'Yoga is spiritual, not religious,' says Baba Ramdev

Haridwar (Uttarakhand) [India], June 21 (ANI): On the occasion of International Yoga Day, Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev on Tuesday performed yoga at Patanjali Yogpeeth in Haridwar.
Ramdev began Yoga at 5 am where more than 10,000 of his followers performed various Yoga asanas till 8 am. They were briefed about various health benefits and cures of various illnesses by performing particular Yoga asanas.
The event was streamed live on various platforms for Yoga followers across the globe.
"The nation is celebrating Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav and we should aim to keep our body free of any illness. And for this one should do four-five Yoga asanas every day," Ramdev said.
He added that Yoga is for everyone and urged people not to associate it with any religion or political party.

"People of all religions do Yoga to keep their body fit and cure any prolonged illness. Some people with their agenda are trying to associate it with religion. I request all leaders of opposition parties including Rahul Gandhi to do Yoga because it is a spiritual activity," he said.
He thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for getting Yoga recognized across the globe and making the entire world celebrate International Yoga Day on June 21.

On the protest that erupted over the Agnipath recruitment scheme, he said, "Some people have agenda to create unrest in the country and entire opposition leaders could not stand in front of the leadership of Prime Minister Modi and Amit Shah."
This year the theme for the celebration is "Yoga for humanity". The theme has been selected after much deliberation/consultation and it appropriately portrays, how during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, yoga served the humanity in alleviating the suffering and in the emerging post-COVID geo-political scenario too, it will bring people together through compassion, kindness, foster a sense of unity and build resilience among people world over.
Prime Minister's Yoga programme at Mysuru is also part of the novel programme 'Guardian Yoga Ring' which is a collaborative exercise between 79 countries and United Nations organisations along with Indian Missions abroad to illustrate Yoga's unifying power that surpasses National boundaries.
As the sun apparently moves from the east to the west across the world, the Mass Yoga Demonstrations in the participating countries, if seen from any one point on Earth, will seem to be happening one after the other, almost in tandem, thus underlining the concept of 'One Sun, One earth'.
The Digital yoga exhibition showcases the latest technologies like Virtual Reality (VR) to project the history and wisdom of Yoga. The static exhibition consists of 146 stalls which have been taken up by yoga institutions, Ayush institutions under the ambit of the Government of Karnataka and the Government of India. Keeping the overarching theme of the 75 years of India's independence the Ministry for Ayush also identified 75 locations for Union Ministers to participate in the Yoga Day celebration.
This year International Day of Yoga 2022 witnesses many firsts, including the 'Guardian ring', a yoga demonstration by Union cabinet ministers at 75 iconic locations in India and a special digital yoga and static exhibition in Mysuru Dussera Grounds, Mysuru.
The Digital yoga exhibition showcased the latest technologies like Virtual Reality (VR) to project the history and wisdom of Yoga. The static exhibition consists of 146 stalls which have been taken up by yoga institutions, Ayush institutions under the ambit of the Government of Karnataka and the Government of India.
According to the Ministry of Ayush, as many as 25 crores of people are expected to participate in International Day of Yoga 2022 celebrations across the world.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi first floated the idea of the International Yoga Day during his speech at the UN General Assembly on September 27, 2014. The draft resolution passed by India was supported by 177 nations. With universal recognition and growing popularity of Yoga, the United Nations declared June 21 as the International Day of Yoga on December 11, 2014.
The first International Yoga Day was celebrated on June 21, 2015. (ANI)