Editing Yoga (section)

==Reception by other religions==

===Christianity===

{{further|Category:Christian yoga}}

Some Christians integrate [[Asana|physical aspects]] of yoga, stripped from the [[Yoga (philosophy)|spiritual roots]] of [[Hinduism]], and other aspects of Eastern spirituality with [[Christian prayer|prayer]], [[Christian meditation|meditation]] and [[Jesus|Jesus-centric]] affirmations.<ref name="nytimes_vatican">{{cite news|last=Steinfels|first=Peter|date=7 January 1990|title=Trying to Reconcile the Ways of the Vatican and the East|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/01/07/weekinreview/ideas-trends-trying-to-reconcile-the-ways-of-the-vatican-and-the-east.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090808214350/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/01/07/weekinreview/ideas-trends-trying-to-reconcile-the-ways-of-the-vatican-and-the-east.html|archive-date=8 August 2009}}</ref><ref name="vice21">{{cite news|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/inside-the-growing-world-of-christian-yoga/|work=Vice|last=Solomon|first=Serena|date=5 September 2017|title=Inside the Growing World of Christian Yoga|access-date=3 September 2021}}</ref> The practice also includes renaming poses in English (rather than using the original [[Sanskrit]] terms), and abandoning [[Mantra|involved Hindu mantra]]s as well as [[Yoga (philosophy)|the philosophy of Yoga]]; Yoga is associated and reframed into [[Christianity]].<ref name="vice21" /> This has drawn charges of [[cultural appropriation]] from various Hindu groups;<ref name="vice21" /><ref name="abc20">{{cite news|last=Carleton|first=James|year=2020|title=Mental and spiritual wellness in isolation|work=ABC|url=https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/godforbid/mental-and-spiritual-wellness-in-isolation-lockdown/13467828|access-date=3 September 2021}}</ref> scholars remain skeptical.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Jain|first=Andrea R.|title=Selling Yoga : from Counterculture to Pop culture|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2015|isbn=978-0-19-939024-3}}</ref> Previously, the [[Roman Catholic Church]], and some other Christian organizations have expressed concerns and disapproval with respect to some eastern and [[New Age]] practices that include yoga and meditation.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1989/12/16/vatican-warns-against-practicing-eastern-meditation/e974fb62-c018-4cbb-a002-39fd03ec1075/|year=1989|author=Victor L. Simpson|title=Vatican warns against practicing Eastern meditation| newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] }}</ref><ref name="bbc01">{{cite news |url= http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2722743.stm |title=Vatican sounds New Age alert |publisher=BBC |date=4 February 2003 |access-date=27 August 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Wayne |last=Teasdale |title=Catholicism in dialogue: conversations across traditions |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |year=2004 |page=74 |isbn=0-7425-3178-3}}</ref>

In 1989 and 2003, the [[Holy Office|Vatican]] issued two documents: ''[[Aspects of Christian meditation]]'' and "[[A Christian reflection on the New Age]]," that were mostly critical of eastern and [[New Age]] practices. The 2003 document was published as a 90-page handbook detailing the Vatican's position.<ref>''Handbook of vocational psychology'' by W. Bruce Walsh, Mark Savickas 2005 {{ISBN|0-8058-4517-8}} page 358</ref> The Vatican warned that concentration on the physical aspects of meditation "can degenerate into a cult of the body" and that equating bodily states with mysticism "could also lead to psychic disturbance and, at times, to moral deviations." Such has been compared to the early days of Christianity, when the church opposed the [[Gnosticism|gnostics]]' belief that salvation came not through faith but through mystical inner knowledge.<ref name="nytimes_vatican" /> The letter also says, "one can see if and how [prayer] might be enriched by meditation methods developed in other religions and cultures"<ref name="Letter_from_Vatican">{{cite web |url=http://www.ewtn.com/library/curia/cdfmed.htm |title=1989 Letter from Vatican to Bishops on Some Aspects of Christian Meditation |publisher=Ewtn.com |access-date=28 November 2012 |archive-date=2 May 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100502022624/http://www.ewtn.com/library/curia/cdfmed.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> but maintains the idea that "there must be some fit between the nature of [other approaches to] prayer and Christian beliefs about ultimate reality."<ref name="nytimes_vatican" /> Some{{Which|date=January 2018}} [[Fundamental Christianity|fundamentalist]] Christian organizations consider yoga to be incompatible with their religious background, considering it a part of the [[New Age movement]] inconsistent with Christianity.<ref>Dr Ankerberg, John & Dr Weldon, John, ''Encyclopedia of New Age Beliefs'', Harvest House Publishers, 1996</ref>

