Is Yoga a Form of Hinduism? Is Hinduism a Form of Yoga? --- Sightings

One of the Big Issues of 2010 concerned whether Yoga was a Hindu practice and thus off limits to Christians.  Interestingly enough, there was agreement from both some Hindus and some Christians that this was true.  Al Mohler on one side said that Yoga was too Hindu for Christians, while a number of Hindus (Hindu American Foundation) said that American Yoga wasn't Hindu enough and therefore Christians should get their hands off the practice so that Hinduism can be put back into this important Hindu practice.  Well, maybe things are a bit more complicated than this, and Wendy Doniger, an expert on Hinduism at the University of Chicago, sorts things out for us!  I may not practice yoga, but if I did, thanks to Wendy, I needn't fear for my soul!  Take a read.

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Sightings 12/30/2010

Is Yoga a Form of Hinduism?

Is Hinduism a Form of Yoga?

- Wendy Doniger

Debates about these questions have been making headlines lately. Some American Hindus have argued that American yoga is not Hindu enough, that Hindus should “Take Back Yoga” (the label of a campaign by the Hindu American Foundation). Other Americans agree that the Hindus should take back yoga—but because yoga is too Hindu: R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, advises Christians to abandon yoga if they value their (Christian) souls, for “yoga, as a spiritual practice, runs directly counter to the spiritual counsel of the Bible.” The problem should not have been breaking news; a spoof in 2003, “Yoga: A Religion for Sex Addicts,” depicted a Christian minister who was asked, “Should Christians practice Yoga?” He replied, “Are we going to have to bring this whole thing up about Yoga again? I thought our Sunday school curriculum included lessons about the evils of everything Oriental, including Yoga!”

But the issues involved are not trivial. Is yoga, in fact, “a spiritual practice”? More particularly, is it a Hindu spiritual practice? The word “yoga” originally meant “yoking” horses to chariots or draft animals to plows or wagons (the Sanskrit and English words are cognate). Though many yoga practitioners, particularly but not only Hindus, insist that their practice can be traced back to the Upanishads (c. 600 BCE) and Patanjali (c. 200 CE), the word “yoga” in these texts designates a spiritual praxis of meditation conjoined with breath-control, “yoking” the senses in order to control the spirit, and then “yoking” the mind in order to obtain immortality.

Buddhist sources in this same period also speak of techniques of disciplining the mind and the body, and the word “yoga,” owing as much to Buddhism as to Hinduism, soon came to mean any mental and physical praxis of this sort. (Similar disciplines arose in ancient Greece and, later, in Christianity, a subject on which Pierre Hadot and Michel Foucault had a great deal to say). This is the general sense in which the word “yoga” is used in the Bhagavad Gita, a few centuries later, to denote each of three different religious paths (the yoga of action, the yoga of meditation, and the yoga of devotion). But these texts say nothing about the physical “positions” or “postures” that distinguish contemporary yoga. The postures developed much later, some from medieval Hatha Yoga and Tantra, but more from nineteenth-century European traditions such as Swedish gymnastics, British body-building, Christian Science, and the YMCA, and still others devised by twentieth-century Hindus such as T. Krishnamacharya and B. K. S. Iyengar, reacting against those non-Indian influences.

So there is an ancient Indian yoga, but it is not the source of most of what people do in today’s yoga classes. Contemporary yoga traditions are a far cry both from the Upanishads and from Hatha Yoga. Most twenty-first century American yoga practitioners have more in common with a jogger than with a meditating sage; they want to relax after a hard day at the office, tighten up their abs, and reduce their cholesterol and their blood pressure; their yoga of relaxation and stretching may also involve regular enemas, a cure for back pain, a beauty regime, a vegetarian diet with a lot of yogurt (which is not etymologically related to “yoga”)--oh yes, and a route to God.

Is yoga, then, for the mind or for the body? Is it like going to church or like going to the gym? Is it a spiritual praxis or an exercise routine? To all these questions, the answer is: yes. For some people (both in India and in America) it has been one, for others, the other, and for many, both.

In his online column and elsewhere, the Reverend Mohler has objected to the frequent citation by yoga teachers of "the idea that the body is a vehicle for reaching consciousness with the divine," which he says is “just not Christianity.” But yoga is “not just Hinduism”; as we have seen, it has rich European (and Christian!) elements. Despite this historical evidence, however, many Hindus, such as those in the Hindu American Foundation, insist that meditational yoga—rather than temple rituals, the worship of images of the gods, or other, more passionate and communal forms of religion—has always been, and remains, the essence of Hinduism, their religion. Christians for whom a yoga class is simply physical exercise may offend such Hindus but should pose no problem for Mohler; and Christians who take the philosophical doctrines of yoga seriously should be no problem for a more ecumenical, not to say multi-cultural, pastor.

References

Landover Baptist Church, “Yoga: A Religion for Sex Addicts,” March 2003.

Dylan Lovan, “Southern Baptist Leader on Yoga: Not Christianity,” Associated Press, October 7, 2010.

R. Albert Mohler, Jr., “Yahoo, Yoga, and Yours Truly,” AlbertMohler.com, October 7, 2010.

Paul Vitrello, “Hindu Group Stirs a Debate Over Yoga’s Soul,” New York Times, November 27, 2010.

