Yoga: the mystic or physical exercise?

It is a hot Monday morning, and in a room in Upper Kololo, five women are in a yoga routine.
Standing on bright pink and green mats spread out on a polished wooden floor, the women stretch out their arms and spread their legs. Soft strains of Brenda Russell’s Piano in the Dark float around from a laptop in the anteroom.
“With one knee bent,” Mawji Zulekha instructs her students, and they immediately comply.
The women are flexible. They do not stay in the same position for more than one minute. The exercises do not seem strenuous and her soft but firm voice matches the relaxed atmosphere in the spacious room.
“Yoga is not really a religion, although there are branches of it that are used for mediation and prayers,” says Zulekha after the session.

What goes on
When Zulekha invited me to attend the complementary session, I was intrigued. I have never practiced yoga, and even with the opportunity given to me, I could only sit and watch.
But I have friends who do yoga – one is an instructor. One thing I noticed is that after each session, they look like they are coming off a higher plane.
“Yoga practitioners believe the soul resides in the centre of the eyebrows.”
This seat of ‘concealed wisdom’ in which some south Asian cultures place a red dot – bindi – is said to retain energy and strengthen concentration. Bindi also represents the ‘third eye’ in yoga.
This “third eye”, known as the pineal gland, has long been thought to have mystical powers. To reach higher dimensions, the gland must vibrate. This can be achieved through meditation.
According to the Book of the Threes, “It is believed by some to be a dormant organ that can be awakened to enable “telepathic communication . . .”

So what is yoga?
Is yoga a form of relaxation or a pathway to the occult? The practice has taken Kampala by storm. When Zulekha first arrived in Uganda, in 1994, there were few classes.
“But over the last 10 years, yoga experts have been coming into the country to open up businesses, each one with their own style.”
Ian Ortega, a yoga enthusiast, says that ‘yoga’ comes from the Sanskrit word yuj, which means to bind.
“Yoga is the act of yoking all the powers of the body, mind, and soul to God. It is an act of disciplining the mind, intellect, emotions, and will.”
Ortega, who has practiced yoga for four years, was introduced to it by his best friend, an Indian girl.
“When I was in Primary One at Shimoni Demonstration School, my best friend taught me about these things although back then they did not make sense. For example, the breathing techniques were things I did just for fun.”
Believed to have originated in ancient Indian traditions, Yoga is a physical, mental and spiritual discipline.
According to The Yoga Journal, “Yoga is a method of spiritual training whose purpose is to unite the self... with Brahman (God).”

Merely stretching?
There are several practices in yoga which include aerobics, different postures, meditation, breathing exercises and repeating the divine name.
However, one needs to distinguish between stretching and yoga. Anyone can stretch their body, but yoga has a spiritual aspect.
“The path of yoga is a highly spiritual one,” says Ortega. The spiritual discipline comes from Indian philosophy. It is about finding that oneness, that communion with God.”
The Yoga Journal states that, “Connecting the mind, body, and breath helps us to direct our attention inward . . . Your body will most likely become much more flexible by doing yoga, and so will your mind.”
Ortega adds, “Asanas (body postures) free the practitioner from body consciousness. Once one has conquered their body, it is rendered a fit vehicle for the soul.”

Emptying the mind
Towards the end of Zulekha’s session, as the women sit in Lotus posture (Right), the thumb of each hand touches the index finger to form a circle. They close their eyes and begin to hum.
The class eventually goes silent, with the women lying on their mats, face up, arms and legs stretched out, completely still, for about five minutes.
“The mantras (humming) centre on the principle that sound can influence consciousness,” Ortega explains. “It clears the mind and encourages spiritual awakening.”

The humming – the commonest of which is “Aum” – is thought to awaken reflexology points in the mouth, which in turn energise the body to higher states of consciousness.
Other mantras recited in meditation include ‘Om Namah Shivaya’ which means, ‘adoration to Shiva’.
Shiva, one of the big gods in Hinduism, is considered the lord of meditation.
On what goes on in the mind during meditation, Ortega says, “It is like trying to calm a noisy child, your mind, from the distractions of pain and sorrow. Slowly, you tell him to detach from the ego, from materialism and connect with the universe. Basically, it is a smooth talk to your mind, telling it that all is okay.”

