Nagaland Baptist Church Council Asks Christians To Refrain From Practising Yoga

Christians in Nagaland have been asked to refrain from practising Yoga in a letter addressed to them by The Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC), DNA has reported.

“Yoga is a spiritual and physical discipline deeply rooted in the religious beliefs and practices of Hinduism, and hence it is not compatible with Christianity,” council general secretary Zelhou Keyho has said in the letter, adding that the practice is "viewed suspiciously by the Church".

Apart from constituent associations and churches, the communication has been sent out to the state Cabinet, state officials and members of the NBCC.

The practice, letter reads, is not compatible with the Church, and that it requests "institutions, both within and outside of Nagaland, to exempt Naga students from the practice of yoga so as not to hurt the religious sentiments of the Christian community as well as to uphold the religious freedom envisaged in the Constitution."

The NBCC is an apex body of Baptist churches in Nagaland and currently represents close to 1,500 churches. This is not the first time that the body has opposed the practice. In 2015, the council had opposed the holding of Yoga Day in the state. International Yoga Day is organised as a part of Indian government’s push to promote the practice throughout the world.