Wendy Doniger is the Mircea Eliade Distinguished Service Professor of the History of Religions at the University of Chicago and has published translations of the Rig Veda, the Laws of Manu, and the Kamasutra. Her latest book is The Hindus: An Alternative History (Penguin, 2009).

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Editor’s Note: Sightings will break and return on Thursday, January 6. Happy New Year!

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Sightings comes from the Martin Marty Center at the University of Chicago Divinity School.



The Future of Hinduism

I live on the edge of a unique world.  I am confessionally a Christian, who believes that Jesus is the Christ of God and the Son of God.  He is Lord and Savior of the World.  At the same time, I am deeply involved in interfaith conversation and activity.  The God I believe exists is a God far bigger than I can conceive and so I'm comfortable sharing life with my friends of other faiths.  One of those friends is Padma Kuppa, a Hindu and an interfaith activist.  We have worked closely together here in Troy almost from the moment I arrived.  She is committed to preserving space in the public square for people of all faiths.  It is from that perspective, as a woman deeply rooted in her faith, but committed to opening the way for others to exist in freedom and in peace, that she writes and she works for a more just and pluralistic world.

Padma wrote a piece for the Patheos Blog that appears on the Washington Post On Faith blog that is entitled "The Future of Hinduism."  I'm placing the opening paragraphs here and inviting you, my readers, to follow on to the full essay, which I believe you will find enlightening.  

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 Hinduism and pluralism

By Padma Kuppa

Interfaith activist and contributor to Patheos.com

(Patheos.com has just launched a new eleven-week series on the Future of Religion. We begin with the Future of Hinduism. See the full schedule here.)

Writing on the Future of Hinduism is something very difficult to do, raised as I have been with an understanding that faith is eternal, without beginning or end, and that my faith, Sanatana Dharma, is not an "ism" as we call it today. And I also struggle since I am no religious scholar who can spout the Vedas, but a simple middle-class (middle-aged) woman torn by the lack of pluralism and the rise of fundamentalism in my community, my countries (of birth and citizenship), and my world. And yet I am a Hindu American raised with a strong consciousness of Hinduism's spiritual and philosophical strengths, which inspire both my activism and acceptance of what's been handed to me in life.

I am appalled by the nativist and Tea Party mentality in my nation, the lack of civil discourse across every continent. I read of Professor Sheldon Pollock at Columbia University, who has said, "Colonialism nearly killed India's capacity to know its past; globalization threatens to destroy its will." I see with dismay the rise of Bobby Jindal and Nikki Haley, who deny their Dharmic roots, and others like them who spew exclusivist messages. I am troubled by aggressive proselytization in India and the unacceptable retaliation, and worried about the plight of Bhutanese refugees in America, and Hindus from Bangladesh and Pakistan. I am worried whether a generation of Hindus gobbled up by greed and globalization will be able to pass on values to their children. So I know that the world's Hindu community has far to go and much to do -- along with everyone else on the planet. The whole earth is one family -- so say the Hindu holy scriptures, the Vedas (Vasudhaiva kutumbakam).  (To continue reading, click here). 

When you return, I'd like to invite you to offer your thoughts about the place of pluralism in our country, especially in light of the First Amendment promise of Religious Freedom.

A Divine Auction -- Sightings

Perhaps it's fitting that on the National Day of Prayer there comes a Sightings article that calls for awareness of our plurality as a nation.  Neelma Shukla-Bhat takes up the story of the bankruptcy proceedings of a Hindu Temple in Georgia, wherein sacred images (valued at 4.5 million dollars) were auctioned off (garnering just $89,000).  For several reasons, this auction raises questions about how we understand and value the sacred.  I invite you to read and consider the essay.

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Sightings 5/6/10

A Divine Auction

-- Neelima Shukla-Bhat

On April 24, about one hundred images of Hindu deities were auctioned off at the site of the former Hindu Temple of Georgia in Norcross, GA. The images, made of precious metal or wood, which were earlier valued by the temple at $ 4.5 million, brought $89,000 from approximately seventy-five bidders, including practicing Hindus and others.

The temple had been in the eye of a controversy for over a year, due to several court cases regarding its financial transactions and events following its filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2009. The images were part of the public auction of the property and its assets intended to repay the outstanding debt. Court documents suggest that the debtors had been given a chance to mend the situation, and the court-appointed trustee in the Chapter 11 case made efforts to work with various representatives and affiliates of the debtor to avoid an auction that nonetheless became inevitable. Within the framework of bankruptcy litigation, what happened in this case is typical. Yet the case has been viewed as “unusual” both by the trustee and reporter Andria Simmons, who has covered the story for the Atlanta Journal Constitution since July 2009. Two aspects of the case contributed significantly to its “unusual” status.

