Judge allows Yoga in Public schools, rejects Church-State Fight

There is no reason the school cannot reasonably accommodate those who wish to refrain from Yoga for religious reasons.
Let the kids who don't want to do Yoga do pushups, or other calisthenics. I don't understand why the school felt it necessary to force compliance on such a silly issue.

reply to post by Skyfloating


I totally agree with you Skyfloating. I also have practiced yoga for decades and love it and think it's great for children. I agree that there is a religious aspect to it, it's not secular though it can be taught in a more secular fashion, but I have read that they change the original names of the poses to make it less religious and more secularized and that ruins it I think. The separation of Church and State is an important issue as secular humanists made issues out of anything Christian. They want their cake and eat it too.

reply to post by luciddream


At least we agree about the parents. I doubt I'll be looked at like that and that's not the point either. In this situation the parents didn't approve it,the school should do what the parents want,not the other way around.

Originally posted by MarioOnTheFly

Don't agree. You can maybe label it that way..because the practice has roots in "other" religions. But the practice itself does not need to have any religious connotations within. It is practiced all over the world by peoples of different races, and religions. It has become a somewhat universal exercise tool.

I practice prayer and meditation too...without being affiliated to any religion.

reply to post by kaylaluv


Kayla, the issue to me is that the secular humanists pushed the whole separation of Church and State thing in schools, and now people want to change the rules again to suit their ideas. I think yoga is great, but once you push separation of Church and State, you have to be consistent, and the humanists are not being consistent. It's just like they changed the rules again to push taking children to mosques and justified it as a cultural experience. You bet it's cultural. And they are doing this for a reason. To the Humanists, any culture or religion is acceptable but Christian... that's some kind of crazy math.

Originally posted by semperfortis
reply to post by Skyfloating

 

I understand Yoga's roots are in religion but can it not be separated successfully?

I have never been "Stretchy" enough myself to indulge in it personally

Sure it can be separated. Westerners attempt to do so any time. But at "higher levels" when it goes beyond mere physical work, it becomes quite spiritual and attached to various Hindu belief-systems.

Originally posted by phishyblankwaters

If yoga is religious, then so is meditation. Better stop those kids from quietly concentrating.

I get where you are coming from, but there's a stark difference. You can practice yoga postures without any of the religious connotations. You can learn karate techniques without taking it on as the religion it is.

You can't pray without religious connotation. Simple as that.

Sure you can. I do so all the time. And I havent set foot in a church in more than a decade.

Originally posted by Panic2k11

Yoga is not religious at all, is basically a muscular and mental relaxation routine

Is it?

Kundalini Yoga

Raja Yoga

Originally posted by Logarock



Well the moment you teach a kid in Yoga class what the "thunderbolt" position is you will have indeed engaged in religious indoctrination.

Precisely. Any child becoming interested in Yoga will also become interested in the religious philosophy behind it.

reply to post by Skyfloating


Isn't it sad how religion poisons a mind. Another embarrassing thread for the ATS community.

Just because a religion involves something useful like stretching doesn't mean it owns it. It's the same as christians thinking they own marriage just because its a part of their religious practices.

Please describe this secular prayer you practice... because I think your full of you know what.

reply to post by Skyfloating


There are many Yoga. Some modified it for religious reasons, like the ones you mentioned and there are other that doe snot follow a religious attachment.

Do we practice those here in the west? we practice a waterd-down version of Hatha Yoga.

I always saw the whole "im athesit and spiritual but not religious" as the same as saying "im a vegetarian but i eat fish".

reply to post by Skyfloating


I think i know whats going on here. I think there are atheists that are trying to reconcile their dislike for religion with their acceptance with yoga.

reply to post by luciddream


Yes, there are many types of yoga. The great Sage Pantanjali is famous for his interpretation of yoga including the more physical aspect.

Patanjali is regarded as a divine incarnation of the serpent Anantha, who is revered as the ‘supporter of the whole universe’. He is the Adhisesha of Lord Mahavishnu.

It is believed that on instructions from a great teacher, Patanjali identified all the teachings in the Vedas about the mind and presented them in a precise and organized form called ‘yoga’.

Patanjali’s yoga system aims to unite the individual self with the Supreme One. According to Patanjali, one can attain this union by controlling and eliminating the ever- arising ‘vrittis’ or modifications of the mind. He also suggests that the mind, in turn, can be controlled through the right kind of discipline and training.

www.medindia.net...


"Patanjali’s yoga system aims to unite the individual self with the Supreme One. "

reply to post by Superhans


I think what we have here is people who are brainwashed to think only religion can bring mental clarity.

Being with the nature, energy, light can be spiritual as well.


Sadly some are drowned in indoctrination they can't see it without putting a god in it!

Originally posted by luciddream
reply to post by Superhans

 

I think what we have here is people who are brainwashed to think only religion can bring mental clarity.

Being with the nature, energy, light can be spiritual as well.


Sadly some are drowned in indoctrination they can't see it without putting a god in it!

Does not really sound atheist to me, nature, energy and light? Sounds like some new ager/ galactic federation of light type stuff.

reply to post by ThirdEyeofHorus


I think soon as someone try to "interpret" something, it goes to sh*t. Thats when personl bias and experience mixes with the original information.

Originally posted by Superhans
reply to post by Skyfloating

 

I think i know whats going on here. I think there are atheists that are trying to reconcile their dislike for religion with their acceptance with yoga.

Bingo!

Thats the secret point I was trying to make.

reply to post by Superhans


That's like saying people are trying to rationalize their dislike of the Muslim religion with the acceptance of math.

Its like the logic centers of the religious brain have just shut down or become too atrophied to work.

reply to post by phishyblankwaters


Well said. My kids go to public schools in the the metro Phoenix area and prayer is absolutely allowed, it just isn't promoted by school administration, or mandatory. Non-religious kids, like mine, are not allowed to bully or disparage anyone from engaging in it, just as religious kids are not allowed to bully or disparage my kids for not praying.

There is a major disconnect between this reality and the notion that "god" has been removed from public schools, and I believe it is on-purpose.