===Islam===

Early-11th-century Persian scholar [[Al-Biruni]] visited India, lived with Hindus for 16 years, and (with their help) translated several Sanskrit works into Arabic and Persian; one of these was Patanjali's ''Yoga Sutras''.<ref name=sptg>S Pines and T Gelblum (Translators from Arabic to English, 1966), Al-Bīrūni (Translator from Sanskrit to Arabic, ~ 1035 AD), and Patañjali, [https://www.jstor.org/stable/611180 Al-Bīrūnī's Arabic Version of Patañjali's "Yogasūtra"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170312213950/http://www.jstor.org/stable/611180 |date=12 March 2017 }}, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, Vol. 29, No. 2 (1966), pages 302–325</ref>{{sfn|White|2014|p={{page needed|date=August 2020}}}} Although Al-Biruni's translation preserved many core themes of Patañjali's yoga philosophy, some sutras and commentaries were restated for consistency with monotheistic Islamic theology.<ref name=sptg /><ref>Philipp Maas (2013), A Concise Historiography of Classical Yoga Philosophy, in Periodization and Historiography of Indian Philosophy (Editor: Eli Franco), Sammlung de Nobili, Institut für Südasien-, Tibet- und Buddhismuskunde der Universität Wien, {{ISBN|978-3-900271-43-5}}, pages 53–90, {{oclc|858797956}}</ref> Al-Biruni's version of the ''Yoga Sutras'' reached Persia and the [[Arabian Peninsula]] by about 1050. During the 16th century, the hatha yoga text ''Amritakunda'' was translated into Arabic and Persian.<ref>Satish Chandra (2007), Historiography, Religion, and State in Medieval India, {{ISBN|978-8124100356}}, pages 135–136</ref> Yoga was, however, not accepted by mainstream [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] and [[Shia Islam]]. Minority [[Islam]]ic sects such as the mystic [[Sufi]] movement, particularly in South Asia, adopted Indian yoga postures and breath control.<ref>{{cite journal| doi=10.1017/S1356186304004675| title=Situating Sufism and Yoga| year=2005| last=Ernst| first=C.W.| journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society| volume=15| pages=15–43| s2cid=53485495| url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/BFBC851ADCEC24B0E08A8BDF10D4DCB7/S1356186304004675a.pdf/situating_sufism_and_yoga.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.unc.edu/~cernst/pdf/jras2.pdf |title=Situating Sufism and Yoga |access-date=5 September 2010}}</ref> Muhammad Ghawth, a 16th-century Shattari Sufi and translator of yoga text, was criticized for his interest in yoga and persecuted for his Sufi beliefs.<ref>Carl W. Ernst, [http://www.unc.edu/~cernst/pdf/UTRECHT.pdf Persecution and Circumspection in Shattari Sufism] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140824030955/http://www.unc.edu/%7Ecernst/pdf/UTRECHT.pdf |date=24 August 2014 }}, in Islamic Mysticism Contested: Thirteen Centuries of Debate and Conflict (Editors: Fred De Jong and Berndt Radtke), Brill, 1999</ref>

