2 4 S p i r i t ua l i t y S t u d i e s 5 - 1 S p r i n g 2 0 1 9 Yoga as a Part of Sanātana Dharma Received December 12, 2018 Revised March 18, 2019 Accepted March 23, 2019 The definition of religion is not easy as the views on this point are very different. The IndianSanātana Dharma, the “Eternal Order”, is how Indians call their system that has also a connotation that relates to what we call religion. What we understand as Yoga was defined by Patañjali, Svātmārāma, Gorakhnath, and other Yoga masters. Yoga is a part of Sanātana Dharma and is calledMukti Dharma, the “Dharma of Liberation”. Yoga as one of the six orthodox philosophies is free from religious traits. The difference between the Indian and Western understanding of Sanātana Dharma is investigated from a practical point of view reflected in the literature and in a dialogue with Indian pandits. The reflection of the Western (namely Christian) understanding of Indian Sanātana Dharma and its effect on the way how Christians look at Yoga is also mentioned. Key words Yoga, Vedic religion, Hinduism, Sanātana Dharma Gejza M. Timčák
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