2 Answers

  1. No, if you understand yoga as a full-fledged spiritual and physical teaching, then an Orthodox person should not do this. Orthodox culture has its own ascetic practices, which, oddly enough, are known to Russians much less than yoga. For example, hesychasm, the description of which is devoted to the good part of the multi-volume book called “Philokalia”.

    The ascetic Orthodox discipline includes spiritual and bodily elements in a huge number, even the prayer itself begins with the body and its posture, which should be devout, as the same Philokalia says. Great importance is attached to fasting, sleep time, the quality of physical labor, and other practices that should be regulated by the spiritual father.

    In other words, it makes no sense for an Orthodox person to practice yoga in the presence of native physical and spiritual disciplines.

  2. As just a form of gymnastics-many are engaged. Like the practice of working with breathing or thought processes – well, less, but it happens.

    Full immersion in Eastern spiritual practices, including yoga, while maintaining Orthodox beliefs is unrealistic

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