What is the teaching of the Church about Yoga as a profession? Is it OK for a Catholic to take up a career in this discipline?

Christians and Yoga

To answer the query on practicing yoga by Christians, my task is made easy as there is a comprehensive document on the topic, including a set of guidelines, issued by the Theology Commission of the Catholic Bishops Council of Kerala (KCBC) published in December 2018, with the approval of the Bishops’ Council. This official document explains what yoga is, the various references to it in the Vatican documents, the areas of caution and how to practice yoga with Christian mind set.

Let me begin with the final part of the Bishops document on yoga:

In conclusion, the document remarks, Christians need not be apprehensive of accepting yoga as a physical and mental exercise, because practicing yoga as a mode of physical exercise is not against Christian faith. To regulate breathing and to protect health, yoga is helpful. . . At the same time, on a philosophic and theological level the viewpoints of yoga differs in many respects from Christian teachings, but a blind aversion to yoga, presenting it as something diabolic does not help deepen Christian faith. . . . A Church that gives emphasis to evangelization cannot turn away from yoga.

Looking at yoga

Until the middle of the 20th century yoga was thought to be part of the Aryan religion. But now we know that even before Patanjali codified it and much before the known religions originated these asanas of yoga were practiced in our land. Yoga originally grew up not as a part of any religious belief. When Patanjali restated it, though he presented it as a psychological and spiritual system that could be followed by persons of any religious affiliation, it was also organized in a way for the follower of a religion. Though there are different yoga systems, the Ashtanga Yoga of Patanjali is most prominent.

In different stages of Church history different spiritual disciplines and meditation modes have been introduced into the Church, but a dialogue between the Western and Indian traditions began with Robert De Nobili (1577 to 1656). A number of missionaries and Indian Christian leaders followed his path of aligning Christianity to Indian culture including the adoption of yoga. This is in accord with the teaching of the Second Vatican Council which says, “The Catholic Church rejects nothing that is true and holy in these religions. She regards with sincere reverence those ways of conduct and of life, those precepts and teachings which, though differing in many aspects from the ones she holds and sets forth, nonetheless often reflect a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men.” (Nostra Aetate, 2) This we know, is very much in tune with the “Logos Theology” (cf. Jn 1: 1-4) according to which the Eternal Word took flesh in our culture to be with us and save us.

Words of caution

This document also highlights three prominent references on yoga in recent Vatican documents. They are from:

1. Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith: Letter to the Bishops . . . on Some Aspects of Christian Meditation (1989).
2. Pontifical Council for Culture: Jesus Christ the Bearer of the Water of Life (2003)
3. YOUCAT, number 356.

• In the first instance, in the footnote there is a mention of yoga as one of the ‘eastern methods’ that some people turn to, for therapeutic reasons.
• In the second one, there are two references to yoga first as some traditions that flow into ‘New Age’ and secondly as something that leads to “self-fulfillment or enlightenment’.
• YOUCAT 356 states, referring to yoga and meditation, they are “not always harmless. Often they are vehicles for doctrines that are foreign to Christianity. No reasonable person should hold an irrational world view, in which people can tap magical powers or harness mysterious spirits and the ‘initiated’ have a secret knowledge that is withheld from the ‘ignorant'”.

Talking of these in detail the Bishops’ document states that we should be careful about the possibility of being lured into another religion (here Hinduism). Though it is not wrong to practice meditation we should avoid the chances of submitting ourselves to other religious deities or self-deified persons.

Evangelizing cultures

The Second Vatican Council tells us that there are elements of truth and goodness in other religions and exhorts us to recognize them, integrate them into our spirituality and thus bring them to completion. We align our faith to culture through accepting and interiorizing the good things in other religions with openness and infusing Christian spirit into them. This is integral to evangelization. The document refers to many significant teachings including that that of John Paul II, “My thoughts turn immediately to the lands of the East, so rich in religious and philosophical traditions of great antiquity. Among these lands, India has a special place. . . . In India particularly, it is the duty of Christians now to draw from this rich heritage the elements compatible with their faith, in order to enrich Christian thought.” (Fides et Ratio,72).

Some of the criteria that we have to bear in mind are also indicated there:
a) Aligning with the message of the Gospel: We should readily give up whatever is against the Good News that has been revealed to us.

b) Affirmation of the salvation in Christ Jesus: While we should be open to working of the Spirit in different cultures, only in Jesus is the fullness of truth and only He can liberate us from all bondages.

c) Caution against negative impact on our faith life: While each of us is sent out into the world to live and witness there, our various exposures should not damage our faith, but build and deepen our faith life, including our Sacramental life.

So, if we decide to practice yoga or adopt some other elements from our local culture these principles come handy in safeguarding our Christian faith.

Called to a mature Christian response

As I mentioned in the introduction, I was trying to present some of the key points from the Bishops’ document on Christian approach to yoga. It urges us to look at yoga positively and make use of it for our benefit. But at the same time, we must be cautious about being misled by other practitioners who view it as a vehicle of other religious principles. One very positive development is that numerous people nowadays look at yoga and teach it only as a healthy exercise and promote it as such, fully removing the religious strings.

United Nations has been observing June 21st as International Yoga Day and most of the nations are realizing the positive benefits of this beautiful element of our ancient culture and promoting it. Let us also make use of this excellent gift from the land India in a positive manner. If a committed Christian has an interest and talent for yoga and identifies a calling towards being an instructor of it, it can become an opportunity for a Christian mission.