Yoga ?

Seattlegal said:
Interestingly, Galatians 5:20 lists jealousies as a work of the flesh, and would come under the Law, whereas there is no Law against the fruits of the Spirit.
Thanks for bringing that up. Paul talks about it when he defends against those false apostles who try to take away life by the spirit, who he consideres men that boast in the 'works of the flesh' . He doesn't accuse them of endorsing sin but opposes their claim that the Law, weakened by the flesh, could ever truly overcome sin. He says they preach a different 'Gospel'. Under the law alone we would be condemned because we could not do the things that we would: Rare is the man who has never been jealous or felt envy, for instance. We even despaired that the kingdom could not come to us until we reached perfection, yet it came unexpectedly to us one day with the words 'live by the spirit'.
2 Corinthians 10:17--2 Corinthians 11:7 said:
"Let him who boasts, boast of the Lord." For it is not the man who commends himself that is accepted, but the man whom the Lord commends. I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! I feel a divine jealousy for you, for I betrothed you to Christ to present you as a pure bride to her one husband. But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if some one comes and preaches another Jesus than the one we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you submit to it readily enough. I think that I am not in the least inferior to these superlative apostles. Even if I am skilled in speaking, I am not in knowledge; in every way we have made this plain to you in all things. Did I commit a sin in abasing myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached God's gospel without cost to you?
 
I guess sometimes it can be entertainment to watch it, but not my thing... And yeah it is a hindu practice, but to some I guess it can be ok to par-take and others will tell you it isn't that is the choice of both parties... I don't really have an opinion on it as it is very minor, there are more important things within christianity to dwell upon.
 
The kind of 'yoga' that is done in a fitness club would probably be almost unrecognizable as yoga to a true practitioner. I find it very relaxing and it has dramatically improved my core strength and flexibility. There is a meditative aspect to it, but I train that part of the exercise on quietness of mind and the love of the God I meet in Christ.

I do not think it can be harmful if one is intentional in their spiritual life and focused on God. In fact, I don't think it could lead you 'astray' unless you were intentionally trying to cultivate a different spirituality.
 
One other thought (as I leave for my yoga class :D). Even secular fitness programs such as pilates, weight circuits, even running, all have their spiritual aspects. What is the spiritual focus, for example, of pilates? Joseph Pilates acknowledged the mind-body connection and in fact that is a large part of the philosophy behind pilates.

Is it better to have a self-based or secular-based focus as part of a fitness regime?

If you sweep the room clean, doesn't it make room for many more demons unless one is intentional about their spiritual focus?

Note, I'm not saying that pilates or weight-lifting are spiritually dangerous, just pointing out that yoga is no different from any other mind-body discipline.
 
2 Corinthians 10:17--2 Corinthians 11:7
"Let him who boasts, boast of the Lord." For it is not the man who commends himself that is accepted, but the man whom the Lord commends. I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! I feel a divine jealousy for you, for I betrothed you to Christ to present you as a pure bride to her one husband. But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if some one comes and preaches another Jesus than the one we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you submit to it readily enough. I think that I am not in the least inferior to these superlative apostles. Even if I am skilled in speaking, I am not in knowledge; in every way we have made this plain to you in all things. Did I commit a sin in abasing myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached God's gospel without cost to you?
This gives me an idea for a new thread: http://www.interfaith.org/forum/jealousy-9770.html :D
 
Pilates, Alexander, Technique, Physio etc, in fact many of the postures in yoga are also proven to be dangerous and unhealthy for your body.
that would explain why it is considered an extreme sport
theres no point to that statement, all the techniques you mentioned, while all just as good as yoga, or for some purposes even better, can be just as dangerous and unhealthy, much in the way lifting a table can be dangerous and unhealthy

all yoga is a spiritual practice IMO even hatha yoga, its opens chakra's or energy centers in your body which can leave vulnerable to spiritual forces that are not of God, and a major part of hatha yoga is the Sun Salutation which is basically sun worhsip and therefore idolatary IMO.

where in the christian holy scripture or any other article of faith does it say you have chakras? i mean god forbid you ever be open to something youre not sure is christian, but if you are a christian why worry about chacras?
and there is no sun worship in yoga
hindu believe in a solar personification, a lesser divinity of sorts, that has some mantras and one temple dedicated to him
this is not included in any part of yoga
the exercises and positions are named after what they resemble or when they are done, like "dog" or "archer"
that whole body bending movement is good for the blood pressure and the bowels also it is a good stretch so it is done in the morning
the sun comes up in the morning
so it is called salutation to the sun
in other books it can have other names
like morning exercise, or exercise tipe #1.

