Yoga Warnings from Christians and non-Christians
Christians and non-Christians alike warn about the dangers of Yoga! Here are a few samples of these warnings. Other warnings that have been made about the numerous hazards of yoga can be found in volumes of occult literature, in many articles on the Internet, in Christian research articles and books, and also here on the Dangers of Yoga website. See former spiritualist medium Ben Alexander’s articles titled Eastern Mysticism and Exposing Satan’s Power – Yoga Dangers (Video Transcripts Part 1-4). And my booklet YOGA and CHRISTIANITY: Are They Compatible?
-Chris Lawson
Non-Christians Warning About the Dangers of Yoga!
From an e-mail received by Lighthouse Trails received from the Classical Yoga Hindu Academy, www.classicalyoga.org/. See the article posted at Lighthouse Trails, YOGA – Just Exercise or a Hindu Religion? , https://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/yoga.htm.
"Is Yoga a religion that denies Jesus Christ? Yes. Just as Christianity denies the Hindu MahaDevas such as Siva, Vishnu, Durga and Krishna, to name a few, Hinduism and its many Yogas have nothing to do with God and Jesus (though we do respect that others believe in this way). As Hindus who live the Yogic lifestyle, we appreciate when others understand that all of Yoga is all about the Hindu religion. Modern so-called 'yoga' is dishonest to Hindus and to all non-Hindus such as the Christians."
There is no Christian Yoga? is an article by Yogi Baba Prem, South Asia Mail, www.southasiamail.com/news.php?id=107606. Posts have been found at the following links.
Sources: The “There is no Christian Yoga” article was posted in several places online. As of 2023, it is still online here, “There is no Christian Yoga,” Yogi Baba Prem, Published on 11 November 2012, https://emalayalee.com/vartha/37611. The article is also screenshotted on the Internet Archive at https://web.archive.org/web/20140714201319/http://creative.sulekha.com/there-is-no-christian-yoga_184977_blog. This article was also posted at http://creative.sulekha.com/there-is-no-christian-yoga_184977_blog.
"It was quite astonishing to see on the flyer 'Christian Yoga! This Thursday night....' I could feel the wheels spinning in my brain. 'Christian Yoga,' I thought. Now while Christians can practice yoga, I am not aware of any Christian teachings about yoga. Yoga is not a Judeo/Christian word! It is not a part of the Roman Catholic teachings and certainly not a part of protestant teachings. It is not found within the King James Version of the bible. It is a Hindu word, or more correctly a Sanskrit word from the Vedic civilization. So how did we get 'Christian Yoga'? "From this I could conclude that 'Christian Yoga' could only indicate one of two possibilities: 1) Christianity is threatened by yoga and is attempting to take over this system that is expanding and successfully teaching spirituality to the masses. 2) Christianity is subconsciously attempting to return to the spiritual roots of civilization—the Vedic civilization. ... I thought to myself, “why would they want to take over yoga?” Could it be due to the decline of members within the Christian church within the last 60 years? ... Hinduism should reclaim its full heritage and not allow other groups to rename its sacred teachings under their banner, especially when they have no history of those teaching within their own system. If they wish to ‘borrow’ and say this comes from our brothers and sisters in Hinduism, then that is another thing. But frequently groups attempt to privatize the information and present themselves as the original authority. Hinduism should guard against its sacred traditions becoming distorted and taken away. … Scholars at universities should take the stand that yoga is part of Hinduism, though one is not required to be a Hindu to practice yoga. It is important to acknowledge the roots of the tradition; after all we are expected to give credit to the orginial sources within books and research papers, but yet Hindu scholars have ignored this fundamental western view when it comes to their own heritage. … One does need to be Hindu to practice yoga, but it is clear from historical evidence that Yoga comes from Hinduism.
From the Managing Editor of Hinduism Today. Quoted in Darryl E. Owens’ article “Christian yoga’ strikes a new pose,” Orlando Sentinel, May 14, 2006, htttp://www.denverpost.com/lifestyleles/ci_3819655. See also, https://guardinghisflock.com/2011/01/11/posture-to-apostasy/
"Hinduism is the soul of yoga ‘based as it is on Hindu Scripture and developed by Hindu sages. Yoga opens up new and more refined states of mind, and to understand them one needs to believe in and understand the Hindu way of looking at God. . . . A Christian trying to adapt these practices will likely disrupt their own Christian beliefs’."
