"Yoga is an everyday part of life. Yoga is not just for contorting your body into shapes. If that were true, people working in the circus would be called yogis," Modi said, before he adopted a variety of poses of the ancient form of exercise on Rajpath.
The 64-year-old prime minister, who is tech-savvy yet an avid follower of yoga, also briefly paused to inspect students performing yoga around him on red mats.
Local TV channels beamed footage of millions of people simultaneously doing the exercise across India in parks, churches, homes, on warships, an army base in the desert in the western state of Rajasthan and even mid-air on some flights.
Addressing a seminar later in the day, Modi said the country is celebrating the first International Day of Yoga. "As I stand here today, the International Day of Yoga is being celebrated across the world, millions of people are participating in this event."
He added: "Yoga is the medicine to live life to the fullest. The reach and spread of yoga spans continents and cuts across differences of color, castes and creeds. The body is a vehicle for the realization of the supreme being. Yoga is not an institution, it is a matter of faith."
In a tweet early this morning, the premier said: "Greetings to people around the world on 1st International Day of Yoga! Lets pledge to make Yoga an integral part of our daily lives #YogaDay."
The United Nations designated June 21 as the International Day of Yoga, following Modi's appeal at the General Assembly last year.
The International Yoga Day, aimed at achieving a Guinness World Record, is also being celebrated across the world. Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj is in New York for a massive Yoga Day event there.
Source:Xinhua - globaltimes.cn
21/6/15
No comments:
Post a Comment
Only News