List of International Days of Yoga

This list records each International Day of Yoga from the day's inception in 2015.

International Yoga Day on board INS Jalashwa, 2015


List of International Days of Yoga
Statusactive
FrequencyAnnually
Inaugurated2015 (9 years ago) (2015)
Previous event2024
Next event2025
Participants
Organised byUnited Nations
Member

2015

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IYD Seychelles, 2015

The first International Day of Yoga was observed around the world on June 21, 2015. The pivotal event was held at Rajpath in New Delhi, India, where a large number of people, including PM Narendra Modi and dignitaries from many nations, performed 21 asanas (yoga postures) for 35 minutes.[1] The Delhi event established two Guinness world records, one for the largest yoga class, of 35,985 people,[2] and other for the largest number of participating nationalities (84 nations).[3] The Ministry of AYUSH made the necessary arrangements in India.[4]

Apart from India, the event was celebrated across the world including New York, Paris, Beijing, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, San Francisco, Seoul, and Seychelles.[5] In San Francisco, 5,000 participants gathered in the Marina Green park to do yoga.[6] Another record was created by India's NCC cadets, who entered the Limca Book of Records for the "largest yoga performance simultaneously by a single uniformed youth organization" at multiple venues.[7]

2016

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Yoga Guru, Baba Ramdev IYD Haridwar,2016
 
IYD Poland, 2016

A senior government official said, "The government of India has decided to take forward the momentum created by the International Day of Yoga, 2015 with more and more active participation of youth during the current year's celebrations."[8] The ministry organized an event titled "The National Event of Mass Yoga Demonstration" at Chandigarh, which was attended by the Indian Prime Minister.[9]

India's Permanent Mission to the UN organized celebrations at the United Nations on June 20 and 21 2016. A special event titled "Conversation with Yoga Masters – Yoga for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals" was the centerpiece.[10] Sadhguru (Jaggi Vasudev) was the main speaker at the event.[11]

Baba Ramdev also held a massive yoga camp in June 2016 to mark International Yoga Day, and Union Minister Arun Jaitley hailed the Yoga guru for reviving the ancient Indian practice saying that “Baba Ramdev has immensely contributed in reviving yoga and has made people aware about its positive effects” [12]

2017

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3rd International Yoga Day in Lucknow, India, 2017

In Lucknow, the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi participated in the event and practiced yoga along with 51,000 participants.[13][14] Many business leaders in India also took part in the event.[15][16] In New York, thousands of participants gathered to practice yoga on Times Square. Japan created a Parliamentary League for the promotion of yoga just prior to the event, in April 2017.[17] In China, the largest gathering was 10,000 participants in the city of Wuxi.[18] In Athens, the event took place on 25 June as part of the Greek Open Yoga Day[19] and in Kyiv, the event happened on 18 June and gathered a few hundred participants.[20] In Ireland, participants met in the round room of the City Hall in Dublin.[21] The theme for 2017 was "Yoga for Health".

2018

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4th I. Yoga Day, Dehradun, India, 2018

The event in Dehradun was held at the Forest Research Institute. PM Modi led an estimated 50,000 volunteers to mark the fourth anniversary of International Yoga Day. The theme for 2018 was "Yoga for Peace". Over 100,000 people gathered at a yoga session in Kota, Rajasthan and performed yoga together, earning the city a Guinness World Record.[22]

2019

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The 5th International Yoga Day was celebrated zealously in various parts of India,[23] but the main event was held in Ranchi and the prime minister of India, Narendra Modi led a crowd of over 40,000 people, who attended this event there.[24] The theme of that year's event was "Yoga for Heart". At this event, the prime minister addressed the people of India, stressing on the importance of Yoga for the overall health of body, mind, society, and even our climate, saying "Let our motto be - Yoga for peace, harmony, and progress". He also said that the government would be working to make Yoga a pillar of the 'preventive healthcare and wellness' system.[25][26][27]

2020

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The theme for the 2020 day was "Yoga at Home and Yoga with the Family".[28][29] The Bulgarian prime minister Boyko Borissov recorded a video message to the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi on the occasion.[30]The main national event for the sixth International Day of Yoga (IDY) 2020 will be held on June 21 at Leh in Ladakh. This is the first time the event is taking place in such a high altitude location like Leh

2021

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The theme for the 2021 day was "Yoga for well-being". Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Indian mission to the United Nations organized an online celebration on UN WebTV in place of face-to-face yoga events.[31]

2022

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8th International Yoga Day in Mysore, India 2022

The 8th International Yoga Day was celebrated in various parts of India, but the main event was held in Mysore and the prime minister of India, Narendra Modi led a crowd of over 15,000 people in the Mysore Palace Premises, who attended this event there. The theme of the year's event was "Yoga for humanity".[32]

2023

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On International Yoga Day 2023

, a historic yoga event was held at the U.N. Headquarters in New York led by India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and attended by top UN officials and prominent individuals from across the world, including the incumbent President of UN General Assembly, Csaba Korosi and Hollywood actor Richard Gere, Mayor of New York City, Eric Adams among many others.[33]

