[Yannis Lempos]: Why is yoga—simply as a form of exercise—considered a sin?
[Morphou]: The people who are unaware of oriental religions [and practice yoga] ask,
“What’s the problem with us practicing yoga, and why do you religious fanatics hound us?”
“We merely wish to attain an inner peace of our body and soul.”
[Morphou]: As if man is a clock and if you tune it right, it works.
And if I practice the so-called ‘Lotus’ exercise, where you somehow fold your hands and feet,
you [allegedly] acquire peace and tranquility.
The peace of God is a gift from the Holy Spirit, it’s not [a result] of our personal achievement.
The fact that they attain some sort of self-control and peace is nothing but an indication that they are visited not by the Holy Spirit, but the other spirit [i.e. the demonic one].
St. Paisios said that Satan’s gifts are cheap. That’s why you can easily buy them.
[On the other hand], as concerns the gifts of the Holy Spirit, there is a saying that goes:
“Give blood to receive Spirit” [metaphorically meaning that you need to strive extremely hard to receive a gift from the Holy Spirit].
You see the poor ones who practice yoga to easily maintain some sort of bliss, of peace.
I have to tell you a story about a young guy from our occupied villages [of Cyprus].
He is a really nice guy. He lives in Nicosia.
How to put it? His ‘burden’ is that he is beautiful, and all women liked him.
In order to find some peace, he went to a couple of spiritual fathers who did not [manage to] help him.
If we, the spiritual fathers, are unable to help a man discover repentance, he remains a narcissist.
Meaning, he admires himself. [Even more], if he has a certain charisma or is good-looking, narcissist squared.
So, he heard that there are some groups practicing yoga in Nicosia and he went there.
He thought, “Since the priests cannot help me find inner peace, let me try yoga.”
The one who was teaching yoga was a woman. She, too, had eyes and could see [how good-looking he was].
Someone told this guy about me and he came to find me in Evrychou [where the Metropolis of Morphou is located] alone.
He told me about the peace he was feeling, the inner tranquility, the self-control.
He told me that his passions wound down.
He told me, “In the past, I wanted another woman, and another woman, and whatever woman I desired, I had relations with her.”
“But now I try to find one woman to love me and to love her back and get married.”
“The yoga teacher helped me with this.”
I thought, “The demon [of yoga] bought him.”
God enlightened me and I told him, “Since we priests do not have trust in the yoga teachers,”
“why don’t you tell the [yoga] teacher to come meet me?”
“For me to know her too. If yoga is so good, I should try it too.”
He says, “Would you accept her?”
“Why not?” I answered.
I asked him, “Is she Orthodox?”
“No, she is a protestant, but she speaks Greek fluently. She is married to a Cypriot and she lives in Cyprus.”
They came together [to see me]. She made the mistake of visiting me.
A lady, calm and educated. In front of her, I was a miserable peasant.
However, I asked her the key question.
I said, “Suppose that I come join your classes and become a student.”
“But I doubt my progress and I believe that the progress, the tranquility, the winding down of the passions,
I believe is attributed to the fact that not peace in God, but demonic peace has entered in me.”
“Are you in a position to discern, whether the peace I am feeling, is coming from God, or from the demon?”
“Can you discern?”
She says, “No, I cannot.”
She admitted seeing ‘light’ while she ‘prays’ her own ‘prayer.’
This made me certain that Satan [had] visited her.
“How are you to discern whether this light [you speak of] is the light of the Triune God and not the ‘lights’ of the [demonic] spirits [instead]?”
Because demons are in a position to imitate not the uncreated light [of God], but created light.
“How will you discern which is the source of this light?”
“We embrace whichever projector lights up? We might end up getting burned in the end.”
When I explained to her that our Church has the distinction of spirits and we do not believe that—as soon as we see a light on, a miracle, or receive an inner peace—everything comes from God.
Not everything is from God. It might be an imitation.
Aristotle, who lived before Christ, said, “Tragedy is an imitation of an action that is serious, complete […].”
An imitation still. Not a truth!
As soon as I said this to her, ‘the goddess of peace’ was agitated.
“Let me ask you something more. Is peace the only purpose in our lives?”
“[What about] the purity from desires, thoughts?”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
I told her cold-bloodedly, “You, my daughter, like him.”
“Who told you that?”
“The Spirit,” I answered.
“How did you get it? It’s true.” She says [right] in front of him. She was terrified.
“Why are you shaking?” I asked her.
“I am not sure, but ever since I stepped in this office, I feel weird powers …”
“There are no weird powers in here, my daughter.”
It’s [just] me, the weak one. And the power of the Triune God [dwelling] on the relic of Saint Nikephoros [the Leper] over there, on the Holy Water of Theophany over there, next to the table,
the Holy Unction I performed ten years ago and the oil is still there, ‘alive’ without any smell,
and the cross of St. Iakovos Tsalikis.
This is my power. I do not have any other power. I am full of weaknesses.
But this power of the Holy Spirit, I wish it and this good-looking [guy] wishes it too. And you [should] leave him alone.
They fought so badly in front of me … I enjoyed the fight.
I say this in honor of the young man. One night he came. I was absent. Fr. Iakovos was present…
I had told him, “You need to bring all the books.” And it was not just books about yoga and exercises of the body and soul, [there were] witchcraft books too.
She had them do kabbalah.
“Bring all the books and we will burn them in the oven.”
Fr. Iakovos burned them all.
I told the guy, “You will not confess to me. You will only visit me once a year. And he is doing really well now. Thank God!
Still you can see how these people get trapped and use the spirits because they are unaware of the power of The One True Spirit, the Holy Spirit.
On yoga
His Eminence, Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou answers the question: "Why yoga as a way of exercise is considered a sin?"
Excerpt from the Fifth Spiritual Meeting of Dialogue with His Eminence, Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou, which took place on June 25, 2019 in the multi-purpose hall of the elementary school of Akaki.
🇬🇷 ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΑ Η Παναγία μας προτρέπει και μας λέγει «φωνάξτε με», ή «φωνάζετέ με», «φωνάζετε το όνομά μου, και γω θα σας βοηθώ πάντοτε». ...
Η πνευματική αυτή αποστασία επιφέρει πνευματική ξηρασία, που αναπόφευκτα έχει φυσικές συνέπειες (σεισμοί, επιδημίες, πείνα κ.ά.), με βάσ...
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