Realise worth of oneness
The Consulate General of India, Durban, in association with the Sivananda World Peace Foundation, will commemorate International Yoga Day this Sunday, reports CHARLENE SOMDUTH
THE Consulate General of India, Durban, in association with the Sivananda World Peace Forum will host a free yoga session at the Durban Amphitheatre on Sunday to commemorate International Yoga Day.
The initiative, which was proposed by the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, in the UN General Assembly in September 2014, is aimed at creating a better understanding of the significance of traditional and authentic yoga techniques.
“Yoga is essentially a discipline which also brings harmony in all walks of life, and thus is known for disease prevention, health promotion and management of many lifestyle-related disorders,” said head of the forum, Ishwar Ramlutchman.
“It is a 5 000-year-old physical, mental and spiritual practice speculated to date back to pre-Vedic Indian traditions, but most likely developed around the sixth and fifth centuries BC.”
Ramlutchman said yoga gurus and teachers from India later introduced it to the West, following the success of Swami Vivekananda in the late 19th and early 20th century.
Last year, International Yoga Day was celebrated on a grand scale in KwaZulu-Natal, Free State and the Eastern Cape.
In Durban about 1 800 people, including 400 children, attended the event.
“It is wonderful that June 21 marks this momentous event in the history of humanity. Yoga is not just about working out, it’s about a healthy lifestyle.
“The practice of yoga allows students to be still in a world consumed with chaos.
“Peace and tranquillity achieved through focused training appeals to everyone,” said Ramlutchman.
He said it was estimated that close to 200 million people around the world practised yoga, a majority of them in India, and more than 20 million of them in the US.
“With this resolution for an international yoga day, more people will become aware of the tenets of yoga and will be encouraged to follow a yogic lifestyle, a life that is healthy, humble and devout.”
Ramlutchman said this should be a great opening for the world community to realise the worth of oneness. The session starts at 8.30am and those attending will receive a free T-shirt and refreshments.