Thousands of Yogis from Guyana, St. Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda and Anguilla joined the High Commission of India, at the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre (SVCC) in Georgetown, to celebrate the 6th International Day of Yoga (IDY) on Saturday, 21st June 2020, under the theme “Yoga for Health – Yoga at Home”. A Yoga demonstration was held under the guidance of SVCC Yoga Teacher, Agnela V. Patil — and the entire event was live streamed on Anguilla TV.
In Anguilla, the day was celebrated at Crocus Bay Beach under the guidance of Yoga Teacher Tania Llewelyn Jones— supported by Mr. Umesh Chhatlani and the Indian Community.
The beach gathering was attended by about 40 Yoga enthusiasts consisting of Anguillian natives and nationals of other countries. The participants greatly appreciated the efforts of the Government of India, and the High Commission of India in Guyana, for promoting Yoga as an important benefit to humankind and for bringing it to Anguilla. All efforts to encourage people to apply Yoga for the benefit of their physical, mental, spiritual wellbeing were praised by the community.
The traditional Yoga Day celebrations, which have seen mass participation since 2015, were altered this year to an online event due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The event, Yoga Day was celebrated with strict observance of all social distancing measures in place. It was streamed live on social media and broadcast on several local and foreign television channels in participating countries.
Messages in respect of its observance were relayed from the following dignitaries: Hon. Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi; High Commissioner of India to Guyana, St. Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda and Consul General of India to Anguilla, Dr. K. J. Srinivasa; Hon. Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis Dr. Timothy Harris; Minister of Tourism and Economic Development of Antigua & Barbuda, Hon. Charles Max Gernandez; Bollywood celebrities Akshay Kumar and Shilpa Shetty; and former West Indies Cricket Captains Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Sir Richie Richardson. They all conveyed the relevance and benefits of Yoga to people’s daily lives.
In December 2014, with support from 177 countries, June 21st was unanimously designated as International Day of Yoga. Consequently, since 2015, June 21st was marked as the International Day of Yoga in India, and across the globe, by Indian missions abroad.
Yoga is a gift to the world from ancient India. It is an intangible cultural heritage as declared by UNESCO. In the current COVID-19 pandemic context, with consequent restrictions on movement and a slowdown in daily activity, persons are encouraged to practice Yoga as it is proven to be beneficial for the physical, mental and spiritual wellness of one and all.
- Staff Reporter, James R. Harrigan