As for karate I never practiced karate so I dont know much about it but many eastern martial arts are demonic in origin and therefore unsuitable and incompatible with christianity.

i dont understand demonic in what way? why would a eastern martial art be demonic in origin? they were carefully thought up and perfected by practice usually by people in need of self defense
what is the demonic part?

at the end of the day you make your own choices, but IMO hatha yoga is not merely physical it is also spiritual and the suggestion that it is not is a deception.

well it is yoga, it has been and is a spiritual and even religious practice for millions of people over thousands of years
the point is, firstly it does not have to be practiced as a spiritual practice, any more than pilates or swimming or jogging, and secondly it is silly, especially from the perspective of a believing christian, to be aprehensive or afraid of something like yoga
obviously there is no real reason why you should chose yoga over any other method of exercise, or ever do yoga or even think about it again, in fact we have no way of assuming why you started doing yoga in the first place, and you have not told us if there was something in your direct experience that made you believe yoga is opening you up for something or someone, but now that you have found your god, or however you put it, what reason do you have to worry about spiritual influences of something people generally use to stretch in the morning?

and is that part on demonic origin your personal opinion or did someone teach you that?
 
One other thought (as I leave for my yoga class :D). Even secular fitness programs such as pilates, weight circuits, even running, all have their spiritual aspects. What is the spiritual focus, for example, of pilates? Joseph Pilates acknowledged the mind-body connection and in fact that is a large part of the philosophy behind pilates.

Is it better to have a self-based or secular-based focus as part of a fitness regime?

If you sweep the room clean, doesn't it make room for many more demons unless one is intentional about their spiritual focus?

Note, I'm not saying that pilates or weight-lifting are spiritually dangerous, just pointing out that yoga is no different from any other mind-body discipline.

There is no spiritual aspect to weight lifting ? Pilates I dont think so but I have never done it so I could be wrong on that.

I would say is hatha yoga is unsuitable for Christians for these reasons

Kundalini, the coiled serpent of energy at the base of the spine, the practice of hatha yoga opens various energy centres in your body causing this energy to rise,

and these chakra alegedly relate to specific hindu gods.

Salute to the sun, sun worship idolatry.

If you are comfortable with all of that, then thats your choice. But for me I dont think I will ever practice yoga again. My body is a temple for the Holy Spirit not kundalini :cool:
 
Pilates, Alexander, Technique, Physio etc, in fact many of the postures in yoga are also proven to be dangerous and unhealthy for your body.

What is your basis for making this claim please? Physiotherapy, for example, is a well established means of treating muscular and joint problems. I have had a great deal of help from a physiotherapist when I have had hamstring and back problems, for instance. It is not dangerous. It is not unhealthy. Where is it "proven" otherwise please?

As for karate I never practiced karate so I dont know much about it but many eastern martial arts are demonic in origin and therefore unsuitable and incompatible with christianity.

How so? What demons? Some basis for your claim would again be welcome.

s.
 
There is no spiritual aspect to weight lifting ? Pilates I dont think so but I have never done it so I could be wrong on that.

I would say is hatha yoga is unsuitable for Christians for these reasons

Kundalini, the coiled serpent of energy at the base of the spine, the practice of hatha yoga opens various energy centres in your body causing this energy to rise,

if that is what you chose to practice, believe it is possible, believe exact configurations detailed in the vedas to be descriptions of somethig that exists in reality and not relative explanations that differ in many cultures, and are attempting to achieve that

and these chakra allegedly relate to specific hindu gods.

allegedly yes, as it is a hindu concept, similar concepts are found other asian cultures and most do not relate to any god, still in hinduism most things can be sayd to relate to one god or another, but chacras mostly relate to the what in hindu tradition is called the "subtle body"

Salute to the sun, sun worship idolatry.

would you be more comfortable if it was called "Hello Jesus" or "Praise to God"

