A Family Is Suing a California School District Over Its Yoga Program, Citing That the Classes Are Inherently Religious and in Violation of Separation Between Church and State. Do You Agree?

I voted Yes, but could have just as easily voted No. There needs to be an Undecided option for those apparently few of us not content to just express some predisposed "reflex". Though I have a predisposition, based partially on my own admittedly incomplete awareness of the topic, to discount the value/validity of such things as Eastern Religion/New Ageism/Post Modern Philosophy/Alternative Health Approaches, and such, I also want to fill the gaps in my awareness rather than committing to some final kind of opinion/position. No, I will never embrace any of the above for myself. But, for example, my suspicions regarding stuff like Yoga, (the exercise part of it I mean) mainly serving as an easy way to recruit more western interest in Yoga the religion, I want to find out what I need to learn in order to bring it all into tighter focus, so that I may factually, either, confirm my hunch or dispel it.

Ok that has to be one of the stupidest things i have ever heard. Yoga is not religious. Its a workout. Well not by my definition. But apparently it is. And only that. Why would anyone in their right mind think otherwise? Makes no sense.

Socity it self is founded on religion.

Yes, this is quite true. But society has also been enslaved by religion. And I say that as someone who has a faith he believes in (but without naming or describing my faith here) I will share that in my own faith oriented world view, most of what is called religion in the world has long been, and still is erroneous gobbledygook. Oh yes there are golden threads of goodness and pearls wisdom and of truth somewhere mixed in there to be sure. But -to borrow an expression that has faded in use in recent decades- (paraphrased) the mixing of truth and error has only the effect of strengthening the influence of the error, while weakening that of the truth. Therefore...

Ahh yes californa where family's are killed because of there being no guns.where games will be banned because of retarded people who buy these games for their Kids.what I am saying,can californa please be a different country?where there is more crime than chicago

Sue Happy Bigots!

It really depends on how you look at it and how it is being presented. If I never tell you that it is yoga it is just exercise as long as I do not get into the philosophy behind it..

This is absurd. Yoga is a great form of exercise.

Yoga practices
"Many books have been written upon Yoga practices - some of them, I fear, by people who have little practical acquaintance with the subject; and in a number of cases harm has resulted from ill-judged attempts to follow the directions given. I am told that there are Indian Yogis who give instruction in these arts ; but the Yogi usually teaches only those who are definitely his pupils and follow him everywhere. He therefore has his experimenters always under observation, and can at once check anyone who may be running into danger; whereas the man who learns his Yoga from a book has no such safeguard. I have myself received a large number of applications for help from persons who have seriously injured their brains, their nervous system, and their constitution generally, by plunging blindfold into this kind of psychism; and, sadly, often no effective help can be given. It is so easy to lose one's balance - so terribly difficult to regain it. That is why our beloved President has forbidden the sale of such books at any of the Theosophical shops under her direction.
The President at least has been most careful not to give any dangerous advice, and has explained to her pupils that they should at once stop all meditation if any dangerous symptoms appear - even such as a headache."
Annie Besant; The Inner Purpose of the Theosophical Society

I agree that the families should be able to decide for themselves if they wish their children to participate. I disagree that physical movement is by itself religious indoctrination. I don't care if the school has it or not. I am extremely bothered that those parents that don't want it must pay for it anyway, as must all other people living in the district (and state...and country (though most of that is unemployment checks in the form of make work for bureaucrats).

I am rather curious about the statement in the background that "Yoga cultivates character" though. I can only read one of the 8.5x11's on that board and it said "caring". Stretching doesn't promote caring.

Replacing traditional teaching methods with occult techniques that teach directly to
the subconscious mind opens the door to possible mind control (brainwashing). It appears
that some education reformers think children can learn better in this hypnotic state which
allows all material into the mind. Children can then absorb any agenda the school (state)
wishes to teach without the brain discriminating the validity of the material.
The following definition of education is taken from a 1972 speech given by Mary Thompson on the subject of PPBS in education: “The objective of education is to measure and diagnose the child in order to prescribe a program to develop his feelings and emotions, values and loyalties toward predetermined behavioral objectives. Drawing it right down to basics, we are talking about conditioned response in human terms. Pavlov experimented on dogs.”)

Thats should not be considered religious

Sorry you have no clue... “A RELIGION FOR A NEW AGE” BY JOHN DUNPHY, WRITTEN FOR THE JANUARY/FEBRUARY 1983 issue of The Humanist, the journal of the American Humanist Association, lifts the veil of respectability from humanism and humanistic ethics. Excerpts follow:
I am convinced that the battle for humankind’s future must be waged and won in the public school classroom by teachers who correctly perceive their role as the proselytizers of a new faith: a religion of humanity that recognizes and respects the spark of what theologians call divinity in every human being. These teachers must embody the same selfless dedication as the most rabid fundamentalist preachers, for they will be ministers of another sort, utilizing a classroom instead of a pulpit to convey humanist values in whatever subjects they teach, regardless of the education level—preschool day care or a large university. The classroom must and will become an arena of conflict between the old and the new—the rotting corpse of Christianity, together with all its adjacent evils and misery, and the new faith of Humanism, resplendent in its premise of a world in which the never-realized Christian idea of “love thy neighbor” will finally be achieved. .

Yoga doesn't have to be religious.

