This year marks the 10th International Day of Yoga, a celebration that welcomes and values the participation of all. The theme this year is “Yoga for Women Empowerment.” Approximately a decade ago, when the Prime Minister of Bharat, Narendra Modi, proposed the celebration of International Yoga Day at the United Nations, many of us pondered why no Indian Prime Minister before him had considered such an initiative.
What held them back from sharing one of our greatest treasures for the benefit of the world from the platform of the United Nations?
Since 2015, the entire world has embraced the International Day of Yoga, celebrated every year on June 21. Day by day, yog is becoming a regular practice in households, offices, and institutions across the globe. Sensible parents, regardless of their country or personal beliefs, have recognised the value of yog and encourage their children to embrace yog and meditation. Soon, we will see yog integrated into school curriculums worldwide, not just in Bharat. This will help humanity maintain balance in our rapidly advancing technological world driven by Artificial Intelligence. Such widespread acceptance clearly demonstrates that people recognise value of yog, they realise that it is indeed in the best interest of all-humanity.
Since time immemorial, Mother Earth has borne witness to Bharat’s embodiment of the vision and culture of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam—seeing the world as one family. This profound sense of inclusivity and unity stems from the spiritual essence of yog. Yog (union) signifies the embrace of all humanity, serving as a powerful antidote to the divisive and separatist tendencies of the human mind.
Many yoga enthusiasts worldwide, unfamiliar with Indic knowledge traditions, often perceive yoga as being limited to physical exercises and postures (asanas). However, in reality, yog’s scope is boundless. Its aim is to unite our consciousness with eternal wisdom.
Yog originated in Bharat, and its wisdom is deeply intertwined with the wisdom of Bharat (Indic Wisdom). Upholding eternal values through our personal conduct, interpersonal behaviour and national character (Rashtriya Charitra) -is inscribed in the very soul of Bharat. Yog is the essential strength of the soul of eternal India (Sanatan Bharat Varsha). World is trusting Bharat and emulates its wisdom in decision making processes.
Yogi Bharat offers eternal spiritual wisdom without requiring anyone to abandon their religious, national, gender, or linguistic identities. In fact, yoga alone offers unifying wisdom that is capable of bringing people together. We need only an unconditional openness to embrace the identity of a yogi and explore the supreme truth.
Anyone observing the world today cannot overlook the evident reality that divisiveness and separatist attitudes pose the greatest threats to human unity and diversity. The lack of true peace in people’s minds hinders our ability to coexist and cooperate as fellow earthlings, each living in our own unique ways. The wisdom of yoga addresses the root causes of these human problems by offering solutions through meditative practices. The wisdom of yog does not label some as victims and others as perpetrators. Instead, it provides methods and techniques to calm the human mind, enabling all as individuals, to view others not as threats but as potential partners or cooperative allies. Can any wisdom be deemed true wisdom if it lacks the intrinsic capability for total inclusivity? The answer is a resounding no.
Declaring places like Gaza, Ukraine, and Russia as theatres of conflict is not the way of a yogi, nor does the wisdom of yog see it that way. Yet, many nations make such statements. Diplomats around the world must understand this. The conduct of our Minister of External Affairs has been exemplary in many ways. Do you think yog and meditation has nothing to do with it! Think again.
Sometimes, certain nations or groups struggle to accept others as equally sovereign entities, accommodating them reluctantly due to protocol. As a nation-state and a civilisational entity, we have witnessed many such spectacles. Yog broadens our vision, instils values in our consciousness, and transforms individuals into fulfilled human beings. After all, groups and nations and diplomats are all constituted of human beings only. Yog represents humanity’s journey from being civilised (Susabhya) to becoming culturally enriched (Susanskrit), and finally evolving to becoming/being spiritual (Yathaarth).
In English-speaking fraternity across the globe, yog is popularly pronounced as yoga. Yog holds infinite meanings as it ultimately connects us with the infinite. However, a few popular interpretations include union, oneness, non-duality and completeness. Yog is both a state of being and a ceaseless process. It has been in practice in Bharat since time immemorial. The experience of yog cannot be translated (described) into English language in its entirety.
