Deeper into yoga and feeling depressed

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

Hi everyone! Im not sure whats going on with me. I started doing yoga for stress and to be more flexible. I really enjoy how yoga makes me feel and I dont want to give it up, but Im getting very depressed about it. I have been spending a lot of time reading about the spiritual side of yoga plus I am meditating. Im reading my first yoga book and was really enjoying it until I skipped ahead. I now fear that its conflicting with my beliefs.

I grew up with the teaching that we look to Christ for all the answers and not within ourselves. Anyway if you are familiar with Christianity you know where Im coming from. I almost feel like Im playing with fire, but its very alluring and Im drawn by it. I feel like there is a dark side but I cant walk away from it, (sounds like a song LOL). I wish there was a christian yogi that I could discuss all this with. The scope of yoga is much broader than I imagined. I dont know where to go from here. Has anyone else been in this situation? I could really use a little advice. Thanks

#2

[QUOTE=kyogagirl64;79874]. Im reading my first yoga book and was really enjoying it until I skipped ahead. I now fear that its conflicting with my beliefs.

/QUOTE]

Yoga’s basic tenets are:-

(a) There is only one reality- Brahman/Atman- Universal Consciousness (UC)
(b) This UC is present in all of creation
© It is when we view ourselves as different from this UC that duality arises
(d) The basic aim of Yoga is to enable us to recognize ourselves as this UC

You need to decide for yourself whether this conflicts with your religious beliefs.

#3

Namaste Kyogagirl,

There are several discussions on Yoga and Christianity, in fact I recently was in one 2 days ago! I understand the dilemma you are experiencing. Yes, Yoga is definitely against orthodox Christian beliefs. Here some of the differences on key Christian beliefs:

  1. Jesus the the ONLY begotten son and saviour of humanity and died for our sins. Yoga: Jesus is one of many spiritual saints or enlightened masters. He cannot redeem our sins - but he can teach us how to live like him to be just like him.

  2. Jesus is the ONLY way, life and truth, there is no other way to God but him
    Yoga: Jesus is not the only way, but rather one way out of many. The path of Jesus is the yogic path of devotion and it suited to only those who have a devotional temper. There are other paths like Jnana and Raja for the intellectual, Hatha for the practical and Karma for the service-minded.

  3. You only have ONE life, and then you face judgement
    Yoga: No, you have many lifetimes. You are a soul on a journey of evolution, you transmigrate through millions of lower organisms and gradually evolve to the human body you have today. Life is about experiences and learning from your experiences. When there comes a point when you no longer hanker after any experiences and your mind is solely focused on self-realization/God/truth you will gain liberation from this perpetual cycle of birth and death.

  4. You are a sinner and you must redeem yourself of your sin by accepting Jesus, or you shall face eternal damnation
    Yoga: There is no such thing as sin, there is only the law of action and reaction/cause and effect(karma) Some actions lead to undesirable reactions and some to desirable ones. However, the ultimate aim is to beyond cause and effect. To rise above all duality of good and evil - to become indifferent to pain and pleasure/profit and loss by doing your duties mindfully and practicing Yoga. There is no such thing as eternal damnation, only temporal pain. There are realms of reality which are hellish and heavenly where you go after death based on your deeds, but these are temporal, when your karma is exhausted you again return to Earth.

  5. Being poor in spirit/vow of poverty
    Yoga: There is no reason to be poor. Wealth is necessary to fulfill our basic needs(our body dharma) of shelter, food, drink, water. However, we must not amass more wealth than which is required, there should be no excess, and if there is excess it should be given to charity.

  6. God, the supreme creator and lord of the universe and all beings
    Yoga: We should surrender our doership to God, because it is God that that does and realizes everything. Thus all our actions/work should be dedicated to him. However, not everybody understands God in the same way, for there are many concepts of God. God as impersonal and God as personal - but surrender to higher power is MUST so that we remain humble and do not become arrogant.

Just my opinion, please don’t take offense but I don’t understand why you would prefer orthodox Christianity beliefs to the more enlightened Yoga ones. What makes you think you MUST adhere to them? If something within your conscience is taking you to Yoga, perhaps you should trust this intuition, for it maybe leading you from out of darkness and into light :slight_smile:

#4

Kyogagirl,

Dont’ forget…“I and the Father are One,” and the holy trinity too, which is Hindu based, just for starters.

There are too many parallels to believe they are not of the same root. Christ was a yogi! He spoke Vedanta and the Upanishads and lots of scholarly evidence suggests he spent his early adult years in the Indus Valley.

There’s no conflict, only distortion.

siva

#5

You need to decide for yourself whether this conflicts with your religious beliefs.

Ravi

Ravi go back and read the last sentence in my 1st paragraph. I have decided. Im as strong in my beliefs as you are in yours, but I do respects others.

