Is Yoga a Religion?

“Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self.” — Excerpt from ancient Indian text, The Bhagavad Gita.

I’m sure you have either questioned this yourself, or wondered about the possible connection that yoga may have to organized religion.  While yoga does have a vast foundation in spiritual awareness, it is not itself a religion.  There may be factions of specialized yoga that raises eyebrows, and because we have not done them, appear awkward or silly.  The practice of yoga outside of the physical poses is not something I would refer to as a religion either.  For example, if we have never chanted out loud, studied chakra’s, or participated in a guided meditation group, these things could be offsetting, but are not used to represent a religion as there is no dogma associated with yoga.  These examples do not typically appear in a gym/yoga setting and are not usually tied to what we consider mainstream yoga.  By choosing to practice yoga, it can be as spiritual as needed/encouraged by the individual.  The beauty of yoga is that it is intended to be a tool to help bring balance and stillness where we need it most.  If that happens to be our shortened hamstrings, fantastic!  Keep the focus on whatever we are doing in that moment.  While I continue to tout that Yoga is NOT a religion, it can, and could be more of a spiritual journey then just bending and flexing the body.  By spiritual, I only suggest that the more you practice yoga accompanied with mindfulness, the more aware you are of not only yourself, but others around you.  I do not think of this as a religion, merely the practice of encouraging our best selves to shine outward as we learn to let go of past and future while remaining grounded in the present moment.  I say this only as a suggestion as Yoga is so personal and specifically geared towards the individual who is practicing, that to label it as a religion is misleading.  It should be noted that the poses most often associated with yoga, are only an eighth of what the entire tree of yoga embodies.  The other seven limbs do not involve physical poses. These include codes of moral conduct, breathing practices, concentration (the ability to direct the mind toward an object and keep it there). And meditation (a state of one pointed focus}.  While we mostly associate yoga with the physical practice, it could be tied to anything that gives us a sense of unity or helps us better connect with who we are.  Can you practice yoga poses without any spiritual influence?  Of course.  If you keep breathing, listening to your body, and attempt each pose to the best of your body’s ability, you are practicing the best version of yoga for you, as well as cultivating presence of mind.  When we first learn about stillness, it is easier to associate this with something more tangible such as lengthening muscles or time under tension in said pose.  Later, as our practice evolves we may explore more of the inner, less tangible calm within our mind as we find ourselves in the present moment, not just during the time we spend on our mat.  The goal of yoga is to find stillness in the mind, so that out