Just can’t let it go, can you. Even when you try, it still leaks out.
But that is in fact the reason why Yoga is banned in those countries.
Yoga Banned in Indonesia!
January 28, 2009, 4:25 pm
Filed under: Links - Yoga News, Yoga Musings
Muslims in (at least) three countries now, including Indonesia, are officially banned from doing yoga. (The “fatwa”, or religious decree, applies only to the overtly Hindu aspects of yoga, such as chanting, so people pursuing yoga for health or sport are free to continue to do so.) These recent bans raise some interesting questions for me, both as a yoga teacher and as a yoga student. Is yoga a religion? Does my teaching/doing yoga constitute a tacit acceptance or endorsement of Hinduism? Can people of other faiths do yoga, and, if so, under what circumstances?
My basic take on this is that yoga is a religion only if you approach it that way. Personally, I don’t chant or lead my students in mantras during class, although I have no problem with other teachers who do. At the same time, though, I try to approach yoga as something more meaningful to my life than (mere) sport or exercise. I think there is a powerful mental aspect to yoga that, if cultivated properly, can help one to focus better, be less susceptible to emotional ups and downs, live more confidently, etc. And I believe one can pursue all of this without praying to Lord Krishna. There’s a lot of gray area, of course, but I personally try to err on the side of caution and leave out, for instance, chanting “Om” in class or anything else that might be construed in the wrong way. My aim as a teacher is to make my classes as welcoming as possible, which means welcoming people of all different faiths or no faith at all.
There is a legitimate concern, though, that yoga cannot be separated from its religious underpinnings. Many of the poses are named after sages and warriors from the Mahabharata. The practice is, undoubtedly, part of a larger and long-standing religious system. It’s a complicated problem to reconcile the religious history/tradition of yoga with the fact that many people want to practice it in a secular way. I don’t propose to have a perfect solution to this, but I do think a good guiding principle is to always be mindful, both as a teacher and as a student about what aspects of yoga you adopt and which aspects you do not.
My friend in Romania says it was also prohibited there also for a while, and I believe that in the past there were some problems in Russia.
So, it is Just Indonesia or somewhere else?
[QUOTE=suryadaya;38101]My friend in Romania says it was also prohibited there also for a while, and I believe that in the past there were some problems in Russia.[/QUOTE]
It was not legally PROHIBITED in Russia, and there are no legal enforcement but is considered wired and sectarian. Also, they would find a reason to bust some guru or “enlightened one” who is going to teach. They are seem to be ok with Hatha yoga thought, but still it is considered wired.
Actually, yoga was officially prohibited in USSR (as all mystical tuitions), except of the few last years (Perestroika), when even yoga organizations started to appear. They, as well as some new ones, still exist in Ukraine, Russia and other countries of the former USSR, so yoga is not prohibited now in this region.
Most people I know consider asanas as just physical activity and spiiritual yoga practices as something weird.
[QUOTE=Sasha;38160]Actually, yoga was officially prohibited in USSR (as all mystical tuitions), except of the few last years (Perestroika), when even yoga organizations started to appear. They, as well as some new ones, still exist in Ukraine, Russia and other countries of the former USSR, so yoga is not prohibited now in this region.
Most people I know consider asanas as just physical activity and spiiritual yoga practices as something weird.[/QUOTE]
No, it was not legally prohibited even in USSR. I have a book of Phulgenda Sinkha (Yoga treats diseases) issued in the USSR in 1976…
But, when we practice yoga in Ukraine in 2003 people called the police to report a sect:) claiming that we are eating babies and other crazy things.
So, for right now I do not see any countries banning Hatha yoga legally, except Philippines. I doubt thought that they ban asanas, thought…
CityMonk, I know exactly, that people who did yoga in USSR, where pursued.
I guess, there was no article in Criminal Code like “5 years in Siberia for yoga”, but you know, this can be done in another way.
Of course, it didnt start in 1922, but much later, dont know a particular date.
Maybe, after 1976, maybe not: there was a self-publishing.
I hope, police didn`t arrest you ? Such things happens because of ignorance or just a bad sense of humor.
It’s such a shame. Yoga really is an amazing practice that should be available to everyone.
[QUOTE=Sasha;38266]CityMonk, I know exactly, that people who did yoga in USSR, where pursued.
I guess, there was no article in Criminal Code like “5 years in Siberia for yoga”, but you know, this can be done in another way.
Of course, it didnt start in 1922, but much later, dont know a particular date.
Maybe, after 1976, maybe not: there was a self-publishing.
I hope, police didn`t arrest you ? Such things happens because of ignorance or just a bad sense of humor.[/QUOTE]
Sorry, my fault. I have just looked it up. That was the original book of Phulgenda Sinha was published in 1976 in india and reprinted in Ukraine in 1990.
[QUOTE=CityMonk;38130]So, it is Just Indonesia or somewhere else?[/QUOTE]
Yoga is not banned in Indonesia.
What was posted above said that Muslims in Indonesia are prohibited from practicing yoga.
I travelled to Indonesia earlier this year and there were quite a few yoga studios in Bali. I didn’t notice any in Java but then again I didn’t look for one there.
I think after you read the post of Surya Deva on the thread “Is Yoga Hinduism”, post # 22, 26-Aug-10 08:13 pm , yoga will be soon prohibited in America too.