Deva, I appreciate your reply and know you mean well but you dont have all the facts about christian beliefs. Only christians would understand. I realize that Im in a yoga/hindu/buddist community here and I dont expect you to understand christianity. I did ask for advie and if anyone had been in the situation that I am in. I am greatful for the replies. Maybe this thread should have been posted in the spiritual forum, but I am not here to start a religious war. Im only here to find my path in yoga thats all. Peace

#6

As far as I understand the beliefs I enumerated are Christian beliefs. However, perhaps your beliefs are different to these. In that case please tell me your beliefs, and we can see how they measure up to Yoga - and then you can decide yourself whether they contradict or not.

Christian Gnostocism, as Siva kind of alludes to in his post, is a lot more compatible with Yoga. Christian gnosticism is not orthodox Christianity though, but it was one of the early forms of Christianity which developed long before the canonization. It was arose more Easterwards. They believed in a lot similar things to Yoga: Jesus was a guru/teacher, the kingdom of God is within and must be known by knowing oneself through gnosis, reincarnation, law of karma etc. As Siva points out, there is strong evidence to indicate that there is strong influence of Indian religions here. Although I have looked at the scholars on Jesus Christ have traveled to India, I found not found any conclusive proof that he did. However, he did not have to really; as Indians were present in the Middle East at the time, so he would have been exposed to Indian religions anyway.

#7


This opened my eyes back in 1973 when I started my yoga journey
Best wishes
Cheers
Peace

#8

kyogagirl,

Glad to see it’s still in print. It’s been a long time since I have read it. One of the few books I am glad I held on to:

Buddhism and Christianity in the light of Hinduism

When you find that Christianity actually comes not from Christ, but from elsewhere, you might realize you love it even more. You don’t have to give anything up, only embrace it more fully, more strongly, with open eyes.

siva

#9

Kyo, you may want to check into studios around your area… I think I remember you saying there are none really close, but still - do a search and see what’s around within, say, a 50 mile radius.
The reason I’m saying this is because where I live, there are studios that focus on Christianity within the practice. Christianity and yoga are most definitely not mutually exclusive. I’d bet if you can find a studio which advertises a Christian base or perspective, you could call them and maybe ask a few questions.

I’ll add that I think it’s pretty great that you are concerned about making sure your practice and your beliefs are in line with one another. Stick to that, and stay strong in your faith. It can only deepen and improve your practice! Good luck!

#10

Fixed, the book sounds interesting. I may check out the author and read it. TGK there is one yoga class near me, they play christian music so thats a plus, its just a little loud. Online I have found holy yoga, and Yahweh yoga, which you can subscribe to. Im thinking about it. I have had some back problems but doing much better now so I may give the class another try. I would really like a teacher that interacts some with the students and this one doesnt do that. Thanks everyone.

#11

I?m a Christian (catholic) and I think I can relate a bit to your situation. Could you tell more about this conflict you are having now? Is it mainly related to what you wrote about looking for answers in Christ vs. in yourself? Also, can you describe this feeling of depression and are there any other feelings?

#12

Pawel, would it be ok if I sent you a private msg explainging my situtuation? I cant really describe my periods of depression, but it may be associated with guilt and fear. If I could totally erase everything that I have been taught including my beliefs I think I would be great.

#13

Sorry to say, I am kind of relieved I am not Christian, imagine having to deal with all that guilt and fear so many Christians believe in! The Eastern religions are definitely far more enlightened, no question about it.

#14

We go through so many “processes” when we’re learning yoga. And the only way to get there is to go STRAIGHT through all the painful, emotional feelings that come up when we’re in the moment.

I do want to share a book with you from Parmamahansa Yogananada and his Self-Realization Fellowship: [I]“The Yoga of Jesus.”[/I] This will shed some light I’m sure.

Surrender yourself to your complete existence… in time it will all make sense.

Great comments!

Om Shanti Om!
carrie b!

#15

[QUOTE=CarrieBYogini;80025]We go through so many “processes” when we’re learning yoga. And the only way to get there is to go STRAIGHT through all the painful, emotional feelings that come up when we’re in the moment.

I do want to share a book with you from Parmamahansa Yogananada and his Self-Realization Fellowship: [I]“The Yoga of Jesus.”[/I] This will shed some light I’m sure.

Surrender yourself to your complete existence… in time it will all make sense.

Great comments!

Om Shanti Om!
carrie b![/QUOTE]

Thanks Carrie, its nice to see a little kindness here. I think there are people here who are miserable and have nothing better to do than make disrespectful comments to others. Im feeling the negative energy :rolleyes:
I will check out the book from Parmamahansa Yogananada!

Bless and peace kyg

#16

[QUOTE=kyogagirl64;80019]Pawel, would it be ok if I sent you a private msg explainging my situtuation? I cant really describe my periods of depression, but it may be associated with guilt and fear. If I could totally erase everything that I have been taught including my beliefs I think I would be great.[/QUOTE]

Of course. I will be happy to assist you even by sharing my own experiences.

“Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him.”

Martin Luther King, Jr.