Austria school bans yoga for ‘religious reasons’

An elementary school in Dechantskirchen, Austria will no longer teach yoga in gym classes. The school authorities decided to pull off yoga from its curriculum after a parent complained.

Ingrid Karner had taught children yoga once per month in gym. Karner will no longer teach students yoga poses after a parent contacted the school saying that she did not wish to have her child exposed to the form of exercise for religious reasons.

“All I heard was that according to the Bible yoga should not be allowed and it would lead the children in the wrong direction,” Karner said.

The gym teacher’s yoga lessons had previously been approved by school administrators.

“We introduced children’s yoga and concentration exercises into gym classes. I presented the project to the headmistress and the district school inspector in advance and they were both happy with it,” Karner said.

“In Germany yoga has long been a part of the curriculum for children,” she said.

Maria Hofer, headmistress of the school, confirmed the classes were canceled after a mother complained to the district that “she did not want her child coming into contact with yoga for religious reasons.”

Yoga exercises originated with spiritual practices related to Hinduism and Buddhism. There are several different forms of yoga being practiced in the modern day, some with more religious connections than others. Source: UPI