An eight-day international yoga festival opened Tuesday on the Indonesian holiday island of Bali, causing the country’s top Muslim leaders to issue a fatwa against the exercise.

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Yoga, an ancient Indian aid to meditation dating back thousands of years, is a popular form of physical exercise and stress relief in Indonesia.

But the Indonesian Council of Ulemas, the top religious body in the mainly Muslim country, issued a fatwa in January banning Indonesian Muslims from all forms of yoga that involve Hindu religious rituals such as chanting mantras.

It said performing yoga purely for the physical benefits was however acceptable.

The move raised the hackles of religious moderates and civil libertarian groups who accused the council of meddling in affairs over which it had no authority.

Religious edicts issued by the ulemas are not legally binding on Muslims but it is considered sinful to ignore them.

Andrini said organisers were not afraid to hold the festival at the Bajrasandi Bali Monument in Denpasar — the capital of the Hindu-majority island of Bali — despite the fatwa.

“I’m a Muslim myself. Our kind of yoga, which is called Patanjali, involves movement and breathing. People may recite their own mantra or prayer according to their faith,” she said.

“We want to make Bali a place for spiritual tourism. Visitors will seek the spiritual aspect first rather than leisure.”

Andrini expected about 500 people from around the world, including the United States, Germany, Sweden, Japan and China, would participate in the festival.

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