YOGA: The Religion-Less Religion
Although yoga is not a religion, to many of us yogis, it sorta is. And although yoga stems from Hinduism which is a religion, yoga itself is more of a religious act than a religion. This is why I think that many of us that get hooked into the practice, as a result of its inherent spiritual nature. Just like people who get hooked into surfing or crossfit or veganism or business or love, there’s this identity that you find yourself feeling comfortable in and then somehow it just becomes a part of your everyday life, just like a religion.
But the problem my generation faces with religion is the division we’ve seen it cause across the world. Being more globally connected than ever before due to the internet, we’re able to experience human issues caused by religion at a close second-hand perspective; like the war in Israel for example.
We’ve also seen family members torn apart because of differing religious opinions. And let’s not even bring up the weirdness that is Scientology (as I write this in the heart of it - LA). So its this division that makes us wonder why people are so obsessed with believing that their religion is the best way to live a life. When really, it seems like a pretty egotistical thing to say the way you think is superior compared to other trains of thought. You’re telling me that 8 billion different people wouldn’t naturally come up with multiple religions just based on geography, culture, and language?
Ultimately, most religions really preach a lot of the same things, just through different stories. And we’re a story-telling species, which I love about us, but also the problem with getting stuck on a story is you get stuck in the story.
What I love so much about yoga and why I think everyone should practice it is because you can use it as a tool that makes whatever religion or self-religion you practice more powerful by using your God-given body to honor the temple that is the creation you were born into.
Like, does it get any more spiritual than that?
Waking up everyday and taking a moment to water yourself with the thought that you’re perfect just as you are?
This is the beauty of this religion-less religion.
This morning as I was practicing outside in LA on the top floor deck, there was the tiniest little bug that found it’s little ole way onto my mat and if I wasn’t tuned in, would have crushed in my next downward facing dog. Luckily, I saw the little guy and picked him up on my finger. It was a tiny little green bug I’d never even seen before; so small and had these little green antennas with a long nose and specks for black eyes, only but an atom. And we just had this moment of staring at each other, in incredulity.
It looking at me: this massive giant with huge paws and eyes 1,000x the size of its entire being - and it: a sixteenth the size of my nail. And in those moments, it’s just like wow, we’re all just out here living life, ultimately created by something SO much BIGGER than we could ever fathom. Our little blue planet but a speck to our creator.
And it’s in these moments where I’m reminded that
Life can be really magical when you let it be.
And so my goal here with all this content creation is just to get people to practice more yoga so they too can slow down, see the magic, and appreciate simply being alive. Life is so f*cking sick; it’s not worth being blind to it. It’s worth living life awake and aware.
