic God is the actual reality, then it follows that the yoga practice is in fact connecting you with that God.

Similarly, if the Hindu concept of God is the actual reality, and the Yoga practices work as they should, then you would then realise this truth- OR, if that God concept is not the actual reality, then you are in no danger of anything happening.

Furthermore, the goal of your meditation is what you achieve. If you are attempting to expand the consciousness, if you just want to relax, if you want to strengthen control over the mind or connect with the Divine, then whatever you strive for is what you will achieve.
For example, those who seek oneness with the Brahman, will achieve this. Those who seek communion with the personal God will achieve this.
 
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Vinayaka

Vinayaka

devotee
Premium Member
Seyorni said:
Pay no attention to Vinayaka's slippery slope warning, Ismaila. Asanas are good for you -- and I'm sure you can quit whenever you want.;)
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Pay no attention to Seyorni's words. :)

You see, Ismaila, we all have our opinions. The best one was when you said you would have to think about it. You will just get so many points of view. There has been a very long ongoing debate on how yoga is or is not connected to Hinduism, from both the Christian quarter, and the Hindu quarter, and the neutral quarter.

Self-discovery, or in your words, "I'll have to think about it" is an essential dharmic practice. Most people (certainly you can see this on these forums) end up going with what makes the most sense to them. Some are just blind followers, true, but usually that doesn't last, and eventually they start questioning.
 
Vinayaka

Vinayaka

devotee
Premium Member
Onkara said:
Lets not forget that Shiva (or Krisna, Brahman, Durga etc) created the Christians too :) How do we address that?
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. or emanated from Himself

Yes, of course. Different people address it differently, don't they? How do you address it?

I do by recognising that different people (or souls) need different actions or reasons to spur them onward towards becoming better humans. Although ultimately everyone is of the same essence, people all vibrate differently, just as they all smell differently, perceive differently, etc. Nature and nurture both play a role in that end result called a human. God, in his wisdom, put forth a wide variety of faiths and systems and non-systems, so everyone has a place to go.

Think of a massive multicultural buffet. Not just one line of various foods, but also a whole line of tables, and buffets inside some huge stadium. There is dog, rice and curry, steak, earthworms, tofu burgers, several hundred cheeses, ... basically anything at all on the planet that could be considered food. Each table has a big label, and everyone comes down from the bleachers, grabs a plate, and then heads off to the place they find comfortable. Some explore around more than others.
 
K.Venugopal

K.Venugopal

Immobile Wanderer
Yoga is all about integrating our personality. So not only should everyone do yoga, but everyone should become Yogis!
 
Jainarayan

Jainarayan

ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय
Staff member
Premium Member
Guns don't kill people; people kill people. Asanas don't turn you into a Hindu from a Christian; you turn you into a Hindu from a Christian. Just because part of a discipline originated in another belief system, does not mean you have to adhere to that entire original belief system, or are adhering to it. It's how you approach it and what you do with it.

Lacrosse was invented by Native Americans. Playing lacrosse does not make you Oglala Sioux. Lacrosse is a game. Yoga postures are exercises. It's how far you take the discipline. Meditating on Om is Hindu; meditating on "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner" is pretty damn Christian to me.

When I do japa Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya or Om Sri Krishnaya namaha, that's Hindu; if I do japa on the "Jesus prayer", that's Christian and a deviation from my faith. Eastern Orthodox Christians do the same prostrations to venerate icons (been there, done that) as Muslims do in prayers at mosque. The EOC is far older than Islam. Do those prostrations in mosque make Muslims any less Muslim, and more Christian?
 
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