The first is the religious nature of the institution filing for Chapter 11. In an essay on the implications of bankruptcy filed by religious organizations, written following a hint that the Archdiocese of Boston was considering bankruptcy, David A. Steel suggests that religious institutions should seek bankruptcy only as a last resort: There is “an awkward fit between religious organizations and America’s bankruptcy laws” because the law allows for an intrusive scrutiny of the debtor’s assets, and there is a stigma associated with such proceedings. Since the primary concerns of a religious institution are moral and spiritual, if it has to file for bankruptcy, its community is gravely impacted. Thus, financial troubles leading to bankruptcy and auction can lead to the loss not only of financial credit, but also of the moral authority of the institution. There is an important lesson in this case for enthusiastic religious groups (especially in immigrant communities) that are eager to establish worship centers. Expert advice in legal and financial matters may be as important in founding a religious institution as deep contemplation on issues of faith, because today such an institution stands at the intersection of religion, law, and market economy and is accountable in all three areas.

The second aspect relates to the images themselves. Providing an example of the intense asset scrutiny that Steel mentions, the images were documented as part of the property of the debtor, along with office furniture, electronics, kitchenware, and other goods. But an awkwardness ensuing from their previous sacred status is clearly reflected in the auction documents. While listing the images among property items, the documents give them special attention in separate sections as well. The images also seem to have drawn more public attention than other objects, generating appreciation, curiosity, awe, and fear among non-Hindu viewers. They are variously referred to as “statues,” “idols,” “"sacred" Hindu statues,” “religious icons,” or “ornamentals” in legal documents, newspaper reports, and viewers’ remarks. These noun phrases, which are used in conjunction with verbs such as “to bid,” “to snap up,” or “to bargain,” are not inappropriate for property items in an auction. But many Hindu bidders still referred to them as “deities,” reflecting the culturally ingrained idea that such images are infused with the living presence of the divine. In fact, the temple’s attorney tried to have the images excluded from the auction on this ground, and the temple head reportedly saw the auction of images as “trying to auction off his children or his mother."

While the point about divine presence has no legal ground because the temple itself viewed the images in terms of monetary worth in estimating their value at $ 4.5 million, the difference in the terms used by different “interpretive communities” in relation to them is remarkable. It raises the issue of enhancing public awareness and sensitivity when referring to the sacred objects or practices of a religious community in our multi-religious nation, especially when the objects or practices are at the core of the “everyday theology” of that community. Everyday theologies, in contrast to abstract systematic or scholarly theologies, inform people’s daily lives and are most likely to come up in public encounters. In the case under consideration, those who used terms such as “idols” and “statues” (often Hindus use them too) were most likely not even aware that a more sensitive term to use would be “image” because, as scholars of Hindu traditions point out, it affirms the idea of seeing the divine in them. In this context, use of the term “image” would also be seen by many Hindus as an affirmation of their identity in their new homeland.

In our efforts to make our pluralistic society vibrant and healthy, then, developing awareness in two contexts is important: Immigrant religious communities could avoid the loss of financial and moral credibility by developing a keen awareness about their legal and financial responsibilities; and greater awareness about the “everyday theologies” of the many religious groups that comprise our society would help build a more respectful community. In tandem, these two measures can help build bridges in an increasingly diverse society. As the images from the Hindu Temple of Georgia settle in the homes of new owners or worshippers, they leave us with important issues of our pluralistic culture to ponder.

References:

For more on the the temple’s legal troubles, see http://www.ajc.com/

David A. Skeel. “Avoiding Moral Bankruptcy” in Boston College Law Review, Vol. 44: 1181 -1200, 2003.


Neelima Shukla-Bhatt is an Assistant Professor in South Asia Studies at Wellesley College in. Her area of study is History of Religion in South Asia with a focus on literature and culture.



Of Related Interest:

On May 17-19, the University of Chicago Divinity School and the Martin Marty Center will host a conference, “Hindus in India and America: Hinduizing America; Globalizing India,” which will gather renowned scholars to engage the topic — including aspects of Hinduism in America and patterns of American scholarship about Hinduism — from their distinctive perspectives. For more information, see http://divinity.uchicago.edu/martycenter/conferences/hia/index.shtml.

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In this month’s Religion and Culture Web Forum, Web Forum editor emeritus Spencer Dew explores the relationship between Jack Kerouac’s religious thought and its expressive practice in the act of writing: “Indeed, his entire oeuvre can be read as an expression of his personal religious stance, a kind of ‘fusion’ of Catholic theology with notions taken from Buddhist philosophy and practice.” Through a close reading of Kerouac’s novella Tristessa, Dew suggests that such a fusion—despite exemplifying Kerouac at his writerly best—leads to a solipsism that is ethically troubling, and likely reflective of Kerouac’s personal and professional shortcomings—especially later in his life. “Devotion to Solipsism: Religious Thought and Practice in Jack Kerouac’s Tristessa,” with invited responses from Benedict Giamo (University of Notre Dame), Nancy Grace (College of Wooster), Sarah Haynes (University of Western Illinois), Kurt Hemmer (Harper College), Amy Hungerford (Yale University), Omar Swartz (University of Colorado, Denver), Matt Theado (Gardner-Webb University), and Eric Ziolkowski (Lafayette College).

http://divinity.uchicago.edu/martycenter/publications/webforum/index.shtml

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Sightings comes from the Martin Marty Center at the University of Chicago Divinity School.