In 2014, the United Nations proclaimed 21 June as the International Day of Yoga. The 2017 main events at UN Headquarters in New York, held on 20 and 21 June, were organized by the Permanent Mission of India in association with the UN Department of Public Information and the World Health Organization.
On 20 June, members of Sri Chinmoy: The Peace Meditation at the United Nations observed the Day with a lunchtime meditation session for delegates and staff at UN Headquarters in New York. The Peace Meditation Group also offered a commemorative booklet on aspects of yoga to participants of the “Yoga Session” held that evening on the UN North Lawn, as well as the “Conversation with Yoga Masters” held the following morning in the ECOSOC Chamber.
On 20 June 2017, members of the Peace Meditation Group at the United Nations celebrated the International Day of Yoga in various ways, including participating in the “Yoga Session” held that evening on the UN North Lawn, organized by the Permanent Mission of India in association with the UN Department of Public Information.
Who is fit for Yoga? Souvenir for Yoga Day, 21 June 2017
On the occasion of the 3rd UN International Day of Yoga on 21 June 2017, the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal, under the inspired leadership of Ambassador M.S. Puri, brought out a souvenir publication comprised of contributions from masters and practitioners of Yoga with their varied interpretation of this science. Issued in English and Hindi, with messages from the President of Nepal and the Prime Ministers of Nepal and India, the book includes an essay by Sri Chinmoy entitled “Who Is Fit for Yoga?” The article highlights various kinds of Yoga, including Karma Yoga, the path of action; Bhakti Yoga, the path of love and devotion; and Jnana Yoga, the path of knowledge. Click here for excerpts from the souvenir publication.
The theme for 2017, “Yoga for Health”, was highlighted in many local events worldwide that week – recognising how yoga could help enable an integral approach to a healthy, balanced lifestyle which promotes long-term good health.
Yoga is an ancient art, combining physical, mental and spiritual practises to attain a union between the individual and the Ultimate Reality. Since his arrival in the West in 1964, Sri Chinmoy has written extensively on the virtues of yoga and its capacity to expand the horizons of seekers and aspirants. In the very first edition of Aum Magazine (Sri Chinmoy’s first printed work in the West), Sri Chinmoy wrote about traditional yoga exercises.
“The traditional yogic exercises attempt to place the body in a state of receptivity in order to bring down peace and certain higher forces from above.”
–Sri Chinmoy, AUM, Vol.1, No.1, 1965
Sri Chinmoy teaches that through the practise of yoga, we can attain both peace of mind and an awareness of a more illumined consciousness.
“The very aim of practising Yoga is to have peace, peace of mind. When one acquires peace of mind, automatically one possesses indomitable inner strength.”
– Sri Chinmoy, Realisation-Soul and Manifestation-Goal, 1974