The grand yoga event was held inside the iconic UNGA hall
In a first-of-its-kind yoga celebration, the iconic UN General Assembly hall reverberated with chants of ‘Om’, ‘Shanti’ as UN officials and diplomats joined hundreds others to commemorate the International Yoga Day with the underlying message of yoga’s valuable contribution in addressing climate change and promoting tolerance and peace.
The General Assembly hall, where world leaders come together every year for the high-level UN session, was packed with UN diplomats, officials, yoga gurus and practitioners, children and people from various backgrounds as India’s Permanent Mission to the UN organised the commemoration of the 5th International Day of Yoga. It was the first time a grand yoga event was held inside the iconic UNGA hall, five years after Prime Minister Narendra Modi first proposed to mark June 21 as International Yoga Day in his 2014 address to the annual General Debate from the famed General Assembly podium.
The event ‘Yoga with the Gurus’, with the theme of ‘Yoga for Climate Action’ began with Prime Minister Modi’s video message on Yoga Day, where he spoke about how yoga has connected the entire world in the present century. Addressing the large gathering, Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said the essence of yoga is balance, “not only within us but also in our relationship with humanity.”
She added that by practicing yoga, people can promote values that inspire a peaceful, environmental stewardship for the betterment of society and the Earth. Underlining the theme of Yoga for Climate Action, she said yoga also has a valuable contribution to make in addressing climate change, “the defining issue of our time, by inspiring us to shift away from unsustainable practices towards inclusive, green growth, conscious consumption and more sustainable lifestyles. In short it is about the tensions between the needs and wants.” She said yoga can promote solidarity, social integration, tolerance, justice and peace. “It teaches us a holistic vision of the world, encouraging us to live in harmony with ourselves, society and nature. This is of obvious relevance for our efforts to combat the intolerance that is so prevalent across today’s global landscape.”
The top UN official further said that while change can start within people, observance such as the International Day of Yoga have the potential to lift yoga from an individual well-being practice to joint, global action. The event ‘Yoga with the Gurus’ was originally scheduled to be held in the sprawling North Lawn in the United Nations Headquarters but the venue had to be shifted to inside the General Assembly hall due to rain.