YogRadio

Yoga has a spiritual aspect, by design. Not only is it designed to open up blocked chakras or energy flows in the body that are deeply intertwined with the soul and mind, but it also grants practitioners benefits in terms of balance and stamina, and flexibility of muscles. This is important of course, especially as we age. Studies have shown that the more flexible a person is by age 55, the greater his or her chance of achieving longevity. Some practitioners of yoga live to be centenarians, still productive even in their waning years. But, the religious aspect of yoga, associated as it is with Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, is one aspect many Westerners find more than a little prohibitive to taking up the practice. Many people in the Western world are Christians in some form or fashion, and while the thousands of various Christian sects and denominations and unaffiliated followers have either varying views on yoga, or nothing to say about it at all, some people have claimed that the Catholic Church has condemned the practice of yoga. This is not entirely the case.

Yoga, when practiced by a devout Catholic, is seen not as a meditative function of religious expression, nor are any of the New Age aspects of the practice involved. A Catholic views Yoga merely as exercise for the body, and its mind-body-spirit connection as philosophical rather than religious.  This is perfectly okay for Catholics.  Where things get tricky is when a Catholic delves into the eastern mystical traditions that are associated with yoga.  Often a yoga instructor is going to encourage the practice of some of the eastern mystical meditative forms alongside the exercise aspect.  This is where the Catholic must learn to ignore and not “go there.”  None of this “Namaste” stuff is going to go well with Catholic faith.  There is not going to be any sort of search for the inner divine, etc… because a Catholic relies on the prayer forms of the Church for meditation, and only on God to reveal his or her true identity to themselves.

So, in a nutshell, Christians would be wise to draw the line when practicing yoga, being sure that they are not conflicting with their own traditions while still maintaining the attitude that yoga as physical exercise and philosophy is acceptable, but engaging in any of the aspects that are directly related to the religions to which yoga is intimately associated is not.