He basically states that you are a Hindu, if you believe in reincarnation etc. How many Americans would like to be named Hindus ? Ask the State Department.
Well, I have not found any plausible info on countries that prohibit yoga nowdays. I guess it is all just a hoax.
[QUOTE=Surya Deva;38037]Yoga Banned in Indonesia!
January 28, 2009, 4:25 pm
Filed under: Links - Yoga News, Yoga Musings
Muslims in (at least) three countries now, including Indonesia, are officially banned from doing yoga. [/QUOTE]
Is yoga banned by Indonesian law, or is that just saying, what it looks to me like it’s saying, that MUSLIMS aren’t supposed to do yoga? Many religions tell believers to do this or don’t do that, but it doesn’t mean it is government law in countries that are predominantly members of said religion.
[QUOTE=Yulaw;39442]Yoga in Indonesia
In Bali[/QUOTE]
Thats great! Hey, SURIA DEVA check these links out…
There are good Yoga studios in Djakarta and of course as others have said, in Bali loads of schools etc
Some individuals and organisations have a dim view of Yoga practice as they are blissfully ignorant of what it is.
I suffered that in church halls in the UK some years ago.
Ignorance and dogma are so often cause for disinformation.
Russia has been a vibrant area for spiritual practice throughout the hard years, my partner is living proof to that.
Religious intolerance from every quarter likes to promote itself through media that enjoys disinformation so best leave it to them not to us.
And always remember never to run over my dogma with your Karma…
Yea like Fox News is the repository of all that is true. Last resource I would trust for accurate reporting. Even the BBC cannot be trusted to stay away from the propaganda machine, but this is a topic for another forum… yet it does question Satya and the implementation of walking and talking
[QUOTE=CityMonk;38432]Sorry, my fault. I have just looked it up. That was the original book of Phulgenda Sinha was published in 1976 in india and reprinted in Ukraine in 1990.:)[/QUOTE]
FYI:
I would post the URL but look up Yoga Journal dot RU .
This is a part of an article from Wikipedia
Islam
The development of Sufism was considerably influenced by Indian yogic practises, where they adapted both physical postures (asanas) and breath control (pranayama).[81] The ancient Indian yogic text Amritakunda (“Pool of Nectar)” was translated into Arabic and Persian as early as the 11th century. Several other yogic texts were appropriated by Sufi tradition, but typically the texts juxtapose yoga materials alongside Sufi practices without any real attempt at integration or synthesis. Yoga became known to Indian Sufis gradually over time, but engagement with yoga is not found at the historical beginnings of the tradition.[82]
Malaysia’s top Islamic body in 2008 passed a fatwa, which is legally non-binding, against Muslims practicing yoga, saying it had elements of “Hindu spiritual teachings” and that its practice was blasphemy and is therefore haraam. Muslim yoga teachers in Malaysia criticized the decision as “insulting”.[83] Sisters in Islam, a women’s rights group in Malaysia, also expressed disappointment and said that its members would continue with their yoga classes.[84]
The fatwa states that yoga practiced only as physical exercise is permissible, but prohibits the chanting of religious mantras,[85] and states that teachings such as the uniting of a human with God is not consistent with Islamic philosophy.[86] In a similar vein, the Council of Ulemas, an Islamic body in Indonesia, passed a fatwa banning yoga on the grounds that it contains “Hindu elements”[87] These fatwas have, in turn, been criticized by Darul Uloom Deoband, a Deobandi Islamic seminary in India.[88]
In May 2009, Turkey’s head of the Directorate of Religious Affairs, Ali Bardakoğlu, discounted personal development techniques such as yoga as commercial ventures that could lead to extremism. His comments were made in the context of yoga possibly competing with and eroding participation in Islamic practice.[89]
The only sect of the Islam community that has successfully incorporated yoga into its practice is the Jogi Faqir, whose followers are Muslim converts from the Hindu Jogicaste.
[edit]Christianity
Main articles: A Christian reflection on the New Age and Aspects of Christian meditation
The Roman Catholic Church, and some other Christian organizations have expressed concerns and disapproval with respect to some eastern and New Age practices that include yoga and meditation.[90][91]
In 1989 and 2003, the Vatican issued two documents: Aspects of Christian meditation and A Christian reflection on the New Age, that were mostly critical of eastern and New Age practices. The 2003 document was published as a 90 page handbook detailing the Vatican’s position.[92] The Vatican warned that concentration on the physical aspects of meditation “can degenerate into a cult of the body” and that equating bodily states with mysticism “could also lead to psychic disturbance and, at times, to moral deviations.” Such concerns can be traced to the early days of Christianity, when the church opposed the gnostics’ belief that salvation came not through faith but through a mystical inner knowledge.[93]
The letter also says, “one can see if and how [prayer] might be enriched by meditation methods developed in other religions and cultures”[94] but maintains the idea that “there must be some fit between the nature of [other approaches to] prayer and Christian beliefs about ultimate reality.”[93] The Rev. John Wijngaards points out the long Judaic and Christian histories of absorbing elements from surrounding religions. He notes that the absence of any intense experience of God’s power has sent some Christians eastward. Many Roman Catholics now bring elements of Yoga, Buddhism, and Hinduism into their spiritual practices.[93]
Some fundamentalist Christian organizations consider yoga practice to be incoherent to their religious background and therefore a non-Christian religious practice. It is also considered a part of the New Age movement and therefore inconsistent with Christianity.[95]