Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday morning performed yoga with over 50,000 enthusiasts at the Forest Research Institute campus in Dehradun, saying the ancient Indian discipline has emerged as the most powerful unifying force in a strife-torn world.
Addressing the large gathering in the backdrop of the iconic British-era building of FRI on the occasion of International Yoga Day, Modi said yoga has shown the world the way from "illness to wellness" and was enriching lives across the globe.
Modi said in fact International Yoga Day has become the biggest mass movement across the globe in the quest for good health and well-being, which is crucial to the creation of a peaceful world.
"Dehradun to Dublin, Shanghai to Chicago, Jakarta to Johannesburg, Himalayan highlands or sunburnt deserts, yoga is enriching millions of lives all over the world.”
"Yoga fosters amity in societies, which can form the basis of national unity," the prime minister said.
Modi said the proposal for International Yoga Day at the UN was accepted in record time with a majority of nations supporting it.
Today, people all over the world have come to look upon yoga as something that belongs to them, Modi said.
He also asked people to learn to honour their own legacy and heritage if they wanted the rest of the world to respect them.
"If we don't take pride in our own legacy and heritage, no one else will. We should not hesitate in honouring the gems of our own heritage,” Modi argued.
He said the way to lead a calm, creative and content life was yoga.
"In yoga, we have the perfect solution to the problems we face, either as individuals or in our society," the prime minister said.
"Instead of dividing, yoga unites. Instead of furthering animosity, yoga assimilates. Instead of increasing suffering, yoga heals," he said.
Modi said yoga presents a ray of hope for the future of the world.
"Yoga is beautiful because it is ancient yet modern, it is constant yet evolving," he said.
The prime minister had arrived in Dehradun on Wednesday night to participate in the main event on International Yoga Day.
Elaborate security arrangements were made, and nearly 3,000 security personnel were deployed in and around the venue.
Modi arrived at the FRI around 6.30am and addressed the people before performing asanas with them.
The prime minister had earlier participated in yoga celebrations at Rajpath in New Delhi in 2015, the Capitol Complex in Chandigarh in 2016, and the Ramabai Ambedkar Sabha Sthal in Lucknow in 2017.
On Wednesday, while greeting yoga enthusiasts across the world, Modi had said that this exercise is one of the most precious gifts given by the ancient Indian sages to humankind.
“Yoga is not just a set of exercises that keeps the body fit. It is a passport to health assurance, a key to fitness and wellness. Nor is yoga only what you practice in the morning. Doing your day-to-day activities with diligence and complete awareness is a form of yoga as well," a statement quoting Modi had said.