JOHOR BARU, MALAYSIA: Muslims in Johor are likely to be banned soon from practising yoga.

State Religious Committee chairman Datuk Zainal Abidin Osman said the state fatwa council, which convened its meeting on Wednesday, had decided to go along with the decree made by the National Fatwa Council, which found that the practice of yoga was haram (prohibited) among Muslims.

However, he did not specify whether practising yoga was tantamount to practising deviant religious teachings and said that the State Fatwa Council was seeking the Sultan of Johor's approval to gazette its decision.

The National Fatwa Council had recently decreed that it was haram for Muslims to practise yoga, saying it had elements of "Hindu spiritual teachings".

Zainal also said several traditional healing methods had also been discovered to be laced with deviant elements.

Among the deviant practices were chanting mantras and worshipping graves, which were practised by a small segment of Muslims in Muar and Johor Baru.