Is Yoga a Religion?

When I first started practicing yoga nearly 7 years ago, I didn't really know what it was, just that it was recommended to help me manage the intense anxiety I was experiencing at the time. I showed up to a class in a large room filled with windows on one wall and mirrors on opposite wall. The women around me wore sports bras and spandex and had cute, clearly personal yoga mats; I wore running shorts and a loose t-shirt and carried an old, worn out mat I had rented from the student rec center at my college.

The women around me wore sports bras and spandex and had cute, clearly personal yoga mats; I wore running shorts and a loose t-shirt and carried an old, worn out mat I had rented from the student rec center at my college.

Though I enjoyed the class, I found myself constantly looking at the people around me and the mirrors in front of me: How do I get my body to get into the shape like them? Keep in mind - I had played year-round sports my whole life, but by the time I entered college and attended my first yoga class I couldn't even come close to touching my toes in a forward fold. Safe to say, I left the class feeling overwhelmed and, honestly, shocked at how difficult it had been. I was also inspired and determined to keep practicing until I could do what the bodies around me had done.

Fast forward a year, and I found myself in a very different class structure. In this new class, I learned of the 7 other limbs (and their sub sections) of yoga, and I discovered how to practice in ways that had nothing to do with poses. This new practice left me feeling more satisfied, grounded, and accepting (and also excited!) regarding the life I lived. I still had problems, and I still had anxiety, but I felt much more in control of my life and also much more okay with the parts I couldn't control. Excited about this big development, I was sure to share my observations with my parents next time we talked on the phone. I anticipated they would be happy for me, and I was shocked when there was a long pause followed by, "...Are you practicing some mumbo-jumbo religion?"

I should preface this my saying that I grew up in a very Catholic household. We went to church at least once a week, attended adoration and confession weekly, and prayed the rosary every night. My dad had therefore asked this question out of love and concern for me, but in this question was an indicator of how little so many people (like myself in the first class I attended) really know about yoga. Yoga is not a "religion", but rather a pathway to connect to and achieve whatever it is you happen to believe in and value.

Yoga is not a "religion", but rather a pathway to connect to and achieve whatever it is you happen to believe in and value.

Yoga has its roots in Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain cultures -- this reveals that yoga has never been a religion, as it was practiced most seriously by people who already had religion; they simply needed a structure that would help them to better achieve and practice their ideals. This is also true of yoga today. The element of yoga that most overtly concerns spirituality is Isvarapranidhana, which has a multitude of translations and definitions but loosely means "dedication to the lord". Now, in some texts, "lord" means the specific god/god(s) a person follows, but in other texts "lord" means the ideal or even an inner divinity. The basic idea, though, is that yoga can help a person to better align with their god(s) or ideals. "What do you do to help you be a better person and have more clarity on your morals?" I asked my dad in our phone conversation. This threw him off a bit, but he responded "I pray. And I go to church. And I go to confession and act out my penance." I paused a moment, fully realizing it to be true for the first time, as I said, "That is what I am doing. I meditate like you do in the mornings to give myself some room to think. Then I find an intention I want to focus on and I repeat it and send it out to the world, which is also how I use prayer. I reflect on my actions and thoughts and make conscience decision to do better. The only difference is that I have a physical practice where I get to understand my body apply what I learn to other parts of my life, too" but then I thought for a moment and added, "Which is similar to how / why you run." Ultimately, yoga had helped me (and continues to help me) to develop practices and habits that were fruitful for each aspect of my life. It did not overshadow anything other than the pieces that clearly needed to be pruned off anyhow.

Yoga gives us no specific god(s) to which to pray. Different cultures have applied yogic priniciples to cater to their specific needs and agendas, but taken in its most raw form yoga is simply a way to receive, react to, and reflect upon the world in which we all live - no matter what different religions or ideals we each have. Yoga is the recognition that we can do better; that we are in charge of ourselves; that we have the power to more fully help our world; that we have the responsibility to help our world.

Yoga is the recognition that we can do better; that we are in charge of ourselves; that we have the power to more fully help our world; that we have the responsibility to help our world.

Yoga is a way of training our minds and bodies so that we can become the best versions of ourselves. And that lends to every religion, goal, and ideal I have ever encountered.

--> If you are interested in further reading on yogic tradition, practice, and philosophy consider reading: The Eight LImbs of Yoga: A Handbook for Living Yoga Philosophy, The Yogasutra of Patajali, Yoga for Transformation: Ancient Teachings and Practices for Healing the Body, Mind, and Heart.

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