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Is California indoctrinating youth through yoga?

April 6, 2015

yogaStudents may continue practicing yoga in California public schools following a court ruling Friday. [LA Times]

The three-judge panel of California’s 4th District Court of Appeal upheld a decision by the San Diego Superior Court that allows yoga in Encinitas schools. The K-6 Encinitas Unified School District currently offers grant-funded yoga classes that are taught twice a week in 30-minute increments.

The parents of two students sued on grounds that the yoga program promotes Hinduism, while the district discourages any display of Christianity. Their attorney argued that the yoga program violates a state law prohibiting religious instruction in public schools.

But, the superior court ruled that yoga is “devoid of any religious, mystical or spiritual trappings.”

The superintendent of the district said yoga is part of an effort to teach students the benefits of exercise and healthful eating.

“We are not teaching religion, we are not instructing anyone in religious dogma,” Superintendent Tim Baird said. “Yoga is very mainstream.”

Parents of students in the yoga program can choose to have their children opt out. The parents who sued said that students who opt out are harassed, segregated, discriminated against and bullied.


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So I clicked on the link to the article at the LA Times to see if the religion of the parents who filed this frivolous lawsuit; none was mentioned. My guess though? Fundamentalist Christian; who else would get their panties in such a bunched wad over their children being taught to try and be in tune with their body? I would suggest that maybe fundamentalist Hebrews or fundamentalist Muslims, but both of those religions seem to understand that yoga is just that, yoga.


Is it possible that somewhere in the world yoga is taught with a religious slant or zeal? Sure, but I highly doubt it’s going to be done anywhere in America. I really don’t have a problem with anyone following any religion they want to, as long as they don’t harm anyone or anything (no indoctrinations or sacrifices ), but I really do get tired of hearing Christians (fundamentalist in particular) play the victim card or crying about how they are being “persecuted” because of their beliefs, when is seems pretty obvious that if they were truly following the example of Jesus, they would learn to accept others for who and how they are, and instead of preaching to them, they would live a life of example of how to treat others. Give it a rest already, no one is persecuting you if you are truly trying to follow the example of Jesus; if you are honestly being singled out for your religious practices or beliefs, perhaps maybe you aren’t doing it right?


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” I really don’t have a problem with anyone following any religion they want to.”

Really? Then why assume (guess) that the appellants are fundamentalist Christian?

Based on your opening statement, I’d say you do have a problem.


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Um, I’m sorry if I persecuted your fundamentalist Christian beliefs?


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I don’t believe most of the historical aspects of any science (especially Darwin) nor any religious background either. History is only a large agreement of assumption that facts are true. It is likely that the government is in it for the money-and that the military-industrial complex (Eisenhower, 1940’s) has grown into the Walmart-McDonalds-Becktel-Eli-Lilly-Fox Media-Standard Oil-Black Op Military Complex. The world is full of repeaters and talking heads (they just repeat what they hear and never question anything). “Did you see Kim Kardashian’s new hairstyle?” (gawd….)


Back in the 1680s, Kant, Isaac Newton, Voltaire….and about 15 others equal to their philosophical and scientific stature….confronted The Church during the period known in Western Europe as The Enlightenment. They accused The Church of hoarding books and limiting knowledge to the chosen few (there were few books after the burning of the Library of Alexandria and few could read or write). The monarchies and the church authorities could write though! And they controlled the common populace with this imposed limitation.


They still do control people: with the patriotic/Christian hologram insertion. We don’t know jack about anything–and I have the graduate degree to prove it! :)


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“Back in the 1680s, Kant, Isaac Newton, Voltaire … confronted The Church during the period known in Western Europe as The Enlightenment.”


Um, Voltaire was born in 1694 and Kant in 1724. BTW, to which “Church” are you referring? The Lutheran Church of Kant’s Germany? The Anglican Church of Newton’s England? Or the Catholic Church of Votaire’s France? Lastly, how does your rambling rant connect with the yoga issue discussed in this article? Please enlighten us.


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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Enlightenment

Here, you sort it out. I have a busy practice to run and might have had a typo. Have things to do that are slightly higher in priority than anal-yzing over others accuracy when it relates to casual posts in a local paper.


That anal thing is from potty training issues, you know….


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Typo. Hahahahahahahahaha


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Sorry, indigo, but if you play that fast and loose with historical facts, you’ll forgive me for not putting much stock in your anal-ysis of me. Spreading MISinformation is as problematic as suppressing FACTUAL information. Some of us still believe in the old-fashioned notion that accuracy matters, especially when discussing important matters.


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But it was a typo. Silly indigo


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Did any of these filing this accusation ever read this document called The Constitution of the United States? Amendment 1: Freedom of Religion. I don’t know….ever since the wholesome Christian family next door robbed my storage unit when they moved out (it is a small town–I tracked them down and they were selling it at their new place in a yard sale)…..I just don’t feel so comfortable with agendas like this that seem to have an underlying Christian agenda. At the yard sale….I said “I forgive you, and if you need to rob me and sell stuff to feed your children: have at it”. The dad’s face was twisted with hate. It was scary.


