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Eastern practices |
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Today here
in |
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These
eastern practices are very much widespread and every time they are advertised
we are told that those who practice them experience peace, joy, relaxation,
and even that they have been healed of some diseases. Should we believe what
it is said about them? No, we must not believe it, because these practices
are works of the devil, through which all those who practice them give place
to the devil (or open the door to demonic influence). |
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Let us
look closely at some of them. (To explain yoga and eastern meditation I have
used the glossary which is in the book Death
of a guru). |
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Yoga, which literally means ‘to
unite’, is a Hindu ascetic discipline which includes breath control, simple
meditation and the adoption of specific bodily postures. Its aim is to make people
reach the union with Brahman. Who or what is Brahman? Brahman is the ultimate
reality: formless, inexpressible, unknowable, and unknowing; neither personal
nor impersonal; both creator and all that is created. Brahman is all and all
is Brahman according to the Hindu philosophy. The ultimate truth and
salvation for those who practice yoga is to ‘realize’ that they are
themselves Brahman, that they and all the universe are one and the same
Being. There are several kinds and schools of Yoga (the most important are
raja-yoga, jnana-yoga, karma-yoga, hatha-yoga, and tantra-yoga) an various
techniques, but all have this same ultimate goal of union with the Absolute
or Brahman (which is not the God of the Bible but the devil, who is the enemy
of God). The positions and breath control are intended as aids to Eastern
meditation, and a means of controlling the body in disciplining oneself to
renounce all desires which the body might otherwise impose upon the mind.
Yoga is designed specifically to induce a state of trance which supposedly
allows the mind to be drawn upward into a yoking with Brahman. It is a means
of withdrawal from the word of illusion to seek the only true reality. No
part of Yoga can be separated from the philosophy behind it. One who has attained,
through the practice of Yoga, union with Brahman, which is its aim, is called
Yogi. |
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As you can
see, yoga is a work of the devil because the goal of yoga is ‘self-realization’
(to achieve godhood), and also because through it a man comes into contact with
the devil (or with demons) and thus he can become demon-oppressed or
demon-possessed. Actually this is what happens all over the world, when those
who practice yoga manage to arouse the kundalini, which – according to the
Hindu religion - is the latent power which resides in the body of man near the
base of the spine. When aroused, the kundalini rages like a vicious serpent
inside a person with a force that is impossible to resist (which is undoubtedly
a manifestation of demonic power). Furthermore, according to yogis, the
kundalini will produce special occult powers (including: becoming invisible,
curing diseases, knowing or discovering certain things, leaving the body and travelling
to any part of the world in a few seconds, hurting one’s enemies, etc.),
which have their source in demonic beings and will lead ultimately to moral,
spiritual, and physical destruction. |
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Eastern meditation, such as
TM (which stands for Transcendental Meditation, which is a well known form of
meditation), is a technique for detaching oneself from the world of things
and ideas (which is called maya) through freeing one’s mind from all
voluntary or rational thought, which projects one into ‘higher’ states of
consciousness. Though popularized in the West under many names, the aim of
all Eastern meditation is to ‘realize’ one’s essential union with the
Universe (which is Brahman – or God - according to the Hindu religion),
therefore its aim is to lead the meditator to think that he is God. Eastern
meditation is the doorway to the ‘nothingness’ called nirvana. Generally sold
as a ‘relaxation’ technique, meditation really aims at and ultimately leads
to the surrender of oneself to mystical cosmic forces which are nothing but
demons. |
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Eastern
meditation also, therefore, is a work of the devil because its goal is
‘self-realization’, which is a superconscious state in which one thinks that
he is God and that truth and salvation (which is not the salvation about
which the Bible speaks) are inside himself. In addition to this, Eastern meditation
can lead to demon oppression or possession like yoga, for the meditator is
invited to repeat the mantra, which is a sound symbol of one or more
syllables often used to induce a mystical state. It must be passed on by the
living voice of a guru and cannot be learned in another way. One does not need
to understand the meaning of the mantra; the virtue is in the repetition of
the mantra. For it is said to embody a spirit or deity, and the repetition of
the mantra calls this being to the one repeating it. Thus the mantra both
invites a particular spiritual being to enter the one using it and creates
the passive state in the meditator to facilitate this fusion of beings.
