International Yoga Day: History
International yoga day is celebrated on the 21st of June of every year. The first international yoga day was observed on 21st June 2015. It is celebrated on the 21st of June because it is said to be the longest day of the year in the Northern hemisphere and it shares special significance in many parts of the world. The initiative of international yoga day was proposed by the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly on 27th September 2014.
In the assembly, he stated that “Yoga is an invaluable gift of India’s ancient tradition. It embodies unity of mind and body; thought and action; restraint and fulfillment; harmony between man and nature; a holistic approach to health and well-being. It is not about exercise but to discover a sense of oneness with yourself, the world, and nature. Changing our lifestyle and creating consciousness, can help in well-being. Let us work towards adopting an International Yoga Day 2022”.
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2015: in 2015 the first international yoga day was celebrated all around the world. The event was arranged by the Ministry of AYUSH. More than 35000 people including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and eminent personalities from 84 Nations performed 21 yoga asanas for 35 minutes in New Delhi. International yoga day was observed by millions of people across the world. The largest yoga performance simultaneously by a single uniform youth organization was recorded by the Limca Book of records which were performed by the NCC cadets at multiple venues. Guinness World Records were awarded to the ministry of AYUSH for the event at Rajpath, and it was received by Minister Shripad Yesso Naik.
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2016: The ministry organized an event named “the national event of mass yoga demonstration” at Chandigarh which was attended by the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi.
2017: In 2017 the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi participated in an event at practice yoga with 51000 participants in Lucknow. Many eminent personalities were also a part of the event. At the international level, thousands of people gathered and practice yoga on Time Squares in New York, and Japan created a parliamentary league for the promotion of yoga just before the event in April 2017. In 2017 the theme of international yoga day was “Yoga for Health”.
2018: The theme for 2018 was “Yoga for Peace”. The international yoga event was conducted at the Forest Research Institute in Dehradun where Prime Minister Modi practiced yoga with 50000 volunteers to mark the 4th anniversary of international yoga day. Around 100000 people gathered at the yoga session in Rajasthan and performed yoga together, getting their name in the Guinness World record.
2019: In 2019 the international yoga day was celebrated in various parts of India and the meaning went was held at Ranchi where the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi leads a crowd of 40000 people and practices yoga. The theme of 2019 was “Yoga for Heart”.
2020: The theme for 2022 was “Yoga at home and yoga with family”. For the international yoga day celebration, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov recorded a special video message for Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
2021: The theme for 2021 was “Yoga for well-being”. Due to the Covid-19, the international yoga day was celebrated online throughout the world.
2022: The theme for 2022 is “Yoga for humanity“. This year’s theme of international yoga day will focus on the importance of yoga in serving better mental health in our life.
FAQs related to International Yoga Day
1. What is the history of international yoga day?
Ans. The international yoga day was first observed on 21st June 2015 in which 36000 people including the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi and other eminent personalities from all around the world performed 21 yoga asanas for 35 minutes in New Delhi.
2. Why is June 21 the international yoga day?
Ans. June 21 was chosen as the international yoga day because of the summer solstice. On that day sun is most out of any other day of the year.
3. When is international yoga day 2022?
Ans. International yoga day is celebrated on 21st June every year.