It's likely that I just pissed off at least two groups -- Christian pastors who preach that yoga is a practice that comes from Satan, and Hindus who think that yoga needs to be practiced only within the confines of Hinduism.
It is true that I do not practice what either camp would consider kosher. What I do know is this: After more than three decades of dedicated practice, for me, yoga is more about prayer than it is about postures, strength building, flexibility, and the right clothes and mat.
Long ago, I read a quote from Thomas Merton, the American Trappist and contemplative monk. Merton wrote, "We are not so much entangled in our bodies as we are entangled in our minds." The practice of yoga untangles me, and when coupled with my breath and an internal/mental chant (The Jesus Prayer*), allows me to pray, to lift up my heart, to intend my mind, soul, body and being to God. Which God? It strikes me, as it struck Merton, and others like him through the centuries, that in the higher reaches of the soul, when one is plucked out and brought into that place that is no place, that heaven beyond language, beyond culture and context, beyond education, religion, mind and body, one realizes that God cannot be contained or confined, only experienced in awe, and only experienced in such a way that is impossible to define, or explain; one realizes that God has no form, is no thing, and is therefore beyond all form and beyond all religion.
In the Unitive State, one is being, but is no thing. Yogic prayer can open the inner door, leading to the possibility that one may be plucked and ride to the place that is no place, where the physical body cannot enter, where there is no brain and no breath, and hence no language, no culture, nor anything but soul, with the cosmic music that ear has not heard, and Light beyond light that eye has not seen, and all that makes it impossible to articulate. This, and yoga, makes me a heretic in some eyes, and a fool in the minds of others. So be it. Moreover, the practices of any form of deep prayer or meditation, it seems to me, cross culturally and globally, all share one aspect in common -- if one learns to still the noise inside the mind, one might find the door within, and on opening the door, and opening it again, find a way home into the Divine.
As for me, I pray that western yogis and yoginis discover the deeper aspects of yogic practice, which lead away from egoism, into compassion and kindness, and into the Heart of God.
My humble apologies go to the American Hindu Association for appropriating yoga into my Christian practice, but I am now, after all these decades of practice, set in my ways, and find that incorporating disciplined physicality into my prayer life makes my body strong and flexible, but most importantly keeps my mind focused and receptive and opens the inner door. My humble apologies to the Christian pastors who believe that yoga is of the devil. You are wrong. Deep prayer coupled with a heart intended to God, lifted to God, opens the contemplative path in ways inexplicable and written about for centuries by the saints of the church. To the yogic scholars, obviously I am not a knowledge seeker. I am a God seeker. To atheists, what can I say? I am the bastard child of faith who eschews reason and pursues the Pursuer.
*The Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner."
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True to any religion, the teacher, not necessarily the student, would (in this case) be a Hindu. Also lots of confusion over religion and spirituality. Remember "spiritual" means incorporeal, therefore, no"body" can be spiritual. To use an accepted term "religion" is the "link" ("religio") to that which is beyond the body, mind and emotions. Lots of confused HIndus have created this confused "yoga" of today.
Confines are only in your mind "Rev." Panagore :)
Yoga is to Hinduism, what heating is to baking. You are the oven, yoga is the heat, jnana is the cake. Any one can practice the Yoga Asanas (postures, streches) - it doesn't matter who you are or what you happen to believe. You can say I don't need all that Hindu mumbo-jumbo nonsense, let me just stretch my back. Fine. But when the oven is heated, it starts to bake, and the kundalini starts to tingle and buzzzzz your chakras, your 'book' is not going to give you any answers. Zilch. Nada.
The Asanas are the process - when it actually starts to go to work on you, bake you, you better be prepared. You will need help.
http://www.manblunder.com/search/label/kundalini
The various chakra, nadi are NOT imaginary - once kundalini is activated "properly" you will have "real" experience of these in your "physical" body. If yoga is disconnected from Hindu "mumbo-jumbo", there is nothing else out there to explain these "real" experiences and guide us in a safe way towards mukti. Materialists and atheists should allow themselves the complete freedom to experiment "safely" and find out for themselves if any of this "mumbo-jumbo" is real or not.
"...beyond all form and beyond all religion"
"...my Christian practice"
"...I am not a knowledge seeker. I am a God seeker"
Yes, you can have only one :)
because the two are not compatible - your "god/son" and Universal Wisdom.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:_qsrX3EYPfIJ:www.theskepticalreview.com/tsrmag/3hare94.html+hare+jesus&cd=4&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
http://www.theskepticalreview.com/tsrmag/3hare94.html
http://www.jesusisbuddha.com/
I quote a French Jesuit Priest, Pierre de Chardin who wrote, "We are not Human beings having a Spiritual experience but Spiritual beings having a Human experience." Someone responded that is really from a Hindu writer. Who knows if he "borrowed" it but is this really important? Now what I write something different with my new found knowledge....."A French Jesuit...., echoed the views found in Hinduism..... This common denominator is probably found in other Faiths."
