This is not a Hindu forum so I won't discuss the metaphysics but Yoga is was and will remain Hindu! What the Christians do by this bs "Christian Yoga" is a process of inculturation/digestion that they have been doing ever since they ripped off their faith from Buddha Dhamma some 2000 years ago. They want to do with Yoga so it goes the path of Christmas, ie "assimilated" into Christianity with the intent of destroying the original culture. Same thing is being done by "secular" rationalists like Sam Harris who decontexualize vipassana from its tradition source, remove the parts they don't like thereby diluting it to a point of no recognition, and finally mapping it onto a western/Christian framework. This is how I fear Buddhism is going in the West, note the scorn "ethnic Buddhists" (I find the very term offensive) receive from Western Buddhists. Buddhism will just be a thirty minute inane discussion/rambling between "intellectuals" on why "karma is a bitch" in between hashish tokes while Yoga will become a few stretches to get a better sex life.plwk wrote:Well, I don't see any problem in quoting Sam as long as it accords with the truth and relevance of a topic but yes, I can understand about it becoming a fetish of some sort, and if he teaches secular mindfulness, so what? Was it done as part of IMS' core activity or as a side dish?
Some churches for instance feature Eastern religious practices like meditation or talks or even yoga as part of their weekday event but it's oft regarded as an external event, sometimes as a revenue generating activity, to rent out space for willing renters?
BTW this practice of "Buddha is Jesus","Christian Yoga", "Christian Bharatanatyam (S. Indian Hindu dance)", etc is being used by the Church in a program of inculturation (where the convert feels less uneasy about converting) with gradually leading to mainstream Christianity. Here are a few insidious examples of this from south India.