Harlan's Problem With Yoga

[Administrator]

This is the place to post your responses to my question in the newsletter.

[Christine]

Hi Harlan,

You

[jane hb]

I think it was Mother Teresa (catholic) that said (and I paraphrase) 'My religion is kindness.' Deepak Chopra and Ziggy Marley say, "Love is my religion." One of my earliest teachers (a wiccian) said that all of the great religions are each like a pearl and the thread that runs though and connects each pearl, that is the true religion. We know that all of the great religions teach the same message about love, compassion, peace, humility, truth, kindness... we could go on of course. The great Guru Paramahansa Yogananda said that we could solve the worlds problems through brotherhood & sisterhood. Hinduism, like many great religions, honor and respect all the paths. It's like, it does not matter how you get there, or which path you take, the point is to get there and know God and your true self. I love the idea of our oneness and hope that more people come to realize our magnificent connection to each other and all living beings sharing divine Mother Earth.

Sara, I loved reading what you wrote. Your writing has become so profound and beautiful and I love how you tackle the big issues! Jai Uttal is awesome. You MUST get his CD Mondo Rama, talk about Dance Trance! Let me know what you think after you hear it.

Lokas samastas sukhino bhavatu.

[pegasus]

Harlan, I think this is a common question out there among Western yoga people. I'm certain there will be many responses on this one.

I was raised a Christian (Protestant). When I first began attending yoga classes, I would simply substitute Christian terms for any Hindu terms that were spoken so that I could feel I was being true to my own faith.

But after some bad church experiences, I tried to separate "churchianity" from "spirituality" and question what I really believe in my heart of hearts outside of the dictates of organized religion. My yoga practice provided the safe, private, sacred space for my experience of Self and God.

Now, as a yoga teacher myself, I certainly understand how yoga grew up with Hinduism... but I believe that apart from any religion, yoga is simply a science of self-inquiry and awakening.

Then again... as far as the religions go... I've begun to wonder if maybe no one religion has the whole truth, each one only has a part of it. Perhaps we are all talking really about the same things, just using different names or seeing concepts from a slightly different angle, like several people looking at an image through different facets of a large jewel.

[Christine]

But after some bad church experiences, I tried to separate "churchianity" from "spirituality" and question what I really believe in my heart of hearts outside of the dictates of organized religion. My yoga practice provided the safe, private, sacred space for my experience of Self and God.

I'm sure there are many of us who come to yoga with disenchantment for whatever religious tradition they grew up in. I'm worried that based on what we've said so far, some might conclude that it's just for those who are "in the market" for a new expression for their spirituality. But I think that Yoga fits in well with every faith system. I think that you can stay with whatever religious tradition you come from and practice yoga without conflict.

Then again... as far as the religions go... I've begun to wonder if maybe no one religion has the whole truth, each one only has a part of it. Perhaps we are all talking really about the same things, just using different names or seeing concepts from a slightly different angle, like several people looking at an image through different facets of a large jewel.

Interesting point... or maybe EVERY religion has a pipeline to EVERY TRUTH if we're willing to do more than scratch it's surface. So many people practice religion like they brush their teeth... mindlessly and out of obligation. Religion becomes habit, not a joy and a mystery to be explored. It takes alot of courage to bust through the dogma, question everything your were ever taught, and then come back again.

The Dalai Lama once said that no one need ever change religions to find the way. In fact he didn't reccommend it because joining a new tradition would mean starting your religious education from the very beginning... so it doesn't really gain you any ground.

[YogaPaula]

Hello - new to your forum, just subscribed to your paid newsletter, been getting your free one for a while now. Any way you mentioned that you feel uncomfortable with icons, and many people do. That is why in my studio I have 'icons' from many faiths. I have the Jewish star, Jesus, Buddha, an African Goddess, and Native American artwork etc... I belive that yoga only enhances your own belief system, strengthens your personal faith. I read different books during relaxations from time to time. I read Pema Chodron, Yoga Sutras, Carolyn Myss etc... And when it comes to Meditation/Prayer time I give several options from different faiths. Students choose for themselves which chant works for them. Om Mani Padme Hum, or Jesus, son of God have mercy on me, a sinner etc... this way we can all connect with our own higherselves in a personal way that is comfortable and familiar to us. I belive in the sameness of religion and spiritual practices.

Namaste'

Yoga Paula

[yogini71]

Greetings
I was not raised with any particular spiritual or religious world view and spent a reasonable amount of time pondering the reasons for existence of life. I wasn't conflicted or torn in any way, just curious. As a youngster, I used to go to local religious centres and ask the priests/rabbis/monks all sorts of questions which they very patiently and graciously answered. I even, rather morbidly perhaps, went to the basement of our local hospital and asked the nurses and doctors there about what happened when people died. All the time, forming my own views. Having this background has given me an interesting perspective as I have no conflict with any expression of spirituality, be it chanting to Buddha, dedicating an asana to Lord Shiva, praying to Jesus, bowing to Allah or reading the Torah. Looking upon a statue of Ganesha, I remember the story behind the deity and see the archetype and the lessons and examples to be contemplated on, as with all religious stories and all mythologies. The remover of obstacles and the deva of wisdom, Ganesha riding a rat is a symbol of the seeming impossible being possible and of how things don't often conform to how they should be and this is the lesson I take from it. All deities are aspects of God/s and as such are aspects of our Selves, the macrocosm and the microcosm. In Yoga, we have many tools, not just asana, but breath, meditation, morals and ethics, and mantra. None of these conflict with any religious expression - it is just as easy and just as valid to chant Amen as it is to chant Om, just as easy and valid to meditate on our own sensations as it is to meditate on God's divine grace - what are Hail Mary, Amidah and Salaah if not mantra japa? Yoga was born in India, so it is inevitable that there would be some intertwining with Indian culture in the way Yoga can be expressed and many Gurus that brought Yoga to the West were Hindus and Sikhs so their beliefs came with them. There is no need to throw the baby out with the bathwater so to speak, if those particular religious cultural aspects are not included, then the technology of Yoga is left and the technology is Universal and can be expressed through all and by all.
Namaste and blessings,
Amanda