There are some religions that teach that there's is the only way like Christianity and Islam but many Christians and Muslims quitely object to this position. When someone tells me, "I am a good Christian". My response is, "Dont tell me you are a good Christian, show me". If they continue to debate the issue, my standard line, "Are you trying to convince me or yourself?" This shuts them up!
May peace reign all over this earth, in the water and in all herbs, trees and creepers.
May peace flow over the whole universe.
May peace be in the Supreme Being Brahman.
And may all everywhere always exist in peace and peace alone.
Om peace, peace and peace to us and all beings!
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanti_Mantra
I grew up Evangelical and openly reject ALL OF IT!!!
I think the purpose of HAF's awareness campaign is to ensure that yoga is not delinked from its roots in the Dharmic religions. There are some organizations, such as the Catholic Church, which have stated that yoga HAS to be separated from Hinduism for it to be spiritually fit for Christians. They claim that yoga has to be cleansed of its Hindu foundation and adapted to Christianity (thereby creating 'Christian yoga'). It's this sort of exclusionary and bigoted thinking that bothers Hindus. If you benefit from yoga, as you have every right to, you should at least recognize that Hinduism bears spiritual truths, and is as true as, any other religion. It makes no sense to declare that Hinduism is deficient or that Lord Krishna doesn't exist, and that Jesus is the only way, and then embrace a philosophy developed by ancient sages, who achieved enlightenment and salvation through the teachings of Hinduism, the Buddha, and Mahavira.
"My humble apologies go to the American Hindu Association for appropriating yoga into my Christian practice"--No apologies needed or are expected from any Hindu if you want to appropriate yoga into your "Christian" practice or any other practice. The only contention was the attempt by some people to disconnect Yoga from Hinduism. A simple recognition that Yoga and its principles are rooted in Hinduism and Hindu philosophy is all what was asked for and what will be expected from any Hindu and some don't even expect that.
We can disagree if Jesus is the only way but this is not my point. The whole purpose of Yoga is to quite the mind and the body eliminating the "static" of our human experience. People of Faith will say that God "talks to them" and indeed in Luke 17:21 it even states that the "Kingdom of God is within you" by some interpretations.
If this is the case, why can't Yoga be effective? And this returns to my opening point, that we are to have a personal relationship with God. The key word is "personal". This is why there are over 30, 000 World Christian sects and denominations. There is no "one way", but many ways.
When someone tells me they are a Christian, my response is, "Dont tell me you are a Christian, show me you are a Christian." Sadly, too many Christians wear their Religion on their sleeve and only interested in "saving you" and "judging you" because you do not have the same exact beliefs that they have.
Perhaps you're church can worship jesus as the one and only way and yet convince itself that it holds all other paths equal. Not logical, but fine.
Historically, the existence of multiple christian denominations is that some believe they have the right way and can't agree with others: Protest -anism, the catholic way, ... The story of jesus can be seen as one man's search but the churches that evangelize and prosetlyze don't see it that way.
But to move away from churchanity and into one's own spirit is fundamental to Yoga and Hinduism.
hariaum
What I think that is fascinating that the MRI of a person in deep prayer and in Yoga (forgive me if I am not using the correct term), are very similar.
de Chardin got that from where, do you know? No, not from the 'book'. Sorry.
Do you know Sri Ramanuja, Sri Aurobindo? They are de Chardin's real gurus, not Jesus. So, The Church actually banned him...
Why can't the religions respect each other and learn from each other?
For me, I really support the 9 Insights in the Celestine Prophecy. There is more than one path but the end result is what is important.
http://browofcalm.blogspot.com/2006/08/celestine-prophecy.html
Sadly, our Society is more focused on the physical side and worship the seven deadly sins. I really like Ghandi's rendition of this dichotomy.
1. Wealth without work.
2. Pleasure without conscience.
3. Knowledge without character.
4. Business without ethics.
5. Science without humanity.
6. Religion without sacrifice.
7. Politics without principle.
The other more important aspect of Yoga (Raja Yoga) is not taught in any popular yoga school (IMO). This is more philosophical and is intended to control the mind to achieve union with the higher consciousness which is the true essence of yoga. Even this is not religious in any way. In fact, one of the prerequisites of Raja Yoga is "uparathi" which is the "renunciation of formalities of religion".
Thank you for sharing your knowledge on the subject as well as your perspective. F&F
I appreciate the broad outlook of your denomination. Hinduism as I understand and practice it, is very similar in its tolerance and respect to all other faiths.