The goal of the Christian life is one of character development, to become more Christ-like, and to bear the fruits of the Holy Spirit (which are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control).

Character Development & Suffering
Christians know God and develop character through trials and sufferings. So the bible actually says to rejoice in sufferings, eg.

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
James 1:2-4

See also Romans 5:3
“We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.”

And Philippians 3:10
“I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings.”

This is very different to the spiritual principles taught in yoga which is to try to find the god inside you. Yoga does not teach about finding God through life experiences, suffering and so on, but in Christianity spiritual growth means trial and suffering.

The key objective in Yoga is to achieve the union of the body, mind and soul. Bhagavad Gita is a Hinduism book and also a key source of yoga principles. The Hindu faith is based on a rejection of the material world. Because of our worldly desire it is believed that we live in misery and frustration. So the effort is to eliminate such desires. Indeed this is the way of Orthodox Hindu and Theravada Buddhism. The practice of authentic yoga entails a life of exile in caves and isolated places. It is the emptying of your mind from all worldly desires.

If yoga is to be pursued in its full form, it involves spiritual practices which are clearly in conflict with the teachings found in the Christian bible.

Yoga Poses
You’ve probably heard some Christian people say that yoga poses resemble the serpent but this is shallow at best. True Christians worship God in spirit and in truth, meaning worship comes from the heart and not from assuming a body position in itself.

Just think about it… when you wake up in the morning and start to roll around and stretch a bit, it may even resemble a yoga pose (let’s say the cobra pose). Does that mean that you have sinned against God?

Kundalini Yoga
Kundalini yoga focuses on psychic centres or chakras in the body in order to generate a spiritual power known as kundalini energy. It is conceptualized as a coiled up serpent lying at the base of our spine, which can spring awake when activated by spiritual discipline. Spiritual awakening through the arousal of kundalini force coiled at the base of the spine is the essence of this practice.

This is in conflict with the Bible teaching that spiritual awakening means to walk in God’s truth and wisdom, relying on the word of God and the Holy Spirit for power.

There are spiritual elements in the practice of Kundalini Yoga and followers of Yogi Bhajan (who introduced Kundalini Yoga to the US) even lay claim that “it has saved mankind before, is saving it now, and shall save it in the future.” This is in conflict with the Bible position that Jesus Christ is the only saviour and is “the way the truth and the life”. (John 14:6)

What about Hatha Yoga?
It is not purely physical either. Each asana is designed to create a certain state of mind and bring the seeker into contact with the “higher self”. The very essence of yoga is “to yoke” or “bind” the body, mind and spirit. As such it involves spiritual elements if practised in the way it was intended. However as a form of stretching and exercise, it can be purely physical and offers many health benefits.

To be continued in Part 3…

The Bible does not say that you cannot do yoga, but many Christians remain opposed to the practice of yoga. Why is this so? The reasons usually given are along these lines:

1. Yoga has its roots in Hinduism and involves the worship of Hindu deities
2. Certain postures in yoga can be likened to the serpent who is also our spiritual enemy

So against this background I’ve decided to take a closer look at the Bible to see what God really says. (This article is rather long so I will be publishing it in three parts)

The Greatest Commandment
God’s greatest command to his people can be found in Mathew 22:37

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself.”

The cornerstone in Christianity is love and forgiveness. A question we should ask is whether yoga practice will take you away from this law?

Some Risks
When you practice yoga and start to improve, you may want to take it to a higher level. To take your yoga to a higher level will involve more yoga time and practice which if you are a Christian will come at the expense of your own time with God.

Love is spelled T-I-M-E… Just like you want to spend time you’re your boyfriend or girlfriend if you love him or her, God wants you to spend time with Him so that you will know Him better.

If your yoga takes away that time, then your worship is compromised.

Love your neighbour as yourself
Yoga is essentially inward looking. But Christianity is others-centred and God-looking. Jesus commands his followers to make disciples of all nations (Mathew 28:19). In doing so, communities are developed with love and fellowship to hold them together.

Yoga is about trying to find the Higher Self inside you so that a higher level of spiritual power can be attained. In contrast, the Christian’s power is drawn entirely from God, whose power is made perfect in a person’s weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Meditation
God seeks a loving relationship with His people and wants His people to know Him more intimately. And we know God through a number of ways, for example through meditation on God’s word.

In Psalm 1:2 the psalmist says:

“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked…
But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And on his law he meditates day and night.”

See also Psalm 63:6 and Psalm 77: 12,

Meditation in a Christian sense means to think about God, his goodness and his works in your life. It is conscious and focused on God – his character, his word and his works. In contrast the meditation in yoga is based on Eastern meditation methods involving the emptying of your mind. When our minds are emptied, we could be inviting other forces to take control of it. Demonic possession is known to occur through such meditation.

To be continued in Part 2…