Subscribe!
I’ve had an issue with my class that I’ve written about in a more relevant context (i.e. WoYoPracMo). The question I’m wrestling with is how can I have such a strong negative reaction to yoga presented as a religion when I’ve increasingly no problem identifying with Buddhism? (Though establishing a practice is another matter altogether!)
Filed under: religion, spirituality, yoga | Tagged: personal, religion
Funnily enough, I’ve been through the same thing with yoga but hadn’t actually articulated it. In my private religious sphere I’m all for the karma and the chakras and the soul and the mysticism – in fact, I love it. For a year, I attended a yoga class that emphasised all of that. Then I tried another class that’s all about perfecting the poses. i have swapped class a for class b, and am far happier and am loving the yoga more.
The religious journey bit I can do on my own. I’m not looking for a guru.
From what I’ve read, this is something of an issue with Western yoga practice. Evidently it’s a very Western idea to separate the spiritual stuff from the asanas. I suppose if you were going for the exercise, then the religious aspect wouldn’t be welcome.
Or maybe this particular religious practice just isn’t for you?
It’s a tricky one – I’m open to the spiritual elements emerging organically – but I don’t want to be lectured! And I know what you mean about the gap that’s been imposed in the West. I can’t logically justify it at all!
For me, it’s the lecturing quality that sometimes emerges from yoga classes that are very religiously focused. I like some chanting at the outset, I even like some discussion of the spiritual mind-body connection while we’re doing the poses, but I don’t want extensive chanting, and I don’t want my attention focused on yoga practice as the worship of particular gods.
For me, yoga is about worshipfulness, provided we understand that as a general orientation to the world — and not necessarily meaning anything about believing in a god, or gods, or what have you.
I agree with you on the lecturing part. My yoga class recently turned towards this and I found it weird — especially since the instructor read from a book, not like she really believed it. And then she mixed it with her own new-agey version of Christianity. It was an odd mix and made me agitated. I don’t mind the spiritual aspects of yoga — it is part of what interests me about it — but I don’t want the religious instruction. As DR put it, it’s about finding the worthiness in a peaceful orientation to the world. I think that orientation is one that recognizes the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual realms, but I want it to be about finding that space and growing into the defining of it in relation to me & my practice, not what the instructor says — or reads from a book. Somewhere recently I came across a reference to the old English root of worship meaning to find or put worth into. That’s what I want, but not in terms of someone else’s gods, else it’s just exercise not a practice.
I’d say my position is pretty much in line with dr and Cam, now I think about it. My previous yoga teacher was deeply into the spirituality of the practice (and I think practice is a key word) but very much let you draw directly from your experience. As a result, I ended up asking her for a reading list which included a lot of stuff explicitly referencing the religious or spiritual elements of it.
I guess I would say that the problem comes from Yoga not being a religion. It does have a very spiritual connection, and I find that connection to be interesting, and that it helps me to feel centered and improves my practice and my sense of well being. But if I felt my teacher were preaching a religion to me, I would find another class. Does that make sense at all?
The reason why most “phoney” Yoga in the West is confusing many of you, is DELUSION. Yoga and Hinduism are one in the same. When it is divorced, misrepresented, exploited, the only outcome can be confusuion/delusion. “J” writes it is not religion but has a “spiritual connection” – well of course!!! Spiritual is incorpreal (w/o body), religion is “form. ” So, the purpose of religion is to connect to the Spirit. One can not be “spiritual” and not be religious. In the case of practicing the Yogas (the progressive religious/spiritual disciplines of Hinduism and its sects) the outcome of the cognitive dissonace of New Age Yoga will get you nothing but more confused and stuck deeper and deeper in ego.
J and yati are both right, I think. Yoga can undoubtedly be great/appalling for one’s ego (”I can get my heels down in downward facing dog! Yay! I’m SuperYogi!” Guilty as charged.) and my understanding is that historically it was designed as preparation for meditation (and we all know where that leads). But who is anyone to judge whether someone’s yoga is phoney? Show an ‘authentic’ religious practice and I’ll show you one which will have co-opted or suppressed dozens of others in its time.
“To the pure, all things are pure.” Thar’s because there’s no such thing as ‘pure’.
Dear (un)relaxed
Before you make more (un)informed comments, please look up the words Yoga, Yogi and other commonly misused Hindu words stolen and spewed in the New Age yoga, in scholarly religious texts – some definitions are supplied below. The very word yoga is now being misused to merely mean the physical exercises. In fact, what many are meaning to refer to is Hatha Yoga (one of several yogas or progressive religious/spiritual disciplines of Hinduism ) to ‘yoke’ the Atmana (individual soul) to Brahman (soul source) to achieve enlightenment – basic Hindu tenet. Hatha Yoga are postures to Hindu deities, Hindu Sages and nature in a Hindu context. There is and always has been no Yoga without Hinduism and visa – versa. As a Hindu and a thinking human being,YES, I can ‘judge’ quite well what “phoney” yoga is. Real yogas are found, practiced in Hinduism and taught by a qualified Hindu.
Before you “judge” my comments, find and share contradictory evidence. There is an abundance of “phoney” yoga, you and many others have been duped into doing – divorced/uprooted from Hinduism everywhere we turn these days. Please do your homework so as not to be one of them.
I would speculate that a ‘pure’ enlightened person would still recognize and drink pure, fresh water and pass on drinking the sewer water – retaining common sense while living in duality. Since you feel “there’s no such thing as ‘pure’ – which water do you wish to drink?
