International Yoga Day 2020: Theme, History and Significance

Every year, June 21 is recognized as International Yoga Day this year will mark the sixth edition of International Yoga Day, and in light on the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the theme this year is, ‘Yoga at Home and Yoga with Family’. This year the focus will be on practising yoga at home with one’s family. In a statement, the AYUSH Ministry said, “Due to the contagious nature of COVID-19, no mass gathering would be advisable this year. Hence, this year the ministry is encouraging people to practice yoga at their homes, with participation from the entire family.” the AYUSH Ministry said in a statement. . The World Health Organization mentions yoga as a means to improve health in its Global Action Plan on Physical Activity 2018–2030: More active people for a healthier world.

The proposal was first introduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address during the opening of the 69th session of the General Assembly, in which he said: “Yoga is an invaluable gift from our ancient tradition. Yoga embodies unity of mind and body, thought and action, a holistic approach that is valuable to our health and our well-being. Yoga is not just about exercise; it is a way to discover the sense of oneness with yourself, the world and nature.” The first Yoga Day celebration was held at Rajpath in New Delhi, where PM Modi and other dignitaries also performed around 21 yoga asanas and created two Guinness World Records. The first record was for being the world’s largest yoga class with 35,985 people and the second one was for having the maximum number of participating nationalities, that is 84. Last year in Dehradun, Modi had performed yoga with over 50,000 enthusiasts.