Brethren, know this, that these spiritual beings or deities called on by the
meditators through the repetition of the mantra are demons, that is, evil
spirits who hate mankind and whose aim is to destroy people. |
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Now let me
explain to you what the Bible says about meditation. A Christian must
meditate, for the apostle Paul says: “Finally, brethren, whatever things are
true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things
are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if
there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy – meditate on these
things” (Philippians 4:8 – NKJV). How does a Christian know what is true,
noble, just, of good report, excellent and praiseworthy? By the Holy Spirit
who dwells in him, for He is truth. For instance, the Holy Spirit bears
witness that the Holy Scripture (that is, the Bible) is truth and so he must
meditate on it; the Holy Spirit bears witness also that the heaven, the earth
and the sea and all that is in them is the work of God’s hands which
testifies to His eternal power and Godhead, so it is good for a Christian to
meditate on the work of His hands. Why must a Christian meditate on the
things spoken of by Paul? In order to please God and to have fellowship with
Him, and not in order to become one with God or to come to the conclusion
that he is God, for he knows that he is and always will be a creature of God.
A Christian knows that no matter how long he meditates on what is right and
good, he will never become God nor will he come to the conclusion: ‘I am that
Being who created all things’, for the Holy Spirit will keep him from
thinking these evil thoughts. Rather we can say from experience that the Biblical
meditation will lead the Christian to realize that he is a worm, a weak and
little being, so little and full of limitations in the sight of His Creator
who fills and rules the universe. Therefore the biblical meditation will lead
him to humble himself before God and not to exalt himself. The Christian,
while meditating, can call upon the Lord, thank Him and praise Him; he has no
mantras, that is, no magical formula to use, but only thanksgivings and
praises which come out of his heart spontaneously. And these words make him
feel, by the Holy Spirit who is in him, in close communion with His God, they
make him feel His presence in a particular way on some occasions. |
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Acupuncture is an
ancient practice of Chinese medicine in which the alleviation of pain and/or
the cure of a disease condition is accomplished through the pricking of the
body at well-defined, specific points with fine needles. Let me explain to
you why the cure of a disease condition is accomplished through the pricking
of the body at well-defined, specific points with fine needles. The Chinese
recognize ‘the existence of a life force that flows through all living
things. They call it chi (variously spelled qi or ki). It is
analogous to prana in Hindu thought. Chi flows through the body along
invisible paths called meridians. Along the meridians are a number of points
that connect the meridians with the organs of the body. It is into these
points that the needles are inserted in acupuncture treatment. It is assumed
that in the healthy person the chi is circulating freely. Conversely, the chi
in an ill person has been blocked or is unbalanced in its flow. Through the
discriminating use of acupuncture, practitioners seek to restore health by
improving the circulation of the chi in the subject’s body. There are varying
numbers of points recognized, but approximate 365 are commonly known and any
given practitioner will use around 100 regularly. A precise knowledge of the
location of these points is essential to the acupuncturist’ (J. Gordon
Melton, New Age Encyclopedia,
Detroit 1990, page 6). |
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There is
no doubt that acupuncture is of the devil, for it leads people to believe the
following principles of the Chinese philosophy: all of nature and the
universe (including man) is eternally existing as vibrations of impersonal,
polarized energy called Yin and Yang, and the key to physical well-being is
to balance the positive and negative aspects of this energy. Which principles
– being rooted in occultism - opposes the truth, and therefore they are false
principles; and as you know the father of lies is the devil, who is the
prince of this world. And the Scripture commands us to resist the devil. Brothers,
beware of the Chinese philosophy (as well as of any other kind of
philosophy), lest you wander from the truth which is in Christ Jesus.
Remember what Paul wrote to the Colossians: “Beware lest anyone cheat you
through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men,
according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ”
(Colossians 2:8 – NKJV). |
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I conclude
by saying this: know this, that whoever claims to be able to manipulate the
imbalance of Yin Yang energy by placing needles along some points in the
human body to stimulate the increase or decrease of Yin and Yang is involved
in the occult and you must beware of him, lest you come under the influence
of the evil spirits which assist the acupuncturist in the practice of
acupuncture or rather of which the acupuncturist is slave, for all those who
are involved in the occult are slaves of the evil spirits which assist them.
Well, someone may say to me now, ‘Don’t you think that one can be an
acupuncturist without being involved in the occult?’ No, I don’t think so,
for acupuncture is a therapy based on occult principles, and thus anyone who
practices it is involved in the occult somehow, for he is assisted by occult
forces. Even if he is not a magician or does not know that there are evil
spirits behind acupuncture which enables him to do his work, he is performing
something which needs the assistance of evil spirits and he himself is under
the influence of evil spirits. |
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So,
brothers and sisters in the Lord, you who are sick, flee acupuncture and put
your trust in the Lord who is the One who heals all your diseases (Psalm
103:3). I say it again, flee from acupuncture. |
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Macrobiotics is both a
comprehensive vegetarian diet and a spiritual worldview based upon ancient
oriental beliefs and practices refined during the twenty century.