Christians Warning About the Dangers of Yoga!
East and West, The Two Shall Never Meet is an article by Pastor Larry DeBruyn. This article excerpt can be found on the Lighthouse Trails Research Project website. YOGA – Just Exercise or a Hindu Religion? , http://www.lighthousetrailsresearch.com/yoga.htm.
"Christianity cannot be integrated with yoga and remain Christian. To think otherwise imperils the Christian truth and faith. As the managing editor of 'Hinduism Today,' Sannyasin Arumugaswami, remarks, 'Hinduism is the soul of yoga 'based as it is on Hindu Scripture and developed by Hindu sages. Yoga opens up new and more refined states of mind, and to understand them one needs to believe in and understand the Hindu way of looking at God. . . . A Christian trying to adapt these practices will likely disrupt their own Christian beliefs'.' East is east, and west is west, and if Christianity is to remain Christian, 'the twain' should never be married."
YOGA—Today’s lifestyle for health, by author Mike Oppenheimer, http://www.letusreason.org/NAM1.htm.
"The practice of Yoga is pagan at best, and occult at worst. Its teachings emanate from the Eastern religions, all of which teach that self is God, only we just don't realize it until we do the techniques. 'The goal of Yoga is self-realization-to look deeply within to what ought to be the temple of the one true God and to discover the alleged true Self or higher Self to be God. Nothing could be more religious than that, yet with straight faces, all of the Yogis insist that practicing Yoga does not change anyone's religious beliefs."
Can we separate the exercise of Yoga from the philosophy of Yoga? This quote below is from Johanna Michaelsen’s book, Like Lambs to the Slaughter (Harvest House Publishers: Eugene, OR) 1989, pp. 93-95. This citation is in Chapter 6, Your Kid the Yogi, under the sub-heading Hatha-Yoga. When asking, “Can We Separate the Exercise From the Philosophy?” the obvious answer is “No!”
"There is a common misconception in the West that hatha-yoga, one of about ten forms of Yoga that supposedly leads to self-realization, is merely a neutral form of exercise, a soothing and effective alternative for those who abhor jogging and calisthenics ... "[However], Hatha-yoga is 'one of the six recognized systems of orthodox Hinduism' and is at its roots religious and mystical. It is also one of the most difficult and potentially dangerous [spiritually] forms of Yoga. "The term hatha is derived from the verb hath, which means 'to oppress.'... What the practice of hatha-yoga is designed to do is suppress the flow of psychic energies through these channels ["symbolic, or psychic, passages on either side of the spinal column"], thereby forcing the 'serpent power' or the kundalini force to rise through the central psychic channel in the spine (the sushumna) and up through the chakras, the supposed psychic centers of human personality and power. Westerners mistakenly believe that one can practice hatha-yoga apart from the philosophical and religious beliefs that undergrid it. This is an absolutely false belief. ... "You cannot separate the exercises from the philosophy. ... 'The movements themselves become a form of meditation.' The continued practice of the exercises will, whether you ... intend it or not, eventually influence you toward an Eastern/mystical perspective. That is what it is meant to do! ... There is, by definition, no such thing as 'neutral' Yoga" "
What is the Christian view of yoga? This citation is an excerpt answer from an article at GotQuestions.org, https://www.gotquestions.org/Christian-yoga.html.
The question becomes, is it possible for a Christian to isolate the physical aspects of yoga as simply a method of exercise, without incorporating the spirituality or philosophy behind it? Yoga originated with a blatantly anti-Christian philosophy, and that philosophy has not changed. It teaches one to focus on oneself instead of on the one true God. It encourages its participants to seek the answers to life’s difficult questions within their own conscience instead of in the Word of God. It also leaves one open to deception from God’s enemy, who searches for victims that he can turn away from God (1 Peter 5:8).
This article has been expanded (Sep, 2023). The original shorter text was previously posted at http://www.spiritual-research-network.com/dangers-of-yoga.html
