Yoga and Religion

I was recently asked if I was a "Catholic Buddhist." It was funny to me, as I never even thought of such an idea. I was raised Catholic and attended Catholic schools for a long time. I was even married in the Catholic Church. At some point, around my early 30's, I started to question my religion. Nothing new for most of us, right? So, I stopped attending Church and didn't focus much on religion being a part of my life. I did still pray every day, more out of habit, I think.

Then, I found yoga! At the beginning, I thought it was just a physical practice. It felt good to my body, it helped me to relax, and it helped me emotionally. I loved every bit of it. So, I decided to get certified to teach yoga, and never realized until I was in the training, how spiritual it was. Wow, it was a lot deeper than doing sun salutations and headstands.

To make a long story short, yoga became a ritual for me to practice being a better person physically, mentally, and emotionally. It actually brought me closer to god and made me more dedicated to god every day, not just once per week at Church. So, what do I do now, you may ask or wonder. I combine both my Catholic religion and my yoga practices for a completeness that I never thought imaginable.

My day begins with walking down the hall to my meditation room. I sit and give myself the sign of the cross. I then do a short Catholic prayer and sit to practice some pranayama-breath exercises. Then, I do mantra meditation in Sanskrit. I sit still anywhere from 15-30 minutes, depending on the day. Then, I practice some Yin Yoga or Vinyasa, or a little bit of both. Once I am done with my asana practice, I sit again, and chant OM, and give myself the sign of the cross, and say Amen. It is perfect for what fulfills me. I look forward to it every day, and I am thankful to god, every day, not just once per week at Church. I thank god for the food on our table, for my husband, my puppies, the family and friends that surround us, and everything that is a blessing. To me, that is the important part of religion or spirituality. It is being thankful and grateful. It is practicing contentment-Samtosad.