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I thought you had a practice to run


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I know many atheists that practice yoga. Yoga just means “union”. My understanding of it is to unify your mind with your body. There can be religious aspects to it, or it can be just a form of exercise. I am a firm believer in the separation go church and state, but this does not fit into that category.


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Had a bad cold and an aching back when I went to a Kundalini Yoga class for research on a project. Came out as good as gold. Wasn’t a Hindu before, wasn’t a Hindu then and not a

Hindu now. Just one indoctrinated kinda guy, eh?


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yOGA PROMOTES hINDUISM???? That’s as big a crock of b.s. as I’ve ever heard.


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For our Christian community, we should fight back against Yoga not being founded by a religious entity. In the same vein, after school classes should promote the Christian teachings of the bible and our beloved Jesus condoning the killing of children that curse their parents. It’s our teachings of godly justice equal to the teachings of Yoga’s peace!


Jesus condones the killing of kids that curse their parents: “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and anyone who curses his father or mother MUST BE PUT TO DEATH. (Matthew 15:3)


The command that Jesus was referring too and that was in effect at His time, and is to be continued today as the scriptures so state to the discerning eye, was when Moses said: “Honor your father and mother, and anyone who curses his father or mother MUST BE PUT TO DEATH. (Matthew 15:3)


This act will make it clear that we Christians are going to stand up for our faith!


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Yoga came from the same spirit that gave us the YMCA and other appendages of pseudo Christian body http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/adamcurtis/posts/bodybuilding_and_nation-building


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Huh??


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If yoga has Christian origins you can bet it would have been banned!


To suggest that “yoga is ‘devoid of any religious, mystical or spiritual trappings'” simply isn’t true.


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Yawn… The next thing we’ll have is these parents suing to stop the teaching of science because it conflicts with their religious beliefs.


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unlisted,


Satanic Science does conflict with our Christian beliefs! Our Christian faith relies upon Occum’s Razor, at which times we cut ourselves upon until we find the appropriate apologetic’s book.


Nonetheless, who could believe in EVILution where man was made from primordial soup and stardust over millions of years with Satanic fossils showing man in progress to date in the past, what a laugh! Our Razor of choice, Creationism and the bible, let’s us believe that man is approximately 6000 years old, is made from “dirt”, Eve from a rib of Adam AFTER the animals were created, and made with belly buttons as all Adam and Eve portraits show. Lest we forget that we have a talking snake in the garden of Eden, of which we don’t know if this snake spoke Aramaic, Greek, or “snakeeeeze,” but it matters not.


Who can forget about God giving Eve severe PAIN in the upcoming years with childbirth just because she transgressed against our Hebrew God and gave Adam the forbidden fruit?


“To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” (Genesis 3:16)


Yes, we know, the passage above is the impetus of women becoming 2nd class citizens in the bible and it progresses from this point that they are to be ruled over by the superior man. So be it.


We Christians have a lot better understanding of how we got here than science can ever tell us, and that is one reason we have so many members of our faith, simplicity and faith is the key of Christianity, praise!


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They still teach Darwin and Evolution, though there has been no evidence of a change of Kind (i.e. a fish into a bird). Adaptation, yes, but evolution? Not yet. Religious or not, schools teach whatever they are told to teach by those that write their checks. Learn it, like it, love it.


Hell, there are still a lot of man-made global warming kooks being well-funded to advance the hoax, while any who do not are either terminated, under- or un-funded, or never hired. It’s a tragic time for true science (whatever one believes) when we constantly hear “the debate is over, the science is settled” – do you know how few real scientists left cringe upon hearing that?


Yoga is not devoid of mysticism, rather that ignorant superintendent is devoid of knowledge.


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So smart Roy, how can you stand it – everybody wrong and you right. It’s a tragic time indeed. You must be the science adviser to Fox news and Rush- a bastion of intelligence.


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You are obviously ignorant of Yoga practice, roy; I’ve learned some for relaxation of mind and muscles and there is NOTHING Hindu or religious or mystical or whatever about it; NOTHING.

I guess that makes you devoid of knowledge….


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warmest recorded temperature in Antarctica 63.5 degrees highest temperature ever just saying


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Boy roy. you really dont pay attention. Look at bird skeleton. look at your skeleton.


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http://b.3cdn.net/climate/f2401aea66b932965b_e4m623ikv.pdf


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Well said unlisted.


That would be a great start to bringing back the USA. The Country that has been blessed by the very God that created all things.


Go purchase a bible, read it intently, and find out what life is all about.


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Read it intently as life passes by with ones face in a book, a item of human creation the work of many hands, without any of the “gods” involved.


USA USA USA!


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