Yoga and Christianity

I got a call from the mother of a potential student the other day. She was trying to find an appropriate class for her daughter to attend while she watched the new grandbaby. We talked extensively about body types, styles of yoga and the most efficient forms of exercise.

At the end of the conversation, she threw me the wildcard which is “She is Christian, and just wants to make sure that she won’t hear anything spiritual or anything like that. “

Sigh…..

I told her there were lots of places to a fitness version of yoga devoid of spirituality. Elemental OM is not that place because we are founded deep within the philosophy of Ayurveda. Yoga is one branch of Ayurveda that addresses the spiritual aspects of man. Most people don’t realize that about yoga. Most people think that since you are moving your body and learning to breath, that yoga must be about the body. It is not. Ayurveda is about the body. Yoga is about God.

I’m sure you’ve heard it said a million times that Yoga means to yoke or to join the body, mind and Spirit. It is the merging of three systems of being human into one divine expression of being. The body, as temple, moves to become healthy physically and energetically. The breath, as the life force animating you, moves to deeply bond the mind and the body. Moving in a devotional manner with intent, you fully realize your spiritual nature.

This experience is unique to each individual. There are 7 billion people on the planet and 7 billion ways to get to heaven. Your experience of yoga will be unique to you.

Ayurveda is not dogma. It is a philosophy that is ever expanding and all encompassing. It honors the unique nature of each individual. It is elegant and intelligent. It is a philosophy that honors that there is a creator, a spirit or a God. How you choose to visualize, connect to, talk to or be with this creator aspect is unique to you and probably very much connected to the family you were born into as well as the culture.

Gurus come in many forms. As my friend and teacher Mark Whitwell says, a Guru is a friend no more, no less. Of course you can call your partner, your family, your friends gurus easily because you are having a tangible relationship with them. Can you say that of God? Can you say that of Jesus? Are you in a conversation? Are you learning and feeling supported?

Yoga creates the conversation with that which you believe. Of course if you come to a class and the teacher is talking about a Monkey god or an Elephant god, you are not going to understand. That is Hinduism and probably doesn’t relate to you on an emotional level. Think of the other religion’s deities as you would a character from mythology. The stories and lessons are really good and there is much wisdom and insight to learn from them. You, however, are probably not going to start praying to a monkey or an elephant. For you, these are just stories to inspire.

You will hear all kinds of things in a yoga class meant to get you thinking and connecting. Yogis believe that Jesus was a guru. When you call in your guru or begin your conversation, call in Jesus. Wouldn’t it be amazing to feel that Jesus was your friend?