Malaysia's top [[Islam]]ic body imposed a legally-enforceable 2008 [[fatwa]] prohibiting [[Muslim]]s from practicing yoga, saying that it had elements of [[Hinduism]] and its practice was [[haram]] as [[Islam and blasphemy|blasphemy]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.islam.gov.my/portal/lihat.php?jakim=3600 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090106003351/http://www.islam.gov.my/portal/lihat.php?jakim=3600 |archive-date=6 January 2009 |title=Sidang Media – Fatwa Yoga |publisher=Islam.gov.my|access-date=5 September 2010|quote=The Fatwas of Religious Council in Islamic affairs on Yoga. After carefully studied various reports and factual data, the Council unanimously agreed that this ancient India religious teachings, which involves physical and mental exercises, are Hinduism in nature known as wahdat al-wujud philosophy (oneness of existence; the realization of identity between the Self in man, Atman; and the Divine, BRAHMAN: ‘Brahman is all, and Atman is Brahman'). It is prohibited (haram) for Muslims to practice it.}}</ref><ref>Paul Babie and Neville Rochow (2012), [http://www.adelaide.edu.au/press/titles/freedom-religion/ Freedom of Religion Under Bills of Rights] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222094331/http://www.adelaide.edu.au/press/titles/freedom-religion/ |date=22 December 2015 }}, University of Adelaide Press, {{ISBN|978-0-9871718-0-1}}, page 98</ref> Malaysian Muslims who had been practicing yoga for years called the decision "insulting."<ref>[https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna27857578 Top Islamic body: Yoga is not for Muslims] – [[NBC News]]</ref> [[Sisters in Islam]], a Malaysian women's-rights group, expressed disappointment and said that yoga was a form of exercise.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/11/23/nation/2625368&sec=nation |title=Mixed reactions to yoga ban |publisher=Thestar.com.my |date=23 November 2008 |access-date=5 September 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622072723/http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=%2F2008%2F11%2F23%2Fnation%2F2625368&sec=nation |archive-date=22 June 2011 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Malaysia's prime minister clarified that yoga as exercise is permissible, but the chanting of religious mantras is not.<ref>{{cite web |work=Saudi Gazette |url=http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentID=2008112723185 |title=Badawi: Yoga for Muslims OK without chant |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731183706/http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentID=2008112723185 |archive-date=31 July 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The [[Indonesian Ulema Council]] (MUI) imposed a 2009 fatwa banning yoga because it contains Hindu elements.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7850079.stm | work=BBC News | title=Indonesian clerics issue yoga ban | date=25 January 2009 | access-date=6 April 2010}}</ref> These fatwas have been criticized by [[Darul Uloom Deoband]], a [[Deobandi]] Islamic seminary in India.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://specials.rediff.com/news/2009/jan/29video-islam-allows-yoga-deoband.htm |title=Why give yoga religious connotation: Deoband |website=rediff News |date=29 January 2009 |access-date=5 September 2010}}</ref> Similar fatwas banning yoga for its link to Hinduism were imposed by Grand Mufti [[Ali Gomaa]] in [[Egypt]] in 2004, and by Islamic clerics in Singapore earlier.<ref>{{cite book |first=Andrea R. |last=Jain |year=2014 |title=Selling Yoga: From Counterculture to Pop Culture |title-link=Selling Yoga |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-939024-3 |page=195}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Find alternative to yoga, urges Jakim |work=New Straits Times |location=Malaysia |url=http://ddms.usim.edu.my/bitstream/handle/123456789/975/24%20Nov%202008%20-%20PRIME%20NEWS%20(14).pdf?sequence=1 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150208225308/http://ddms.usim.edu.my/bitstream/handle/123456789/975/24%20Nov%202008%20-%20PRIME%20NEWS%20(14).pdf?sequence=1 |archive-date=8 February 2015}}</ref>

According to Iran's yoga association, the country had about 200 yoga centres in May 2014. One-quarter were in the capital, [[Tehran]], where groups could be seen practising in parks; conservatives were opposed.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21602272-conservative-clerics-are-wary-popular-pastime-perils-yoga|title=The perils of yoga: Conservative clerics are wary of a popular pastime|magazine=The Economist |date=17 May 2014}}</ref> In May 2009, Turkish [[Directorate of Religious Affairs]] head [[Ali Bardakoğlu]] discounted personal-development techniques such as [[reiki]] and yoga as commercial ventures which could lead to extremism. According to Bardakoğlu, reiki and yoga could be a form of proselytizing at the expense of Islam.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/english/domestic/11692086.asp?gid=244 |title=It's OK to stretch, just don't believe |date=21 May 2009 |publisher=Hurriyet.com.tr |access-date=5 September 2010}}</ref> [[Nouf Marwaai]] brought yoga to [[Saudi Arabia]] in 2017, contributing to making it legal and recognized despite being allegedly threatened by her community which asserts yoga as "un-Islamic".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/meet-nouf-marwaai-the-woman-behind-yoga-becoming-no-more-a-deviant-behaviour-in-saudi-arabia/articleshow/61655093.cms|title=Meet Nouf Marwaai, the woman behind yoga becoming 'no more a deviant behaviour' in Saudi Arabia|work=The Economic Times|date=15 November 2017|author=PTI}}</ref>