Namaskar - Oct 2006

Namaskar • A Voice for Yoga in Asia
Special Feature
Is Yoga a
Religion
eligion?
Frank Jude Boc
occio
cio
When people ask if yoga
is a religion, it first
makes sense to ask
them what they mean
by “religion.” If what they mean is a
creed of beliefs and dogma that must
be adhered to, according to an
established institution – most usually
hierarchical and authoritarian – then
the short answer is “No.” But if we take
a deeper look into the original meaning
of the word “religion,” we find that its
root is in the Latin word “religio” which
means “to tie or bind back”. It was a
word used in horticulture, used to refer
to the binding and pruning of branches
in order to create a stronger and more
aesthetic tree of shrub.
In this sense, we find a similarity with
the original meaning of the word yoga,
which comes from the root “yuj”, which
means to “yoke or to harness.” The
English word yoke is actually derived
from the Sanskrit, and both
connotations of that word apply to the
word yoga. It can mean “union,” or “to
join together,” and it can also mean “to
harness” or “to restrain,” and so by
extension it has come to signify
spiritual endeavor, especially the
disciplining of the mind and the senses.
Free of its institutional forms and
meanings, the similar meaning of these
two words point to the essentially
religious purpose of all yoga practice.
Yoga, as such, is the generic name for
the various Indian philosophies and
practices (disciplines), the purpose of
which is to liberate the practitioner
from the existential human situation
described as duhkha. This is the
experience of discontent,
dissatisfaction and unease that we feel
in subtle and not so subtle ways.
Duhkha is often translated as
“suffering,” but it was a word used to
describe an axle that was not centred
in its wheel.
It is this sense of being “uncentred” or
“imbalanced” in our way of life that is
meant by duhkha. Yoga has been called
“the psychospiritual technology
specific to the great civilization of
India” by one notable teacher.
Now, out of this greater Yoga Tradition
emerged what we may call the three
major Yogic religious-cultural
complexes of India: Hinduism,
Buddhism and Jainism. So, in the giveand-take
that is a natural process of
“yoga can and is practiced by people
with widely varying philosophies and
beliefs.”
history, the teachings of yoga became
suffused with concepts shared with
these three religious cultures. Yet none
of these cultures are “religions” in the
way defined in my opening paragraph.
That is to say, none of them require
adherence to a set creed. Indeed, there
are contradictory teachings in these
three “religions.” Also, none of them
are centralised under a totalistic
institutional authority.
Many practitioners of yoga find it
What do others say?
We Googled “Is yoga a religion?” and here’s a sample of
what came back:
Yoga is not a religion and should not [affiliate] with any
religion. T.K.
.K.V. . Desik
sikachar
Yoga is the practical aspect of the inner side of man’s
religion. Sri Swami Chidananda
Yes. The words Yoga and Religion have an identical meaning.
Yoga comes from the Sanskrit Yuj which means “to yoke” to
the spirit. Religion comes from the Latin Religio which
means “to link-back” to the spirit. Religion is also about
ethical rules, regulations and religious rituals which are also
found in the many aspects of Yoga. Classic
sical al Yoga Hindu
Academy
No, yoga is contained within religions. Religion is not
contained within yoga. Swami Jnaneshvara Bharati
Instead of undermining their personal faith, Yoga can
actually deepen it. Georg g Feuer
euerstein
ein
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