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Is Yoga bad or sinful?

Developed in India, yoga is a spiritual practice that has been evolving for the last 5,000 years or so. It is a Hindu theistic philosophy teaching the suppression of all activity of body, mind and will in order that the self may realize its distinction from them and attain liberation.

Yoga is connected to the Hindu tradition and draws on many Hindu beliefs -- karma, dharma, reincarnation, Atman, etc. The original yogis were reacting, in part, to India's ancient Vedic religion, which emphasized rituals. The yogis wanted a direct spiritual experience -- one on one -- not symbolic ritual. So they developed yoga.

Yoga means "union" in Sanskrit, the classical language of India. According to the yogis, true happiness, liberation and enlightenment comes from union with the divine consciousness known as Brahman, or with Atman, the transcendent Self. The various yoga practices are a methodology for reaching that goal.

If this is what you mean by Yoga you are looking at a different religion than Christianity. Unfortunately, today there is a misconception claiming that Yoga is a way for improved physical fitness, mental clarity, greater self-understanding, stress control and general well-being. Spirituality, however, is a strong underlying theme to most of these practices.

If you are interested only in the different physical postures of Yoga, you might as well practice aerobic exercise which is simply exercise that improves oxygenation of the blood through an increased heart rate and deeper breathing without getting involved in the spiritual aspect of Yoga.