[bosco13]

Hi Harlan:

Congratulations on your recent spiritual growth opportunity; I'm sure you see how truly fortunate you are!

I don't know if anything I can write would make anything easier or clearer for you (especially since I sense you have the answers within you already, but perhaps they are temporarily blocked or something). However, there are two things that my teacher taught me that I thought might be useful to you and your yoga practice.

The first gem is contained in this exchange with another student:

Q: In the [inclusive] mind, does the problem of joy and sorrow no longer exist?

M: Not as we know them, as desirable or repugnant. It becomes rather a question of love seeking expression and meeting with obstacles. The inclusive mind is love in action, battling against circumstances, initially frustrated, ultimately victorious.

Q: Between the body and the spirit, is it love that provides the bridge?

M: Of course, the mind creates the abyss, the heart crosses it.

and later . . .

"Awareness is dynamic, love is being. Awareness is love in action. By itself the mind can actualize any number of possibilities, but unless they are prompted by love, they are valueless. Love precedes creation. Without it, there is only chaos." [italics and bold mine]

The other thing he stressed often is that "spiritual practice is will asserted and reasserted." So, when I combine these two thoughts in the context of your discomfort with a ganesh figurine, at one level, frankly, it seems rather unimportant or not relevant to the core issues of your (our)true nature as the manifestation of love. At another level, the figurine is just something that strengthens the will that is at the core of spiritual practice; just another metaphor for the same love contained within your own religious tradition, a metaphor to remind us of something real (love) and expose something that is not real (fear).

TO me, the danger is not having an "idol" that distracts one from his or her tradition, but is anything that distracts us from our true nature or injects an element of fear into the spiritual equation. In the end, I suppose, it makes very little difference; not one soul will be lost. As my teacher said, "in the battle between the true and the false, the false stands no chance!" Enlightenment/Union is our birthright, our destiny. Not even we can deny ourselves that inevitability.


Congratulations again! Keep breathing and remember all those out here who love you!

peace-love-om

bosco

[rickfrank]

Harlan:

I agree with your concern about how yoga is presented. I am Jewish also, and had some discomfort for awhile with the Hindu aspects of how yoga is presented. I now have no difficulty with it. I believe that the Hindu deities are just symbols of aspects of the world and our nature, not beings to worship. I even enjoy chanting in Kirtan.

But how I teach yoga is a different story. I will not play any music with chanting in classes. I limit use of sanskrit words. I don't even "OM."
And I dont' think that detracts one bit from the quality of students' experiences in my classes.

I think that Hinduism is not inherent to yoga practice. I don't want to scare people away from yoga. I"m concerned that people with strong religious traditions may be offended or confused by these religious references. I think it is better to avoid it. I have no problem with keeping this out, and maintaining a focus in the class of self-awareness, intuition, prana, etc.

Rick Frank
Boston, MA

[MichaelYoga]

I'm glad you are raising this subject Harlan, since there is a lot of confusion in the West about Yoga, and well intended teachers can make matters worse (as in the case of Sara, who wanted to show her appreciation as a Yoga teacher, but had a "contextual" problem arise). Yoga IS theistic ("Lord" is used more than once in the Sutras of Patanjali). But it isn't sectarian, and it's certainly not trying to be a religion.

Hinduism, on the other hand, IS a religion. And Ganesha, albeit a symbol, is considered by a lot of people in India to be more than a symbol. Unfortunately, the theological and metaphysical nuances of all religions aren't really understood by the majority of the believers in each religion.

If teachers were taught more Yoga philosophy, then we wouldn't have so much problems with the mixing up of hinduism and Yoga. Buddhism is perhaps a bit different, because the Buddha never spoke about God, therefore I can't put it in the same bag -being non-theistic there really is no conflict between practicing Buddhism and any other religion, so long as we practice what the Buddha preached (and not what was developed in his name).

I love the fact that many people are opening themselves up to Kirtan, and a lot of people are now able to share the spiritual experience of all religions, without aprehensions as to the language or the details. They focus on the things that all religions and spiritual paths have in common: the search for truth, living honestly, being in love with the world and acting as if we are all one.

Although I would love to see every human being in this planet being able to praise the Infinite in every language without being uncomfortable, I understand that culture and religion can make this Universal Religious practice idea very hard to swallow for some. It is for this reason that I think we should be careful as Yoga teachers -the more Universal and open we mantain the teachings, the more "traction" the Universal principles of Yoga will have.

Namaste,
Michael

(As you can see I'm not against Sanskrit -when used sparingly, and when it speaks a non-sectarian message).