Day of Yoga celebrated

INTERNATIONAL Day of Yoga started with a bang in the Mother City on Friday, and continued yesterday as hundreds of people gathered at Newlands Cricket Stadium for a mass yoga session organised by the Consulate General of India in Cape Town in celebration of the ancient spiritual practice.

Indian Consul General in Cape Town Abhishek Shukla said: “This is the first time such an event was organised in the Newlands Cricket Stadium, and aptly combined cricket fever with the Cricket World Cup going on in England and the celebrations of the International Day of Yoga.”

About 200 people attended events over the weekend, which included a mass yoga session based on Common Yoga Protocol which has been devised by yoga gurus in India, and a session on “Yoga Nidra” – an ancient relaxation technique and meditation session by Art of Living.

The High Commissioner of India to South Africa, Jaideep Sarkar, who attended the event, thanked participants and exhorted them to adopt yoga as part of their lifestyle. He requested everyone to encourage their friends and acquaintances to take up yoga and help make a better world.

“Cape Town offers a myriad activities and avenues to keep Capetonians fit and healthy.

“There is always scope for yoga to add to the overall wellness quotient,” said Sarkar.

This was the second such session organised by the consulate.

The first one was held at Kirstenbosch’s National Botanical Gardens on June 15.

The celebrations will end with a mass yoga session at the Samaj Centre in Rylands on June 29.

“The objective behind celebrating International Day of Yoga through such events is to popularise yoga and encourage people across the world to actively adopt yoga as part of their lifestyle,” Shukla said.

“Yoga is an ancient Indian system of holistic well-being which encourages a healthy body as well as a healthy mind.”

The consulate also organises free yoga classes every Tuesday and Thursday from 12.30pm till 1.30pm at the Artscape Theatre in the city centre.