If that is your argument than youāre arguing for a yoga classā¦ Yoga is SUFFERING!!! It is NOT an indulgenceā¦It is what it is.A line from Heat (I like films!
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Both are combined anyway, surely?** If we seek to steer away from the things that suggest indulgence** the more we can be open to being led on a path of righteousness. Less is more.
The posts have improved by a million-fold (I think anyway - appreciating the arguments for).
Hereās the thing. Most people in the west do yoga to stretch. We donāt do the uhhmmmmm/zen/ meditation. Sometimes I have talk radio on as I do it. So me doing yoga isnāt a discernment any more than taking out the garbage or going for a jog. Make sense?
Thatās taken out of context. It isnāt saying that the body doesnāt matter. Itās saying not to worry but to trust in God.
Well thatās the heart of the matter here. IF the downward dog stretch WAS blasphemous THEN it would be wrong. Performing yoga stretches for the stretch and not meditating has no where been called blasphemous. Does this exercise look blasphemous to you?
The problem with SOME forms of Yoga are that people are taught to completely free your mind of any thought. There is concern that freeing your mind as such can leave you open to dark forces to come enter. So the problem is the meditation, not the exercise. Do you have a problem with the upside down cross on the back side of the popeās chair since the Satanists have taken it on as their symbol? Again, a little common sense goes a long wayā¦
It comes down to motivation, intention.
And that fear was expressed in an article Fr. John D. Dreher stating:
Now thatās a real stretch
I thought it was kind of twisted, myself.Now thatās a real stretch
I wouldnāt say that it being indulgent is an argument in itself. I drink Pepsi Diet like a big car drinks fuel and that is more indulgent that drinking water, for example. It is more that the link between Lucifer - who is the most selfish Iāā and those of us who join with him when we sin, of course - and the seeming arrogance that comes with some non-Christian meditation, is uncanny,. By that, I donāt mean to say that people are meaning to be arrogant, but that the method of meditation in many non-Christian cults/religions are pushy. The Christian for example sits, kneels, prostrates or stands when praying but it is supplication and when waiting for God we are silent rather than chatting away like seagulls. And if God wishes to share with us consciously in words or image some revelation or piece of advice, or grant us some consolation then that is at His discretion and how He wants; most of the time with an expression too deep for words, so much so, people sometimes are too impatient, they think theyāre not getting anywhere in prayer and give up. But the whole prayer is communication in a humble manner except when weāre remonstrating and annoyed maybe, or upset, or desperate! But many so-called spiritual groups/cults religions or whatever, especially with the New Age stuff and some Eastern religions, tend to want to force God to give them something: āI want to feel great, I want higher consciousness, I want this, I want thatā¦ā. And God cannot be commanded to do things. It is aggressive and I wouldnāt even call spiritual Yoga prayer because of the pushiness. It is almost like walking into someoneās home you think you know without knocking and helping oneself to their fridge/larder, when they know they have everything planned for a certain time and place for you to eat and you are taking what is not necessarily right for you at that time. A lot of the gods in Hinduism are about self-empowerment and linked with sexuality. God has given us what we need with our sexuality, and from Him, even that, is to teach gentleness and patience in all things, not self-empowerment and control. In fact, where is the room for desolation with Yoga?
I agree - distractions can cause temptation. But emptying can allow other things to enter. So where do you think Christian meditation lies?
This is where we seem to draw the line between our approach - St. Thomas More said āmoderation in all things.ā
I donāt know about the comparison as some things are more dangerous than others but I get what you mean.
Agreed on all that. Bit underlined though can be changed to: āTrust, that we can extinguish our very self through some immersion in the eternal God who can make us who we are meant to be, in Himā.
Amen.
EXACTLY!!! I answered this in a recent post to ptisme about control.
Pride, sure.
And so can the mind.
Exactlyā¦again! Thatās what my issue is with New Age and some Eastern spirituality.
The feel good at all costs culture will not get this - blank looks. And we all reject at times.
Guilty!
Nice. Both.
I have no problem with upside crosses as that is actually a holy symbol.
Yes, but Yogis have claimed many normal poses for stretching that are not really anything. I used to go to the gym, as Iāve mentioned before, and these were exercises not called anything. Sure, Yoga is going to want to snatch up everything and call it Yoga but some things are just normal basic stretching. Maybe in India they call things like that Yoga but this is not full on Yoga like positions I mean. I am talking about certain positions that are used for Yoga spirituality that are also used in exercise. Ones that one could only do having gone to a Yoga class. Or if you look up Yoga and copy the exercises.
I get your thinking. Iām not criticizing your thinking at all or your offering. I would say that simple obvious stretches are not even Yoga as we would recognise full-on Yoga. I am saying that some of the more complicated stretches/positions that cross over into the spirituality side of things even if not used for that are probably recognised by Satan when the Christian performs them for whatever reason or intention, and until there is a blessing, a bit like in an exorcism when the fallen angels fall back into Hell, eventually, and so it is I think that blessings can cut the links to the Hindu spirituality, but it needs to be done, I am guessing, by the Church as a whole.
And if one looks at the NT as a whole one sees that this fits quite well along with the Testing In The Desert.
Or indulging in self-love; instead, self-denial.Such as?
