Another successful International Day of Yoga concludes
Prime Minister Modi at Dehradun (Photo-AP)
People and institutions across the globe are celebrating the fourth International Day of Yoga, recognising and accepting India’s health heritage.
While India has been practicing yoga since aeons, it took charge of sharing its health heritage with the world and spreading its wave by celebrating the International Day of Yoga, which saw its fourth year today.
It was after a request from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, that in December 2014, the United Nations General Assembly declared that June 21 would be observed as International Day of Yoga every year.
Since then the world, together with India, has been stretching forward to a healthy living.
In India, like every year, Modi led people in practicing yoga at a mega event, which, this time was held in Dehradun, capital of the northern state of Uttarakhand.
While over 50,000 thousand volunteers and participants gathered in Dehradun, many more celebrated the event across India, being led by other eminent personalities including India’s Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and several union ministers.
PM Modi said that yoga acted as a force in unifying the world. “From Dehradun to Dublin, from Shanghai to Chicago, from Jakarta to Johannesburg, yoga is everywhere,” the Prime Minister declared.
Modi performed breathing exercises and asanas on the lawns of the Forest Research Institute (FRI) today, where the event took place. He also led the chanting of the first round of ‘Om’.
The event had over 50,000 yoga mats spread at the main function venue that had been shut to visitors over the past two days. Nearly 3,000 security personnel were on duty and over 60 CCTV cameras kept a close watch.
International Yoga Day was celebrated across different terrains, even difficult ones, and pictures shared from beaches, and mountain tops – even at 19,000 feet above sea level in the great Himalayas.
श्रमक्लमपिपासोष्णशीतादीनां सहिष्णुता । आरोग्यं चापि परमं व्यायामदुपजायते ॥
योगः, कर्मसु, कौशलम#Himveers practicing #yoga from 12 to 19K ft in the #Himalayas #InternationalYogaDay2018 #IYD2018 pic.twitter.com/0QQUfjaxe0
— ITBP (@ITBP_official) June 21, 2018
Last year, PM Modi had led the yoga day celebrations in Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh. The event was a success despite a heavy downpour. Prior to that the capital city of Punjab, Chandigarh were the host for the main event in 2016 while the first International Day of Yoga celebrations were held in the Indian capital New Delhi in 2015.
Across the globe
The celebrations are not just limited to India. Ireland, Bahrain, Australia, Italy- Yoga events are taking place internationally.
Chinese and Indian yoga enthusiasts performed Common Yoga Protocol at the India House in Beijing.
‘We for Yoga’
Inspired by message of Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi Chinese and Indian yoga lovers come together to perform Common Yoga Protocol at the India House in Beijing today #InternationalYogaDay2018 pic.twitter.com/fxQfoobzvV
— India in China (@EOIBeijing) June 21, 2018
Indian Embassy in Lima tweeted a picture of Yoga Day celebrations at the Sacred City of Caral in Peru.
La Celebración del Día Internacional del Yoga se llevó a cabo en la Ciudad Sagrada de Caral el 20 de junio de 2018. Una civilización de más de miles de años de antigüedad al igual que esta disciplina milenaria. Agradecemos al @MinCulturaPe por el gran apoyo. @moayush pic.twitter.com/5PD7OBew7L
— India in Peru & Bol (@eoilima) June 21, 2018
In Paris, an event was organised on the Champs de Mars in front of the Eiffel tower on June 17, 2018. A mass session was also organised in Hanoi on June 16, 2018.
