Greetings Reader,

We visited my hometown Krishna temple in NYC a couple of weeks ago. It was wonderful to be there: fantastic kirtans in the temple room, exquisite Deities on the altar, and a very nice talk about the connections between bhakti philosophy and our search for happiness.

After the lecture, we sat with a few other attendees as we all enjoyed the delicious vegetarian dinner that the temple offers as part of their regular Sunday evening program.

I’m sure no one really wanted to go there but, somehow or other, a sliver of politics edged its way into the conversation. It didn’t stay long, but long enough for one of our new friends to make a confounding declaration: "Trump’s my guy. He’s lies all the time, but I like his policies.”

Being mindful of time, place, and circumstance, I resisted the temptation to suggest that if Trump lies all the time . . . then his policies are based on lies, . . . which means you like policies that are disconnected from reality!!!!”

I chose instead to respond with a friendly-looking grimace, proving to myself that I know at least one key to living a happy life.

If his pronouncement wasn’t a product of cognitive limitation, it was certainly a product of cognitive bias, a systematic subconscious error in thinking that can result in an irrational conclusion, such as accepting arguments that may be logical but are definitely not true because they’re based on a false premise.

For example, “All horses can fly, all horses are tomatoes, therefore, all tomatoes can fly.” is, structurally speaking, a logical argument. However, the assumptions that the argument is based on are disconnected from reality, so the argument itself is totally false.

This kind of logical fallacy shows up in yoga and wellness spaces, too. In fact, a lot of what circulates as “yoga wisdom” today sounds logical, but rests on mistaken premises.

Here’s a simple example:

1. Yoga is about inner peace and non-violence (ahimsā).
2. Physical discomfort and challenge create stress and strain.
3. Therefore, avoiding uncomfortable physical challenges for the sake of inner peace is consistent with yogic teachings.

It seems correct because the structure is logically consistent: If yoga = peace and challenge = disturbance, then yoga ≠ challenge.

It also appears to be correct because, on their own, the first two statements are true. It also feels intuitively right, especially in wellness-focused spaces.

However logical and intuitive it may seem, it's a false argument because it’s based on a false premise — that discomfort is incompatible with yoga. The yoga wisdom tradition tells us that yoga isn’t about avoiding difficulty—it’s about right relationship to difficulty.

In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna explicitly teaches that yoga is synonymous with equanimity in the midst of conflict:

Traditional yoga distinguishes between ego-driven strain (rajasic/tamasic suffering) and discipline that steadies the mind (tapas). The former is a formula for injury, the latter an opportunity for personal growth.

If we bring the underlying assumption of our example into alignment with yoga philosophy, we get an argument that's both logical and true:

1. Yoga is about cultivating equanimity.
2. Both comfort and discomfort arise in life.
3. Therefore, yoga is the art of maintaining equanimity in both comfort and discomfort.

The yoga ≠ challenge argument is just one of many logical fallacies I see floating around the yogaverse. I’ll share a few others with you next week.

My main point for now is that right reasoning depends more on true premises than on well-constructed syllogisms. Therefore, questioning the assumptions an argument rests on is a better than looking at the argument’s logical structure if you want to see if an argument is true or false.

Or at least that's my logical argument for the day.

How about you? Do you have a “favorite” article of faith in wellness spaces that sounds logical but isn't true? Can you think of a commonly accepted belief in yoga and spirituality circles that you suspect doesn't really pass the "flying tomato" test? Write back and share it with me.

Wishing you all good fortune,

- Hari-k

P.S: If you're in the D.C. area, join me next Sunday, April 12, for two in-person classes at Luneh Yoga: Jivamukti Yoga at 1:30 pm and Yoga Nidra at 5:45 pm. Jivamukti is a dynamic, vinyasa-based practice that blends breath-driven movement with chanting, meditation, sacred teachings, and music. Yoga Nidra is a restorative practice of light movement and guided meditations / visualizations that invites the practitioner into a state of deep relaxation and expanded consciousness. Luneh Yoga is located at 2000 S St NW Suite 100, Washington, D.C. CLICK HERE to register for either or both of these classes.