With the declaration and observation of International Yoga Day on June 21, 2015, a lot of debates have been generated especially among the Christians in North East India. Some denominations called for total ban on the practice of Yoga whilst others have kindler attitude towards it. Many people have shared their opinion on whether a Christian should practice Yoga as it attaches some Hindu elements which may affect Christian faith. This article tries to highlight the pros and cons of yoga and its universal appeals for healthy living. It is hoped that this article will duster away the fear of Christians on practicing Yoga.
What is yoga?Yoga originated from ancient India, with a view to attain a state of permanent peace. Yoga is one of the six Astika (orthodox) school of Hindu philosophy. One of the most detailed and thorough expositions on the subject is the yoga-sutras of ‘patanjali’, which defines yoga as “the stilling of the changing states of the mind”.
Yoga is an important art based on a harmonizing system of development for the body and mind and spirit .yoga is a technique of purifying the mind. The word yoga is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘yuj’ which means ‘union with divine’. The yoga philosophy is an individual gift of the great Indian sage ‘patanjali’ to all bent upon realisation, ‘patanjali’ is known to be the founder of yoga system, it is believed to have been written in 2nd century BC. The yoga sutra or the patanjala-sutra is the first work of the Indian school of philosophy. According to ‘patanjali’ yoga does not literally means union but spiritual effort to attain perfection through the control of the body between mind and spirit.
Eight fold means\path of yoga
1. Moral conduct: control of the body, truthfulness, speech and mind. Abstention from falsehood, theft, incontinence and avarice. Abstention from all kinds of injuries to any life.
2. Cultivation of good habits: purity of body and mind, contentment in all circumstances, self-discipline self-study, kindness, cheerfulness, internal purification and following the rules of good moral conduct.
3. Right posture: right posture helps in the right concentration of the mind and body.
4. Control of breaths: deals with the regulations of inhalation, retention, and exhalation of breath which helps in the concentration of the mind.
5. Withdrawing the senses from their respective external objects and keeping them under the control of the mind.
6. Concentration of the mind on a particular object of meditation like the tip of the nose or the mid-point of the eyebrows. Holding the mind to one thought or object.
7. Meditation and consist in the undisturbed flow of thought in a process to obtained clear knowledge of the object.
8. The last and the most important part of yoga practice is the stage of absolute identity in the process of concentration and the object become one and identical, negating the difference between the subject and object. Thus in this stage the subject and the object as well as the process of concentration become one.
Benefits of yoga
The practice of yoga makes the body strong and flexible, it also improves the functioning of the respiratory and yoga brings about the emotional stability and clarity of mind. It also emphasised the importance of the practical methods of purification and concentration for realisation of the self-distinction from the body and the mind, and thereby attaining liberation. The ultimate aim of the practice of yoga is self-development and self-realisation. Yoga is commonly known for the physical, mental and spiritual practices or disciplines of one-self to attain liberation.
Yoga is believed to acquire certain extra ordinary power by its practice in different stages. It emphasised the importance of the practical methods of purification and concentration for realisation of self’s distinction from the body and the mind and by attaining liberation. The practice of yoga makes the body strong and flexible it also improves the functioning of the respiratory organs. Yoga brings about emotional stability and clarity of the mind. The yoga goes further and formulates certain practical methods of purification and self-control for the realisation of true self of men and women both from theoretical and practical stand point. The aim of yoga is to explore the genuine super physical experience and to reveal the reality of men and women in the world.
Is yoga a religion?
Yoga is about self-realisation and a concentration of body, mind and spirit. After the commencement of international yoga day on 21stJune 2015 that has been observed all over the world, the debate goes viral especially among the Christians. Peoples came out with different opinions regarding yoga with some saying that yoga is purely based on Hindu religion and they want to impose their religion upon people of other faiths. Yoga has been practiced hundred of decades by the great Indian sage ‘patanjali’ focussing on the techniques of purifying the body, mind and spirit. The Indian philosophers from different schools of arts came together and they were giving the freedom to express different types of philosophy and they respect one another philosophy and ends up with a friendly debates. As I interact with my friends on the topic yoga there has always been a division into two groups, some goes on to say that yoga is rooted in an Indian religion which originated from Indian philosophy therefore it is purely based on religion of Hindu where they meditate to their gods and goddesses for ‘union with the divine’. On the other hand some goes on to say that it is not a religion and has nothing to do with religion. It’s all about one-self of attaining liberation through the right concentration of the body mind and spirit. It is purely a practical aid that cannot be termed as religion and the debates goes on and on.
Christian’s response to yoga
Nagaland is said to be a Christian state where 85% belongs to Christian faith with its motto: ‘Nagaland for Christ’. The word Yoga is not a new thing to us. We are familiar with it but never been into practice for we think that it is all about Hindus’ religion and did not have Christians values. Majority of the Christians say a big no to yoga for it is not written in the bible and we cannot put another religion into our beliefs. Many Christians are too scared to practice yoga thinking that it may disturb their normal Christian’s life. One of the major issues that we faced on 21st June 2015 as International Yoga Day was because it falls on Sunday. As Christians, Sunday is observed Sabbath day or holy day where all the members are expected to attend the church and meditate upon the word of God. The Centre has made compulsory for all the government schools, colleges, university to observed Yoga day and were asked to click pictures and send to the Central government. Some of the schools and colleges have already observed yoga day on Sunday. Many Christians have opposed to this observation. As a secular and democratic country, the Centre should not make it compulsory for everyone to practice yoga. There should be freedom of choice for every individual. Making yoga compulsory to observe by all citizens on International Yoga Day may invite negative attitude from many peoples.
Many people talk about yoga without knowing the true nature of yoga. One needs to understand that it is a practical aid based on harmonizing system of development for the body, mind and spirit. Many Christians have the tendency to have negative attitude whatever comes from HINDU religion (Indians) and failed to understand them while accepting without any judgment whatever ideas or culture comes from western countries. We are so much influenced by the western cultures and forgetting our own culture which comes from India. Nagaland is also a part of India and we live under the same umbrella though we have different culture, creed, colour and ways of worshipping God. Religion differs from one another but still then we can gain much for better life from each other’s religious thoughts and bring peaceful co-existence. Yoga if we think carefully is applicable to Christian’s life that will benefit them in their day to day life. Yoga is all about self-realisation by meditating and purifying the mind, body and spirit. For instance, Christians meditate upon the word of God by reading the Bible and tries to reflect of oneself and the wellbeing of life for self-development and self-realisation to attain the highest goal of life with a right mind and attitude. Many Christians have the tendency to be too orthodox in their stance holding that beyond Bible we have no right to admit or allows any sort of things despite its beneficial result. If Yoga helps a person to recover from sickness, gained good health, helped in one’s mediation and brings better life, it may not be necessary to stiffly oppose the practice of Yoga by Christians believing that all good things come from God.
Abebi Nuwiry
BTC Pfutsero
