Yoga buffs pose to honour Mandela

“HERO”, “warrior” and “mountain” are apt descriptions of Nelson Mandela — and now a Johannesburg yoga instructor is using the words as part of an unusual Mandela Day fundraising event.

On Mandela Day on Saturday, South Africans will take 67 minutes to do good in honour of the former president.

Many will pick up rubbish, pack food parcels, paint schools or visit old-age homes, but as many as 200 yoga enthusiasts will stretch, balance and meditate on Constitutional Hill in a special routine designed by instructor Steven Heyman.

“There’s a hero pose, three different warrior poses [and] there’s a mountain pose, symbolising standing strong and tall.

“I’ve chosen yoga poses that remind me of Nelson Mandela,” said Heyman, who runs Yoga Works in Westdene.

The yogis will do 27 different movements — one for each year Mandela spent in jail — and hold in each position for 67 seconds, representing the 67 years he spent in the service of humanity.

“It’s to get people to think that the man spent a year in jail for each pose they’re holding for just 67 seconds,” Heyman said.

After the yoga, participants will be taken on a 67-minute tour of Constitutional Hill. An entrance fee is payable and the proceeds will be donated to Door of Hope, a charity for abandoned babies.

Or, if you prefer, you can dance for Mandela.

The 67 Hours of Dance for Madiba takes place in Johannesburg, Cape Town and under the Mandela statue in London.

Sebastian Davies, cofounder of No Danger Diaries, which is putting on the event, said the idea was to create “a positive vibe” and national harmony by using two of Mandela’s loves: music and dance.

“In each city we’ll be dancing for 67 hours. Each dance station will have one camera for live-streaming . . . At any one time we could have hundreds of dancers jiving with us or just one lonesome dancer,” he said. — Matthew Savides