Since I started practicing yoga decades ago, I’ve had lots of discussions with folks brought up in the Christian faith who are curious but skeptical about the practice. For me there’s no reason to separate Christianity and yoga, but I understand some of the hesitation I’ve encountered. For whatever reason, some people believe yoga is spiritually dangerous. But that couldn’t be further from the truth.
The Main Reason Christianity and Yoga Connect
Yoga is about union. Specifically, it’s about union with God. The tool we use to connect with God is stillness. If you’re a Christian, my guess is you know this verse from Psalm 46:
Be still and know that I am God.
The number one reason Christianity and yoga go well together is yoga can help us be still and know God.
There’s a lot of noise out there, and most of it is distracting. Our minds, limited by words, often get in the way of truly experiencing the divine. In the West, religious practices often focus on talking about, thinking about, and analyzing the meaning of God. We try to define who God is and how God wants us to act. As a result, we miss the experience. We don’t know how to be with God.
Yoga will put us directly in touch with the experience of God if we practice with intention. It will get us out of our heads. It will calm our minds and bodies and give us the tools to sit in meditation—or prayer—and truly get to know God from within.
Yoga is Not a Religion
Yoga is not a religion, but it can help us have a better experience of religious or spiritual life. In the West, we tend to do religion mostly in our heads. For me, yoga is a way to manage the physical and mental aspects of life, so I can align with my true nature and connect with God.
Since yoga came from a culture where Hinduism was the major religion, people often think it is the same thing as Hinduism. Yes, many Hindus practice yoga, but that doesn’t mean Christians can’t or shouldn’t. There’s nothing in yoga that is fundamentally un-Christian. In fact, there are many similarities.
The Eight Limbs of Yoga and Christianity
Yoga is an eight-limbed path that starts with ten tenets—the yamas and the niyamas—that have a lot in common with the Ten Commandments. In fact, some (like being truthful and not stealing) are identical.
The goal of yogic exercises and breathing practices is to prepare the body and mind for meditation. Christians—especially Christian mystics like Saint Ignatius of Loyola—have been meditating for centuries. Centering prayer is a Christian practice not unlike mantra meditation.
Yogis focus on loving kindness and non-attachment to worldly things. Jesus taught his followers to do these things as well.
The Yoga Sutras and the Beatitudes
Father Anthony Randazzo, a Catholic priest and yoga teacher, co-wrote a book with yoga teacher Madelena Ferrara-Mattheis called Beatitudes, Christ, and the Practice of Yoga. Non-religious in a sense, the Beatitudes are sayings that Jesus shared with his followers in the Sermon on the Mount. They are “sutras”—sayings—that guide how we should interact with and think about each other.
Centuries ago, a yogi known as Patanjali wrote a collection of sutras that are guidelines for practicing yoga. These, of course, are the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.
Christians Practicing Yoga
We don’t need to refer to yoga specifically as Christian or non-Christian. If you are a Christian and meditation on the Word of God is your tool for union with the divine, a yoga practice is an ideal opportunity to deepen that connection.
There’s no reason to wonder why Christians should practice yoga. The reason can be as simple as eliminating anxiety and sluggishness from your life, so you can live more deeply in love. Or it can be a deeper experience of blissful union with the truth, which for a yogi who is also a Christian, is the Word of God.
Would you like to explore more yoga topics in depth—perhaps with a group of yoga friends? Get your copy of Yoga Circles, A Guide to Creating Community off the Mat. You’ll find lots of topics and activities for living the yoga lifestyle and enjoying time with like-minded yogis! Click here to order!
Hi, I’m Maria. I created Yoga Circles for you if you want to delve more deeply into the philosophy, practice, and life-changing effects of yoga. I’m also a writer and editor who helps small business owners, wellness professionals, teachers, and authors publish books, develop marketing strategies, and connect with readers, clients, and students. Visit my website (link below) for more about that. I’d love to hear from you!
Thanks for this article. I am a Christian and am having so much trouble because I am also a yoga instructor. I own my own studio so I am teaching all the time. This has really helped answer some questions for me. When I teach I don’t say anything daemonic or wrong. I just teach a class, I don’t encourage people to worship different gods or deities, so I never thought I was doing anything wrong but people have been coming down on me saying I should stop practicing yoga because it is daemonic. I should only do some stretching. I never got a straight answer what the difference was. But I honestly believe my yoga practice is not daemonic or bad. So thank you
Thanks for your comment, Jennifer. I’m so glad the post was helpful. I’m not sure where the idea that yoga is daemonic comes from, but I have noticed such discussions seem to be deeply based in fear. As I’ve grown in my spiritual practice I’ve let go of most of the fear of “getting it wrong” that I once had. Even if there are potentially harmful practices, that’s not unique to yoga, and when it happens it’s likely because of misguided teachers, not yoga itself.
You are the best judge of whether your yoga practice is helping or hurting you in any way. You might be interested, if you don’t already know of it, in the Christians Practicing Yoga website. There are many Christian yoga teachers who may help reassure you that you’re not involved in a daemonic practice. 💙
I am looking up the website right now. And I loved your response. Thanks so much. When I taught this morning I felt great, much lighter, and I’m sure that has a lot to do with my stumbling upon your website.
Thanks again.
Jennifer