‘Macrobiotic thought is based upon the ancient Chinese doctrine of the Tao,
which has at least three interrelated but distinct ways of being used. Tao is
the absolute, the impersonal but creative ground of existence, from which all
phenomena derive; it is the operation of the Absolute within phenomena; and
the path or way of coming into union with the Absolute. The Absolute
manifests into two tendencies, yin and yang, which are at once complementary
and antagonistic. Yin and yang combine in various proportions to produce
differing phenomena. All phenomena have some yin and some yang. No pure yin
or pure yang exists; there is no neutral phenomena. Each phenomenon contains
either more yin or more yang. The yin-yang approach to phenomena can be
applied to the entire world of experience from diet to government and
chemistry to sociology. While applying yin-yang concepts to almost every
sphere of life, Ohsawa [a Japanese Macrobiotics teacher] emphasized its
application to diet and health. According to him, diet is the basic reality
determining the other spheres of life. Bad diets distort reality and lead to
all of the world’s problems, especially war. The basic element in the
macrobiotic diet is cereal, which Ohsawa taught was the principal food for
human beings. …. His diet prohibited potatoes, eggplants, and tomatoes ….
Fish, salads, and fresh fruit are allowed in the transition diets, but should
gradually be withdrawn. No red meat or processed, chemically prepared, or
synthetic foods are to be consumed’ (J. Gordon Melton, New Age Encyclopedia, Detroit 1990, page 274). In other words,
according to macrobiotics a man can become happy, he can find peace, and live
a long life on earth by following a particular diet. His peace as well as his
happiness and health depend on what he eats! Some foods influences negatively
the life of men and therefore must be avoided. |
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However,
the Scripture teaches that in order to have peace and to be happy a man must
repent of his sins and believe in Jesus Christ. Furthermore, a man can eat
everything “for every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused
if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is sanctified by the word of God
and prayer” (1 Timothy 4:4-5 - NKJV). That’s why the apostle Paul states that
those who command to abstain from foods which God created (to be received
with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth) teach a doctrine
of demons (1 Timothy 4:1-3). Macrobiotics is based on the same occult
principles of acupuncture, so flee from it. |
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Martial arts are forms
of combat-techniques. They are called martial arts because they are ‘of
warfare’ or ‘suitable for warfare’ (that’s the meaning of the word martial),
and they are not merely combat-techniques but also an expression of an
eastern spiritual philosophy (that’s why they are referred to as ‘arts’). Martial
arts are strongly influenced by eastern religious doctrines for they
encourage the practitioners to cultivate and use the life force called chi and
their aim is to make them reach a perfect union with the universe or rather
with the so called chi energy. In the New Age Encyclopedia we read that it is
believed that originally the monks of the Shao-lin monastery in China
‘adopted some kind of martial art out of practical necessity, but discovered
that, when approached with the right attitude, the discipline of regular
practice could assist them in developing the kind of one-pointedness of mind
that is necessary for effective meditation. This discovery was so fruitful
that it is presently difficult to find a traditional martial art that is not
somehow associated with a religious vision of the world’ (J. Gordon Melton, New Age Encyclopedia, Detroit 1990,
page 278). |
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Therefore,
martial arts must be avoided not only because we, as children of God, must
not learn to fight against our enemies with carnal weapons nor to do any harm
to them (for Jesus said that we must love our enemies and do good to those
who hate us), but also for these reasons: 1) Because martial arts are based
on occult philosophies, which encourage martial artists to develop and use
the chi energy, which is an alleged mystical force that pervades the
universe. This force is from the devil, the prince of this world, and the
demons which follow him, and enables martial artists to perform feats which
actually go beyond the outer limits of their personal human capacity.
Therefore, anyone who seeks to use this energy is actually using a demonic
power, behind which there are wicked spiritual beings, and as a result he is
under the influence of these spiritual beings. 2) Because martial arts
encourage the individual to practice a form of meditation whose purpose is to
lead to a non-dualistic state of mind in which the distinction between subject
and object disappears and the practitioner becomes one with ‘god’ or ‘the
absolute’, and so when the individual reaches such state of mind he believes
that he is God and that all is God, and therefore this form of meditation
advocates a form of self-salvation. |
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In the
light of this, therefore, if anyone among you is still practicing martial
arts I exhort him to stop practicing them. |
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Brothers,
remember that in ancient times God rebuked the Israelites saying that He had
forsaken them because they were filled “with eastern ways” (Isaiah 2:6 –
NKJV). |