Yoga and the Body of Christ: What Position Should Christians Hold?

by Dave Hunt

What position should Christians hold? Promising to bring peace, healing, and wholeness (even prosperity!) to its practitioners, readers will be shocked to discover that yoga is, in fact, based on the worship of (and prepares participants for supernatural connection with) unholy spirits that manifest in extraordinary and dangerous ways. The author—an avid promoter of biblically based physical, mental, and spiritual wholeness—distinguishes pure truth from popular belief in this revealing expose. Every Christian should be informed of the true origins and effects of the practice of yoga and its ungodly roots in Kundalini energy—which, literally defined, means an awakening of the "Serpent Power." 1. What About Yoga? 2. Yoga For Christians? 3. The Aquarian Conspiracy 4. The Conquest Of The West 5. Beware The "Science" Of Yoga 6. "The Great Dragon...That Old Serpent" 7. Yoga's Kundalini Serpent Power 8. Yoga, Reincarnation, And Truth

Genres: Christian

176 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2006

About the author

Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Dave Hunt was an American Christian apologist, speaker, radio commentator and author. He was in full-time ministry from 1973 until his death. A prolific best-selling author, international lecturer, and Bible teacher, his writings have been translated into at least 50 languages. More than four million copies of Dave’s books have been sold. For nearly a decade, Dave also co-hosted a weekly radio program, Search the Scriptures Daily, broadcast on over 400 stations in the U.S. and worldwide.

Reviews

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I heard an interview with him on this topic and I enjoyed it more than the book. Still, the book is full of much needed information for the Church at this time.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

While I don't deny the fact that yoga is a vital part of Hinduism, and may be considered part of "worship" for many Hindus, in American culture, yoga has become so mainstream and divorced from any religion that most of Hunt's arguments are fallacious.

Hunt also uses outdated references for the majority of the book (pre 1990s references popped up frequently, and I don't think I saw anything dated earlier than the mid 2000's), which makes it seem like he did no research into modern yoga and the culture of physical well-being that surrounds it in America. In fact, he states outright that there is no difference between religious yoga and the watered-down version currently most commonly practiced in the US today.

Finally, Hunt makes the preposterous claim that Christians practicing yoga can become possessed by demons. He posits the theory that because in its original religious context, yoga is seen as an opening of the body and the mind/spirit, it's practitioners become open to demonic possession. He equates this to the (VERY different) practice of VooDoo priests and priestesses of deliberatly calling spirits (loa) down to "ride" them. To his mind, there is no difference between them, because any form of "openness" whether that's meditation, yoga, hypnosis, etc., allows for evil spirits/demons to take possession of your mind and body. He also makes no distinction between Christians and non-Christians, saying that yoga will allow even Christians to become demon possessed (Paul states that the indwelling spirit of Christ protects us from possession, but not influence, by demons).

Overall, I cannot recommend this book, as it contradicts biblical truth.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

After doing quite a bit of reading on this subject, I had hoped this book would add to my knowledge. This was not the case. However, for a beginner in the topic, this book offers a lot of insight. The writers style of writing read to me like a somewhat sensationalist radio show. , which I don’t think the subject needs- the truth speaks for itself. Do I agree with the premise of the book? Absolutely yes. Though I differ slightly in theology from the author, I didn’t find trouble identifying with almost everything he says regarding Christianity and yoga being unquestionably incompatible. However, his writing was not linear to me. I felt it jumped around a lot and, though it carried a theme from beginning to end, it didn’t always feel cohesive. To a reader who has not read anything on the subject and truly wants biblical answers, this might not be the book I would recommend, but I also think it provides eye opening facts and explanations that all Christians should understand. I would recommend the book to anyone who is already thinking of reading it, but it’s not my top recommendation.

[youMUSTbebornagain john 3.16-21 · Rating 5 out of 5]

MUST read for anyone who calls themself a Christian.

[Heidi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had a hard time staying focused on this book. It had lots of good information though... scary stuff. Nope. I have no interest in ever doing Yoga, especially now. The evil overrides any benefits.