~Sanskrit: The ancient language of the Hindus [Webster's] Note: all subsequent terms are Sanskrit (Skr.) and thus Hindu.
~Aum/Om: The most sacred symbol in Hinduism [Oxford World Religions]
~yoga: Skr. “Hinduism” [Webster's]
~yoga: Oneness of Atmana and Brahman [Dict. of Skr. Names]
~yogi: Hindu Ascetic [Oxford World Rel.]
~Atmana: Skr. Self/Spirit; Hinduism [Webster's]
~Brahman: Skr. Hindu Religion [Webster's]
~yoga: Skr. A Hindu discipline [Oxford Am. Dict.]
~ yoga: Skr. A system of Hindu religious philosophy [Thorndike Barnhardt]
~yoga: Skr. general term for spiritual disciplines in Hinduism [Columbia Encyclopedia]
~The first recorded evidence of the Skr. word “yoga” is found in the Vedas.
~Veda Skr. The most ancient sacred literature of the Hindus. [Webster's]
Yati – recognise a little light-heartedness here and there. And also recognise that I’ve attempted to be open and even-handed in my response to you. It may surprise you to know that I’m not unfamiliar with the majority of what you mention. You’ve made your point, you’ve called me a sewage drinker – now please take your superiority complex elsewhere.
(un)relaxed – Insisting that I end a civil discussion is your expression of being “open,” “even-handed” and “light-hearted” ??? If you genuinely were “not unfamiliar with the majority of what you (I) mention” and comprehended it, you would know when practicing or studying Hatha Yoga one is unquestionably involved with religion, and that religion is Hinduism. The main “point,” which you missed, was just that, factually – all of Yoga is Hinduism and visa – versa. If on the other “hand” you do comprehend it, and still practice and support “phoney” yoga, you are then willfully discriminating, exploiting a religion and culture because it suits a self -centered desire at the moment.
I did not call you a “sewer drinker,” but was merely pointing out the absurdity when one naively regurgitates mystical statements, perhaps to appear different than ones true state – which is truly a state of feeling superior. Speaking such things, is most often silly as they are beyond duality, which we are not -as soon as we speak of them we “lie.”
As to claiming I have a “superiority complex” – please tap into your “deep” understanding of Hinduism and recognize vitarka (sound reasoning), vichara (judgement) and vikalpa (the delusion of separating words and their meaning), the foundation of the Yoga Sutras and further “get the point” and recognize one defending their religion. Now (atha, after what has previously been discussed), please feel free to comment – “discriminating” the opinions in phoney yoga from facts.
Yati
1) Yati, I think that perfection is a laudable goal, unachievable in this life, though one should try.
2) I don’t believe that one has to become a committed Christian to read the bible and take something of value from it. I don’t believe one has to become a committed Hindu to take something of value – spiritually as well – from yoga
3) Millions of people all over the world who would otherwise have serious health conditions have benefited from yoga. I think that’s something to be celebrated.
(un)relaxeddad;
1) YES, a most laudable goal it is. As you may well know, reincarnation is a basic tenet in Hinduism and some other religions – giving one many lifetimes to achieve this inevitable, difficult, time consuming project – we all are on. This tenet is not found in Christianity, Judaism or Islamic (monotheistic) religions. Many students making a sham of yoga are of one of these religions and some claim no religion or even worse – claiming they have the right to redefine an established religion or they are above religion and beyond duality. Those who claim a monotheistic faith are contradicting a basic tenet of their religion. This has a detrimental effect on their psyche – not to mention their clergy would be forced to ask them to renounce such a belief or cut any ties to that religion. What is your religion?
2) YES again, there is truth in this comment. You hit the “nail on the head” by choosing the word “take.” Oxford Dictionary: “take” can mean acquiring, earn, purchase, use of,accept,etc. It can also mean, capture,annihilate, swindle, assume, cheat, deduct, extract, demand,embezzle, etc. We can see by definition one can morally and ethically “take,” study, practice or borrow from a religion(s) but must not “take” from it in the negative sense (with cliches like “it has nothing to do with religion, “it fits into any ones religion,” “yoga predates Hinduism,” etc.. We can, however, ethically “take” from Yoga/Hinduism and acknowledge its roots and of course do not teach it unethically (there are alternatives to how this can be done.) Just who were the “committed Christian,” – followers of Christ (a Jewish Rabbi) “taking” from the Torah, “inventing” a “new” religion (seemingly unintended by its originator) and bringing in a “New” Testament – stating the original is “Old’ and out of date and not acknowledging the source. So, what’s the harm in a small misrepresentations…well it leads to discrimination, persecution and ending in Holocaust or war. One does not have to become a Hindu, as you say, to study it, but to study it, accept it in its misrepresented form from a “thief” is wrong – pulling us further away from that “laudable goal.”
3) Another good question, because so many of us are so often “tricked/blinded” by our un-refined ego… self-absorbed, when we should be Self-absorbed, we see what we want to see. Reply #2, covers a part of this common downward “slip” in thinking. Another part of the equation may be seen in this analogy … It is OK if an author’s book is plagiarized, as long as the thief uses some or all the proceeds for the local orphanage.
Further noted, by the good points you brought up, your statements are accepted by the spurious “yogi/yoginis” – their acceptance are opposite of the Yamas/Niyamas – which they so often claim to adhere to and be expert enough to teach.
Yati