Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared on Wednesday at the UN headquarters in New York that yoga is transportable and really worldwide.
In honor of the eighth International Day of Yoga, Prime Minister Narendra Modi joined a yoga session on Wednesday. He claimed that yoga is “truly universal” and free of copyright, patents, and royalty payments.
By paying tribute to the bust of Mahatma Gandhi on the North Lawn of the UN headquarters, Modi, who is in New York as part of his first state visit to the US at President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden’s invitation, started the event.
While India was in charge of the UN Security Council, the bust was placed in December of the previous year.
The prime minister began his speech with a “Namaste” and thanked everyone for traveling from afar to attend the event while donning a specially customized white yoga T-shirt and pants.
“It makes me happy to see you all. And I appreciate your attendance. Friends. Almost every country is represented here today, I’ve been told,” Modi stated.
Yoga is a very old custom that has its roots in India. Yoga is unencumbered by patents, royalties, or copyrights. Depending on your age, gender, and level of fitness, yoga can be customized. According to Modi, yoga is genuinely portable and universal.
Yoga implies union, thus…I recall having the honor to suggest holding the International Day of Yoga on June 21 about nine years ago, right here. It was fantastic to see the entire world unite in support of the concept, Modi stated.
Hundreds of yellow yoga mats were spread out on the ground, and other yoga enthusiasts and practitioners showed up for the event wearing custom white yoga T-shirts. LED screens with films depicting Indian culture and customs were set up on the lawn.
Senior UN officials, ambassadors, envoys, representatives of Member States, and well-known members of the international and diaspora communities attended the historic yoga session.
The US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, expressed her excitement for everyone taking part in Yoga Day.
The event’s notable attendees included Amina J. Mohammed, the deputy secretary general of the UN, Richard Gere, the mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, and Csaba Korosi, the president of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly.
“This place is very warm and open; I hope that atmosphere permeates the entire building. In advance of the occasion, Gere observed, “It’s a really great atmosphere here today.
The Prime Minister Modi-led Yoga Day celebrations in this country drew attendees from more than 180 nations, representing a variety of professions, including diplomats, artists, academicians, and businesspeople, according to sources.
“The tremors and excitement are visible. For the ceremonies of International Yoga Day with Prime Minister Modi, hundreds of people are lining up. Dilip Chauhan, Deputy Commissioner for the Mayor of New York City’s Office for International Affairs, described the sensation as “such a great feeling.”
People are enthusiastic, according to Ruchika Lal, a yoga and meditation instructor at Art of Living. They’ve been hanging around there since six in the morning, she said.
Since early in the morning, people have been lining up outside the UN building to participate in the yoga practice.
Numerous sessions and events showcasing yoga’s benefits and all-encompassing appeal have been conducted at the UN, Times Square, and various other well-known locations throughout the world since the first International Day of Yoga was honored in 2015.
Yoga is a traditional Indian physical, mental, and spiritual exercise, as emphasized by the UN. Yoga, which in Sanskrit means “to join or to merge,” stands for the integration of the human body and mind. It is currently being practiced in numerous variations all over the world and is gaining popularity.
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To recognize yoga’s global popularity, the UN designated June 21 as the International Day of Yoga in December 2014.
India proposed the draft UNGA resolution creating the International Day of Yoga, and a record 175 member nations supported it. Prime Minister Modi made the first mention of the idea in his speech at the start of the 69th session of the UN General Assembly.
