Question: I wish to introduce my friends and relatives to Buddhism through yoga, as there seems to be a link between the two, and since yoga is getting popular. However, I am not a yoga practitioner, and would need to learn how it relates to Buddhism first. What do you think?
Answer: The so-called link between Buddhism and yoga is not really there. Popular yoga practices today are more of physical exercises, while Buddhism is a directly spiritual exercise. It is the West that tends to link the two together though the Buddha never taught yoga in today’s popular sense.
While it makes sense to stay reasonably healthy, as life is short and unpredictable, it is wiser to first directly focus on learning, practising and sharing the Buddha’s teachings. This is so as no matter how healthy one is, death is still inevitable. The more time one spends fussing on the body, the less time there is for training the mind. The Buddha’s teachings practised well is what leads to liberation from the cycle of birth and death.
The easiest way to do so are through the Buddha’s Pure Land teachings: https://thedailyenlightenment.com/2017/12/understanding-amituofo-via-the-amitabha-sutra-20th-run
