10th International Yoga Day (IYD)

Source: TH

Context: The Prime Minister highlighted the global Muslim adoption of yoga during the 10th International Day of Yoga in Srinagar, aiming to dissociate yoga from any specific religious connection.

He cited instances like:

• Yoga therapy in Turkmenistan’s medical universities

• Inclusion of Yoga in Saudi Arabia’s education system

• Yoga-specific schools in Mongolia to emphasize its universal appeal.

Each year on 21 June, the world comes together to observe the International Day of Yoga, a day designated by the United Nations to celebrate the power of yoga in promoting holistic health practices worldwide.

Yoga derives its name from the Sanskrit root ‘yuj’ which means to join or to unite. It symbolizes the unity of one’s mind, body, and spirit with the world outside, through a set of exercises that include breathing techniques, physical postures, and relaxation methods.

Yoga Philosophy:

Yoga process is described in eight stages (ashtanga-yoga, “eight-membered Yoga”)

External Aids: The first two stages are ethical preparations.

• Yama(“restraint”),which denotes abstinence from injury falsehood, stealing, lust, and avarice;

• Niyama(“discipline”),denotes cleanliness of body, contentment, austerity, study, and devotion to God.

The next two stages are physical preparations.

• Asana(“seat”),is a series of exercises to make the body supple, flexible, and healthy.

• Pranayama(“breath control”)is a series of exercises intended to stabilize the rhythm of breathing in order to encourage complete respiratory relaxation.

The fifth stage,

• pratyahara(“withdrawal of the senses”),involves control of the senses, or the ability to withdraw the attention of the senses from outward objects.

Mental or internal aids:

• Dharana(“holding on”)is the ability to hold and confine awareness of externals to one object for a long period of time.

• Dhyana(“concentrated meditation”)is the uninterrupted contemplation of the object of meditation, beyond any memory of ego.

• Samadhi(“total self-collectedness”)is the final stage and is a precondition of attaining release from samsara, or the cycle of rebirth. In this stage, the meditator perceives or experiences the object of his meditation and himself as one.

About On June 21, the Summer Solstice

It occurs in the Northern Hemisphere when the Earth’s axis is tilted towards the sun. This results in direct sunlight falling on the Tropic of Cancer. Areas beyond the Arctic Circle experience continuous daylight for about six months. It marks the longest day and shortest night of the year in the northern hemisphere. Conversely, the Southern Hemisphere experiences the opposite conditions during this time.