“It was a great pleasure to have so many people come up here from so many walks of life in London on a working day to celebrate the ninth edition of International Day of Yoga (IDY),” said Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami, who joined hundreds at Trafalgar Square in London this week.
“What is really special is that it is the first time in many years that we have had Trafalgar Square to ourselves. We had about 250 people turn up at this iconic venue, people from most communities from India but also all communities were represented here. That is book-ended by the points that are made in the prayer that began the event, ‘let us work together harmoniously’. And, the prayer at the end, which is essentially a prayer for peace, health and happiness for all of creation – very much the spirit of our G20 year,” he said.
The Yoga asanas and breathing exercise at the colourful gathering, replete with IDY2023 branded t-shirts and goodie bags, were guided by experts from Isha Foundation, Iyengar Yoga UK, Heartfulness Meditation and Shrimad Rajchandra Mission Dharampur (SRMD) UK. Organised by the High Commission of India in London and backed by the Mayor of London, the two-hour session involved varying levels of Yoga expertise, with participation by a wide variety of age groups.
Author Amish Tripathi, Minister (Culture) and Director of the Nehru Centre in London, was among those who joined the Indian High Commissioner and Deputy High Commissioner to the UK Sujit Ghosh on the Yoga mats at the historic square.
He said: “One thing we believe is that Yoga should not be seen for a particular day. It’s not just for June 21, the International Day of Yoga, it should be a year-long practice, a lifestyle choice.
“So, we at the Nehru Centre have built up over the last few months with regular free programmes explaining Yoga, teaching Yoga, talking about Yoga… and that will continue even after International Day of Yoga.”
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International Day of Yoga (IDY), designated by the United Nations (UN) in 2015 after all member-states endorsed Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposal, is marked annually on June 21. This year’s theme is Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam – or the world as one family, resonates with India’s G20 presidency theme and Modi, who is on a state visit to the US this week, will leading the IDY2023 session at the UN headquarters in New York.
