Parents in the California seaside town of Encinitas -- a suburb of San Diego -- are in a twist over yoga, saying that adding the ancient practice of meditative exercise to the school curriculum is tantamount to religious indoctrination into Hinduism, the California Catholic website reports today (November 9, 2012).
School officials never thought that yoga -- practiced by some 22 million Americans -- would be controversial when they accepted a $533,000 grant from a local yoga studio to include Ashtanga yoga in a program where students also learn about healthy eating and cultivate small gardens.
Soon after yoga teachers began leading students at five elementary schools in twice-weekly sessions of stretching, breathing, and relaxing, four dozen parents protested to the school board, saying yoga is a system of spiritual beliefs.
School officials quickly announced that parents could choose to have their children excused from yoga classes. But attorney Dean Broyles -- representing the parents -- said he plans to file a lawsuit to oust yoga from the school district.
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