{"id":1422,"date":"2013-05-18T19:54:00","date_gmt":"2013-05-18T19:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/rhetoricraceandreligion\/2013\/05\/exercise-or-religion-yoga-is-for-everyone.html"},"modified":"2013-05-18T19:54:00","modified_gmt":"2013-05-18T19:54:00","slug":"exercise-or-religion-yoga-is-for-everyone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/rhetoricraceandreligion\/2013\/05\/exercise-or-religion-yoga-is-for-everyone.html","title":{"rendered":"Exercise or religion? Yoga is for everyone"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Millions of people of varying religious beliefs practice yoga and find that it enhances their spiritual life. Millions of others view it strictly as physical exercise and an aid to mindfulness.
Most of them would be baffled at the notion that yoga has anything to do with religion. \u201cPeople come to our studios to get into shape and relieve stress,\u201d says Brandon Hartsell, chairman of Yoga Alliance and the owner of Sunstone Yoga, which has 12 locations in the Dallas area. \u201cThey are not looking for a religious experience.\u201d
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Yet, in Encinitas, Calif., the parents of one child, backed by a Christian defense organization, have\u00a0sued the Encinitas Union School District<\/a>\u00a0claiming a physical education program that includes bi-weekly yoga sessions constitutes religious indoctrination. The plaintiffs\u00a0allege<\/a>\u00a0that the School District\u2019s decision to include yoga in its P.E. classes \u201cunlawfully promotes religious beliefs, while disfavoring and discriminating against other religions,\u201d in violation of the California Constitution\u2019s religious freedom provisions. Because the suit portrays yoga as inherently religious in nature, it could deter yoga programs in schools across the U.S., with a potential impact extending far beyond southern California.
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Like many scholars of yoga and religion, Christopher Chapple, professor of Indic and Comparative Theology at Loyola Marymount University, says that yoga is a non-sectarian practice. The Yoga Sutras, the most commonly cited classical text that forms the basis for both traditional and contemporary yoga philosophy, make no specific theological claims, according to Chapple. It is the non-sectarian nature of this text that has allowed it to resonate for more than 1,500 years, he says.<\/span>

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Millions of people of varying religious beliefs practice yoga and find that it enhances their spiritual life. Millions of others view it strictly as physical exercise and an aid to mindfulness.Most of them would be baffled at the notion that yoga has anything to do with religion. \u201cPeople come to our studios to get into […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2251,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nExercise or religion? Yoga is for everyone<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Millions of people of varying religious beliefs practice yoga and find that it enhances their spiritual life. 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