PUTRAJAYA, 18 Nov 2008: The National Fatwa Council will announce the ruling on the practice of yoga this week, its chairperson, Prof Datuk Dr Abdul Shukor Husin, said today.
He said the draft on the matter was ready last week, but that he had to examine it first before sending it to the Islamic Development Department.
Speaking to reporters after a law seminar here today, Abdul Shukor said the issuance of fatwa (edicts) was the jurisdiction of the state governments, and not that of the fatwa council.
The council only gave its views and coordinated them before the matter was forwarded to the Conference of Rulers for verification, he added.
The furore over yoga arose after a lecturer at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s Faculty of Islamic Studies, Prof Zakaria Stapa, said that the exercise contained elements of Hinduism and advised Muslims who had taken up yoga to stop practising it as it could deviate them from their faith. — Bernama