New age spirituality?
Public speaker, author, and former yoga instructor, Laurette Willis, in her book Basic Steps to Godly Fitness, says yoga postures are offered to the 330 million Hindu gods.
“Yoga postures really are…offerings to the gods. If you do these postures and you do this breathing technique and this meditation, then you will be accepted by a god…That’s the real danger.”
Yoga encourages emptying the mind to prepare it for astral travel, where their spirits leave the body and move to another dimension.
Before astral travel, when the body is physically relaxed, concentration is achieved by staring at the bindi. This activates the third eye, beginning the process of withdrawing the senses and physical consciousness. Willis warns that yoga’s ability to bring a sense of calm is one of its deceptive charms.
“Unlike other religions that preach about what they do, in yoga, the teacher does not go to the student,” says Ortega. “It is only when the student is ready that he goes to the teacher. The fact that yoga has its roots in Hinduism is what wrecks people’s nerves.”
In Zulekha’s class, the women are vocal in their opposition to us taking pictures. I later learn that some are Muslims and Islam prohibits the practice.

Health benefits
In all spiritual beliefs, the soul never dies. So if the body houses this divine light, then it needs to be kept healthy; hence yoga.
“The postures bring balance, breathing and posture,” says Zulekha. “Some people cannot balance, even when they are walking.”
Pranayama yoga focuses on breathing and relaxation, especially for those with back problems, or suffering stress and depression.
Zulekha adds that, “Deep breathing gives a boost of energy and helps the body rid itself of toxins.”
Hatha yoga focuses on the physical postures, which keep the body healthy. It also teaches meditation to achieve enlightenment.
“Yoga is more like a lifestyle; it is an existence and a discovery of the divine in you,” enthuses Ortega. “It does not require that you stop being who you were before so that you can become a yogi.”

Hitesh Panchmatia of
Raj Yoga Centre, Kamwokya says...

“I have practised yoga since 1980 and by far, meditation is the most direct route to relaxation.
A profound calm lies at the core of our being. We radiate energy in the form of spiritual light that emanates from the core. The quality of your thoughts and feelings will be according to the quality of that light.
Meditation is the most effective way to ‘let go’ the attachments which distort our energy and to heal the spiritual wounds.
It does not require chanting mantras, complex postures or burning incense sticks. Its purpose is to help you focus and think more peacefully and powerfully.
To get spiritual peace, the heart of the consciousness is silence – stillness. This is the part of the human being that never changes.
The purpose I search is to reconnect with that silence inside. Yoga meditation enables a direct connection and relationship with the supreme source of purest energy and highest consciousness. Every soul has a right to experience this ultimate relationship.
That is why meditation is a practice of those who are wise enough to know that peace is found within.”

RELIGIOUS VIEW
Pastor Solomon Male
Executive Director, Arising for Christ
“Christians are at crossroads, looking for solutions to life problems. The meditation in yoga is different from the biblical one. This is superstition and the Bible prohibits superstition.
Yoga teaches astral travel, which is satanic. Nowhere in the Bible do we see men of God travelling out of their bodies. Instead, they are taken by the Holy Spirit to different places, for example, Ezekiel and John.
These two never struggled to go to a different place. Yet, astral travel requires you to yearn and work for it. They teach you how to leave your body and let your spirit roam.
The inner peace that yoga promises is momentary. After meditation, you go back into the world and face reality. The Bible teaches us to confront our problems and speak to them. With the peace of Christ, that surpasses all understanding, even in the middle of trouble, you are at peace.
Yoga teaches that you get peace just by thinking about ‘peace’. That is cowardice; people are taught to live in dreamland.
If you seek peace in Jesus Christ, even if you are jobless or have marital problems, you will have perfect peace, as long as you trust in Him.

Father Gerald Kalumba, Parish priest, Christ the King
“I have not done any research on yoga and therefore I do not think I have any authority to to criticise it or not. However, I have heard people say they copy some of its techniques for purposes of concentration during meditation.”

Reverend Emmanuel Mwesigwa, Kyambogo University
“I know a little about yoga and it is something from the east, an oriental spirituality. All people in the world have a spiritual life and God reveals himself in various ways to different people in the world. According to the bible, we do not find a practice near yoga. However, it is claimed that one releases their spiritual being/ soul into the spiritual world and by the time the soul returns to the body, it is refreshed.
Christians’ interaction with God is through the bible and prayer. Our meditation is far from yoga and considering its application in our lives, it is not something for Christians. We meditate and communicate with God through the ways he has shown us in the bible.”

Sheikh Ibrahim Semujju Nganda
“Each faith is more or less the opposite of the other and anything that seeks to associate any partner with Allah is forbidden. When you believe in anything other than Allah, one ceases to be a muslim.”

-Additional information compiled by Pauline Bangirana

Useful tips

Raj Yoga Meditation
(Takes 10 – 20 minutes)

Find a quiet place, relax, and sit comfortably
Gently withdraw your attention from all sights and sounds
Allow your thoughts to slow down
Create one thought about yourself, such as, “I am a peaceful being”. Hold that thought and visualise yourself being peaceful
Visualise yourself at peace in everyday interactions and situations.
Close your eyes and creating complete silence in your mind.