YOGA IS HYPNOS
THE AUGUST 11, 1988 EDITION OF EDUCATION DAILY COVERED THE NATIONAL CITIZENS Alliance Press Conference held at the National Press in Washington, D.C. Excerpts follow:
GROUP ASKS EDUCATION DEPARTMENT TO STOP FUNDING “MIND-CONTROL” CURRICULA, END SOVIET EXCHANGES A citizens group headed by a former Education Department official asked ED to stop promoting curriculum the group says controls students’ minds.

Social Studies Horizons also reported on the 1990 Chicago Conference on Holistic Education, which issued a document called “The Chicago Statement” calling for a radical change in education. An excerpt asserts that:
The time has come to transform education so as to address the human and environmental changes which confront us. We believe that education for this new era must be holistic. The holistic perspective is the recognition that all life on this planet is interconnected.... Holism emphasizes the challenge of creating a sustainable, just and peaceful society in harmony with the Earth and its life.

So you believe that it's alright for yoga programs to be taught in publice school.

Well that is now a legal matter to be challenged/defended in a California court. But I agree... It's like just going to church doesn't have to be religious. And I don't mean that with any sarcasm. It's true, think about it. But the question still stands, is there a breach of the principle, of separation of church and state, occurring in instances of Yoga is being taught in state run schools? If it truly is only, as I've heard it characterized, "Yoga with the religion taken out of it", then I have to ask, is it okay then to teach any "ism" in public schools, ostensibly as long as "the religion has been taken out of it" ? It's like, what does that even mean? I know you didn't say that yourself, but I hear this kind of statement more than occasionally in the fashionable support of incorporating simplified Yoga ideas and beliefs into mainstream mental health therapies.

good

I don't see the problem with this.

wow this is funny! call it pilates

I've done Pilates. I realize the term comes from Yoga. But there's nothing distinctly Yogic about doing these. They are, in non-fashionista terminology, really just isotonic exercises. So however did we come to refer to them as, pilates? It has something to do with the 1960s counter culture movement coinciding nicely with the enduring rise, just beginning then, of consumer interest in personal fitness.

Not anymore than a tai chi, judo, tai kwon do and other Asian-origin exercises. Much ado about nothing.

Tai kwon do is more martial arts than religion. Yoga is more of a peaceful relaxation technique.

Agreed but someone may believe that all Asian origins forms of exercise could be a cult or religious in nature. A demagogue will start something out of nothing. It is that kind of an atmosphere right now, right vs. left, libs vs. conservatives, atheists vs. religions, black vs. white. As to yoga is a form of a religion? I am a yogini for the past 20 years or so, nothing could be further from the truth.

You're not religious?

I am extremely spiritual and religious. Besides keeping myself limber and fit, yoga also helps center myself when I am tense or upset. The breathing exercises, i.e., kapalabathi is very useful in lowering my blood pressure.

Good for you. But what's kapalabathi?

It is called bellow breaths. Inhale and exhale noisily through your nose (like a bellow) for about five minutes. It would lower your blood pressure.

Ignorance!! Yoga is a fantastic exercise. I substitute a "thank you, Jesus" for "namaste". I am confused by the words & no one should have to say them unless they are full translated and areligious. But the centering exercises both mind & body wonderfully!!

Yoga is EXERCISE.....albeit, low impact, but exercise for the body and the soul. Religious....look at its origins. Buddhism sprang up as an off-shoot of Hinduism. Hinduism has atheists, deists, monotheists, polytheists. It's live and let live. It's organized chaos and it works!

Yoga may have originally been based on religious beliefs but for some it's just a daily practice for good health. I believe we don't have school on Sundays because of original religious beliefs. Perhaps we should start the school week on Sundays rather than Mondays. OH WAIT!... perhaps in schools we should start calling our days of the week something else since those words are originally based on religious beliefs as well.

I would like to answer "Maybe" or "Undecided," but that option isn't available. There's not a lot of information given here or in the articles I've been able to find on the lawsuit, but if the school is teaching Ashtanga yoga, the information I've been able to find on that suggests that it probably is a religious practice.

http://www.ashtangayoga.info/

http://www.ashtangayoga.info/...

http://kpjoisfoundation.org/

A previous article on this issue stated that students in the Yoga classes were being instructed, "to say thank you to the sun for giving us life". Now I'm sure some people have ongoing conversations with the sun, and that's their business. But I can understand how some parents would be concerned if this is in fact just a sample of the kind of Yoga being taught their children in the public school system.

They could have called it by another name and no one would have noticed.

Yoga is healthy. If the school is doing it for that reason and NOT for religion, then they're fine.
Physiological benefits: blood pressure decreases, cardiovascular efficiency increases, endocrine function normalizes, excretory functions improve, joint range of motion increases, dexterity skills & reaction time improve, posture & sleep improves, and musculoskeletal flexibility & joint range of motion increase.
Psychological Benefits: anxiety & depression & hostility decreases, concentration improves, it improves your mood, attention, concentration, and memory.

Yoga had its origins in religion, but it has no religious dogma these days.

The parents are full of the usual religious BS.

This family is stupid and bigoted.

It would seem so, not to mention ignorant of exactly what "yoga" means in this country!

stupid and bigoted and yet I'm very conservative and philosophical beliefs.

So what, that does not mean that you know which end is up!
Nor that you can write in a complete sentence!