However, it can be experienced and felt by all irrespective of the language they know. Because along with being an objective discipline, it is a subjective experience. The ones who become interested in deeper dimensions of yog, tend to learn one or the other Indic language, so that they could not only experience it in its entirety but also describe it to the extent possible to describe.
The spirit of yog is fast spreading across the globe, but those who are not fully familiar with Indic knowledge traditions think that yog is all about certain body postures and physical exercises. In reality, physical exercises or postures constitute only a cursory and smaller part of yog. Dhaaranaa (manifestation), Dhyaan (meditation), and Samaadhi (wisdom) are at the heart of yoga.
Wisdom is our real identity. That’s how, in each one of us, there is an indomitable will to seek this real identity. But the journey to realise one’s real identity asks for continuous alertness so that even an iota of doubt is not left in one’s mind about it. Many on this journey succumb to laziness, and doubt begins to cloud their minds, and they fail to persevere with requisite intensity and clarity. That is why we hear such stories from people that very few recognise this dormant will and rarely few consciously manifest it in its entirety.
Discipline is needed in realising dhyaan and samaadhi. This spiritual essence we seek by countless names—such as God, completeness, and peace—has always been present deep within us as pure consciousness. In Bharat Bhumi, Yog has been practised since time immemorial and thus has numerous definitions. However, the three most popular definitions are as follows.
‘Yog is that stage of consciousness in which cessation of Chaitsic-tendencies are witnessed by the yogi.’
‘Yog is attaining that stage of dexterity or expertise in executing one’s responsibilities in which yogi attains perfection in performance.’
Yog is, ‘attaining that stage of equanimity in one’s consciousness which can neither be disturbed by successes nor by failures in performing one’s eternal responsibilities.’
It is clear from all these definitions that yog is more about mind, consciousness and meditation. And, it offers much more than physical and psychic well-being.
Yog is the discipline. Its practice brings about discipline in human life. Disciples attain a higher order of clarity/consciousness, deeper balance of mind and intense sense of discernment/decision making. When practiced under the guidance of the attained maser (Guru) higher portals of yogic attainments open up before disciples/yogis.
In today’s world, keeping one’s mind calm, positive, creative and productive is an everyday challenge that all of us face. Keeping one’s mental balance intact in the fast-changing world around oneself has become necessary for one and all. In such a scorching scenario, meditation attracts our attention as a breeze of relief.
Meditative practices, along with sat-sang with one’s Guru, bring back our focus and attention to the essentiality. Meditation helps us recognise our priorities and organise our lives in the best possible manner. Therefore, meditation should be promoted by every institution and individual from the beginning to the last breath of life so that everyone across the globe transforms into a supremely responsible being.
International Day of Yoga is an occasion when this message should be acknowledged, reiterated, practiced and asserted by all of us in unison with total agreement and in one voice so that meditation becomes an everyday affair of every earthling in every home.
When peace and contentment reigns in every heart and all nations of the world move arm in arm with unity then peace keeping forces and peace-making super nations will have to move resources of the planet earth towards producing something better than arms. Simple practice of meditation can make peace and contentment reign in every heart. This change is possible and doable.
Unity or oneness means having that kind of vision which offers infinite space for every being to bloom to its fullest potential like a flower. Meditation has that potential to let diversity flourish to its fullest.
Mediation doesn’t impose any belief on anyone it rather opens one’s eye of wisdom to see the genesis/source of one’s own belief. It is entirely left to the believer’s freedom whether a believer wants to transcend one’s belief or stay tied to it.
Bharat is living evidence of aforesaid freedom. And, our culture of meditation has made it possible. Because, in a certain meditative stage of transcendence one transforms into ‘witness-consciousness’ which is the state of non-duality/oneness mentioned at the outset. Meditation makes everyone capable of seeing each other’s perspective also. Imagine if every student across the globe realises oneself as the ‘witness-consciousness’ will any kingdom of god or heaven or Jannat be in a position to compete with earth and earthlings?
On this 10th International Day of Yoga, I wish and pray that in alignment with the theme of this Day the whole humanity realises the value of the wisdom enshrined in the consciousness of ‘one earth one family’ (Vasudhaiv Kutumbakam). Meditation and contemplation has the potential to ceaselessly transform all human beings into better versions of themselves if not out and out divine.
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