Yoga and Losing Your Religion

Several years ago, one of my students brought a woman friend to class. She thought her friend, a Protestant minister, could benefit from yoga.

The woman was very polite during class, but gave my friend a stern little talk in the car on the way home. She couldn’t come to classes, she said, because it would be in conflict with her religion. She explained (and I’m paraphrasing in the third person here) that the small statues of Hindu figures and the print of the Buddhist bodhisattva Kwan Yin in the studio conflicted with her religion’s directive not to “worship false idols”. She was also concerned for my student, and expressed that. (She’s still coming to classes.)

When I heard this, I was a little taken aback. I wish she had asked me about this. It’s the sort of question that arises frequently with new students, especially those that hold strong Christian beliefs. I would have been happy to talk with her about it.

I was raised Presbyterian and consider myself to be fundamentally Christian in the sense that I believe in the teachings of Christ. However, as a yoga teacher, there is no doubt my belief system has been strongly influenced by yoga philosophy, which I haven’t found to be in conflict with my basic beliefs. (I should point out here that I don’t consider myself to be Hindu.)

It’s true that yoga philosophy finds its roots in Hinduism (as does Buddhism, also). And although Hinduism can appear polytheistic, it’s not. All of the images of Hindu characters with blue faces, elephant heads, multiple arms, necklaces of skulls, and so many exotic-appearing details are just representations of the many facets of the God-spirit. (And yes, many Hindus would consider this to be the same God in which Christians believe, although not personified as having human characteristics or being male.) My favorite description of Hinduism is “cheerfully polytheistic monotheism”. I like to really simplify this by saying that all of the Hindu God-faces are like characters in a comic book, each with his or her special identity and powers: There is the happy face of God, wrathful God, God being loving, and many, many more.

Christianity and yoga philosophy share many common fundamental tenets: A belief in peacefulness and truthfulness; the belief people should refrain from stealing, lying, and greed; a sense of personal responsibility reflected in the way we keep our bodies and run our personal lives, and of course, devotion to God.

It’s only fair that I also point out here that Christianity and Hinduism differ in many substantial ways. But in case I’m not making myself clear: Practicing yoga doesn’t make you Hindu.

So, if my yoga visitor had asked, what I would have told her is this:

“It’s my belief that yoga is a form of prayer. To whom or what you pray is your own business. It’s not my role to have that influence in your life. Yoga can support your existing belief system.”

Yoga consists of many kinds of practices and types of yoga. Physical yoga (asana) is only one of them. I fully believe a Christian can be a yogi (yoga practitioner) in every way. The Christian yogi can practice asana and breathwork (pranayama) to build a healthy body, chant Christian prayers and sing Christian hymns and songs, study the Bible and related materials, act with mindfulness and intention, do good and kind work in service of God, sit in contemplation and prayer, and work to live life in union with God, including practicing Christian rituals and celebrations.

(Here’s a link to a great blog post about the discrimination some Christians feel in yoga classes.)

I believe that yoga is adaptable to many belief systems. There are yoga classes being offered across the country that address the needs and beliefs of various groups of people, including Christian yoga classes, and classes specifically for Jewish yogis. (One class held near my home chants in Hebrew.)

Obviously I’m not qualified to teach those classes. I can only teach about yoga, and I limit my teaching, mostly, to physical yoga, and fairly simple philosophy. This is because I believe it’s my responsibility as a yoga teacher to help students access yoga in a way that makes them comfortable.

Part of my personal path is supporting others on their path and I try to do this whenever possible.

This past Tuesday night, I attended a kirtan with Krishna Das. Bhakti, or devotional, yoga can take the form of repeating the names of God. Kirtan is this repetition, set to music, in call and response form. Krishna Das described it this way: “The names of God are medicine and music is the sweet syrup in which they’re carried.” During the evening, Krisha Das expressed appreciation for all of the world’s great teachers, Christ included. He has a reputation for busting out the occasional gospel tune. In fact, his recording of an old Mahalia Jackson song called”God is Real” is a favorite with my yoga students. While most of the kirtan was in Sanskrit (the ancient language still used in modern yoga), the crowd of several hundred people whooped and hollered as he and his musicians broke into “Jesus Is On That Main Line,” enthusiastically clapping and singing back the refrain “Tell him what you want!” Krisha Das told the participants that this is the sort of song he wasn’t allowed to sing as a child, having been “raised Jewish on my parents’ side,” but he now embraces as part of his practice to sing the names of God whenever and however possible.

God is Real

There are some things I may not know
There are some places, dear Lord, I may not go.
But there’s one thing of which I’m sure
My God is real for I can feel him in my soul

Namasté.