If you are comfortable with all of that, then thats your choice. But for me I dont think I will ever practice yoga again. My body is a temple for the Holy Spirit not kundalini :cool:

well if you believe in such a thing as the kundalini and know something about it than you can probbably assume, based on what you believe and know, that it already is part or potential of you, weather you want it or not, as it is believed to be a part of what is called the "subtle body" that can be "awakened" by specific practices
if you or anyone know something more on this please correct me

again if you do not believe you have such a part that could be called a subtle body, or believe the vedic concept of it is not factual, then why worry about things like kundalini, chacras or hindu gods?
so do you believe in chacras and the subtle body?


and that part on demonic origins really deserves an answer, i mean you stated it, now at least elaborate
 
if that is what you chose to practice, believe it is possible, believe exact configurations detailed in the vedas to be descriptions of somethig that exists in reality and not relative explanations that differ in many cultures, and are attempting to achieve that



allegedly yes, as it is a hindu concept, similar concepts are found other asian cultures and most do not relate to any god, still in hinduism most things can be sayd to relate to one god or another, but chacras mostly relate to the what in hindu tradition is called the "subtle body"



would you be more comfortable if it was called "Hello Jesus" or "Praise to God"



well if you believe in such a thing as the kundalini and know something about it than you can probbably assume, based on what you believe and know, that it already is part or potential of you, weather you want it or not, as it is believed to be a part of what is called the "subtle body" that can be "awakened" by specific practices
if you or anyone know something more on this please correct me

again if you do not believe you have such a part that could be called a subtle body, or believe the vedic concept of it is not factual, then why worry about things like kundalini, chacras or hindu gods?
so do you believe in chacras and the subtle body?


and that part on demonic origins really deserves an answer, i mean you stated it, now at least elaborate
Hi, Mirko. I suspect that what GlorytoGod is saying about the demonic origins would go back to Galatians chapter 5, which I included in post #18 of this thread, regarding the works of the flesh being contrary to the fruits of the Spirit. (I guess GlorytoGod might be associating kundalini with the flesh, rather than the Spirit.)
 
Hi, Mirko. I suspect that what GlorytoGod is saying about the demonic origins would go back to Galatians chapter 5, which I included in post #18 of this thread, regarding the works of the flesh being contrary to the fruits of the Spirit. (I guess GlorytoGod might be associating kundalini with the flesh, rather than the Spirit.)

perhaps, i understand what you mean on kundalini, but statement on demonic origin was directly about "eastern martial arts", as broad as that term might be
specifically it was answering a post mentioning karate
now i cannot say i am an expert on martial arts of any kind, i know as much as anyone with aces to google and documentary programs on public television, and know a few people who train regurarly, albeit in different kinds of martial arts that by now have little to do with what is generally called "eastern" other than name derivatives
still it seems to me obvious most martial arts, especially the traditional versions, tend to emphasize self-control, peace and general stability of mind and body, often ascetism and respect of others
many even stress the need to avoid violence in any way possible, even if the technique itself is obviously violent
this is especially tipical of the best known "eastern" martial arts, by vich people usually mean the various derivations of Japanese Korean and Chinese traditions

i have not heard of any traditional school of martial arts, anywhere, especially in east Asia, the teachings of which could come even close to what is described in Galatians chapter 5 as "works of the flesh"
maybe some new schools and practices are different, i dont know i havent trained in them

so as i say i am no expert, but a statement like "...many eastern martial arts are demonic in origin and therefore unsuitable and incompatible with christianity." really merits some elaboration
i mean who knows, maybe there is some east asian martial arts school that founds its teachings on superstition about demons and devils, so giving that information would be interesting, an we might learn something new
if not then making such statements should at least be argumented by some explanation or quote
because it is not a small thing really, when you think about it, to say an important part of several well known world cultures, is not only unsiutable for christians, but also demonic in origin no less

without valid explanation, this makes for a premise which can then be used as a template in the relations between "christians" and how many world cultures and practices
i mean is the carnival or fašnik demonic in origin? or acupuncture? or central African traditional sculpture? or German industrial metal? or south Slavic folk dance? by what standard is the clasification made?
 
Mirko said:
so as i say i am no expert, but a statement like "...many eastern martial arts are demonic in origin and therefore unsuitable and incompatible with christianity." really merits some elaboration.
Fair enough, Mirko. :)
 
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