namasteph yoga blog

One of the trendiest forms of yoga that you may not yet have heard of is Christian Yoga. You may not have heard of it, because it’s heartland-based and not something you’ll easily find in an urban center such as Los Angeles or New York City.

I am not a Christian, but I am fascinated with the concept of Christian Yoga and I think it is a good idea. I am all for yoga that can honor other religions, especially Christianity. If Christian Yoga can bring yoga to the masses, then let’s have more Christian Yoga.

My concern with Christian Yoga, however, is the extremely negative portrayal some Christians make of yoga’s Hindu roots.

For example, on this Christian Yoga website, the FAQ explains:

If secular yoga is not completely separated from its eastern religion and philosophy, it could expose participants to spiritual forces that are not of God. Scripture Yoga is a Christ-centered approach that allows you to enjoy the physical benefits of yoga without the spiritual dangers presented by other forms of yoga.

Holy Moses!!! Heaven forbid someone gets exposed to an eastern religion in yoga class! It might be contagious and catching!!

She further goes on to claim that if you open yourself to eastern religion, then you are opening yourself up to “dark spiritual forces.” Give me a break. Who’s the darker spiritual force? Jerry Falwell or the Dalai Lama? No contest in my book.

Sadly, this ridiculously uninformed and prejudicial attitude is present with a lot of Christian yogis. I’ve even seen the Hindu religion called “heathen.”

If you think that’s bad, another woman completely co-opted yoga and many yoga poses to rename it into something called “PraiseMoves.” She goes on a complete tirade against New Age thought and other religions on her so-called “Christian” website. That’s not what Jesus would have done. Such hypocrisy.

Excuse me, well-meaning but close-minded holier than thou Christians: Hinduism is not in conflict with your Christian God! If you knew anything about it (which obviously you do not), you would know that the deities in Hinduism are not separate Gods but aspects of the one God.

Now, you may be saying that this is counter to Christian theology. Well, bull-pucky! What do you call the Trinity - the Father, Son and Holy Spirit? Three Gods in one! So why on earth do you have a problem with a singular God manifesting separately as Ganesha, Krishna, or Siva? It’s all the same thing - just different lingo.

What really burns my britches is that these people take thousands of years of a Hindu spiritual practice - yoga - claim it for their own - and then bitch-slap the religion it came from.

Is there any good reason to be so fearful of another religion? If Christianity truly is the one true religion, then why do you need to “shield” Christians from other religions? Are you afraid they might actually find something of value there?

So, Christian yogis - feel free to use yoga, but stop with the holier than thou attitude. Be respectful of other religions. There is nothing “Satanic” about Hinduism, and if you truly believe that, then the darkness is within you. Such insanity in the name of religion.

I will be reviewing a Christian yoga book soon - stay tuned.