Tens of thousands of people across India stretched in public parks and on sandy beaches yesterday to mark the 11th International Day of Yoga.
The mass yoga sessions were held in many Indian states, where crowds attempted various poses and practiced breathing exercises. Indian military personnel also performed yoga in the icy heights of Siachen Glacier in the Himalayas and on naval ships anchored in the Bay of Bengal.
Similar sessions were planned in countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia.
Photo: AFP
“I feel that yoga keeps us spiritually fit, mentally fit and helps us manage stress. That’s why I feel that people should take out at least 30 minutes every day for yoga to keep themselves fit,” said Rajiv Ranjan, who participated in an event in New Delhi.
Yoga is one of India’s most successful cultural exports after Bollywood. It has also been enlisted for diplomacy under Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has harnessed it for cultural soft power as the country seeks to take on a larger role in world affairs.
Modi persuaded the UN to designate the annual International Day of Yoga in 2014. The theme this year was “Yoga for One Earth, One Health.”
Modi performed yoga among a seaside crowd in the southern city of Visakhapatnam.
“Yoga leads us on a journey towards oneness with world,” he said.
Amid a checkerboard of yoga mats covering the beach, Modi took his spot on a mat and did breathing exercises, backbends and other poses.
“Let this Yoga Day mark the beginning of Yoga for humanity 2.0, where inner peace becomes global policy,” he said.
As Modi has pushed yoga, ministers, government officials and Indian military personnel have gone on social media to show themselves folding in different poses.
In the Indian capital, scores of people from all walks of life and age groups gathered at the sprawling Lodhi Gardens, following an instructor on stage.
“Yoga for me is like balancing between inner world and outer world,” said Siddharth Maheshwari, a start-up manager who joined the event.
In Malaysia, more than one thousand people, from yoga enthusiasts to first-timers, showed up for a session at the Batu Caves, a popular tourist attraction and site of Hindu festivals on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur.
People of all ages, including children, exercised next to a giant golden statue of a Hindu god and the rainbow-colored steps that lead to the temple cave.
The event was organized by the Indian High Commission in Malaysia.
“It has been really good and relaxing for the mind body and soul,” Lee Ann said.
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