2024

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This year marks the 10th International Day of Yoga with the theme “Yoga for self and Society.” The goal is to transform yoga into a widespread movement that emphasizes women’s well-being and promotes global health and peace[34] In India, a major event was held on the banks of Dal Lake in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, with Prime Minister Modi attending the 10th International Yoga Day event.[35] PM Modi noted that Yoga helps us live in the present moment without the baggage of the past, and pointed that yoga is becoming a popular in many countries including Turkmenistan, Saudi Arabia, Mongolia and Germany.[36] In Bengaluru city, which is popular for its Tech companies, Yoga enthusiasts attempted to create the Guinness Book of World Record for most people performing the "Surya Namaskar" during the 10th International Day of Yoga.[36]

References

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  1. ^ "Massive turnout for Yoga day". 21 June 2015.
  2. ^ "Largest yoga class". Guinness world record. 21 June 2015. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
  3. ^ "PM Modi Leads Yoga Session, India Sets Guinness Records: 10 Developments". NDTV. Retrieved 21 June 2015.
  4. ^ "Bengal government gearing up to celebrate International Yoga Day, even at the risk of annoying the minority community". The Economic Times. 2015-06-17. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  5. ^ "International Yoga Day And What It Means For India". The New York Times. June 29, 2015.
  6. ^ "San Francisco, Silicon Valley Yogis Join International Yoga Day". Siliconvalleyoneworld.com. 19 June 2015. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  7. ^ "NCC cadets' Yoga Day feat enter Limca Book of Records". NDTV. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  8. ^ "Experts Training Government Staff For Upcoming International Yoga Day". NDTV. 5 June 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  9. ^ "PM Modi To Attend International Yoga Day At Chandigarh". NDTV. 22 May 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  10. ^ "Sadhguru to lead yoga session at UN on 2nd International Yoga Day". The Indian Express. 28 May 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  11. ^ "Everything you need to know about International Yoga Day", Dainik Bhaskar 20 June 2016.
  12. ^ "Jaitley hails Baba Ramdev for reviving yoga, spreading awareness". Indian Express. June 20, 2016.
  13. ^ Shylaja Varma (21 June 2017). "International Yoga Day 2017: Rainy Start To Yoga Day, PM Narendra Modi Leads Asanas In Lucknow – Highlights". Ndtv.com. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  14. ^ "Thousands join India's Modi, hit the mat for International Yoga Day". Reuters.com. 21 June 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  15. ^ Ramarko Sengupta (21 June 2017). "International Yoga Day: CEOs who're into the ancient science". Indiatimes.com. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  16. ^ "We asked nine of India's CEOs and entrepreneurs to tell us their favourite yoga pose". Qz.com. 21 June 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  17. ^ "International Yoga Day 2017: A Look at the Celebrations Around the World". Zenyogastrap.com. 7 June 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  18. ^ "International Yoga Day: Record 10,000 people participate in event in China's largest ever congregation". Firstpost.com. 25 June 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  19. ^ "Celebration of the 3rd International Day of Yoga in Greece". Elinepa.org. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  20. ^ Oleg Petrasiuk; Denys Krasnikov (18 June 2017). "Namaste: Hundreds gather in Kyiv to celebrate International Yoga Day (PHOTOS)". Kyivpost.com. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  21. ^ "International Yoga Day 2017". Yogatherapyireland.com. 1 August 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  22. ^ "International Yoga Day | Rajasthan records biggest yoga gathering". The Hindu. 2018-06-21. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  23. ^ "Yoga Day Live updates: World celebrates International Yoga Day 2019". The Times of India.
  24. ^ "Yoga Day 2019: PM Modi Yoga address-10 Key Points". 21 June 2019.
  25. ^ ""Yoga for All, All for Yoga," Says PM at Mega Event in Ranchi: 10 Points".
  26. ^ "World Yoga Day Theme Yoga for Climate Action". India Today. 13 June 2019. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  27. ^ "International Yoga Day 2019: 5th International Yoga Day Celebrations in Chandigarh". NewsGraph. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  28. ^ "International Yoga Day 2020 India: Theme,Importance,History,Quotes". S A NEWS. 19 June 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  29. ^ "International Yoga Day 2020: Video Contest, Yoga at Home, Yoga with Family Theme Campaign Launched Get Details". Jagranjosh.com. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  30. ^ "Бербатов се подготвя за Индия с посещение в посолството (СНИМКИ)" [Borissov congratulates Indian Prime Minister on Yoga Day (VIDEO)]. bTV Новините (in Bulgarian). 21 June 2020. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  31. ^ Brown, Forrest (21 June 2021). "International Day of Yoga 2021: Find the path to your well-being". CNN Health. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
  32. ^ "Eighth International Day of Yoga being celebrated across the world today". All India Radio News. 21 June 2022. Retrieved 8 September 2022.
  33. ^ "International Yoga Day 2023 updates". The Hindu. 2023-06-21. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  34. ^ Nations, United. "International Day of Yoga". United Nations.
  35. ^ "International Yoga Day Live Updates: Yoga has become a unifying force, says PM Modi". Hindustan Times. 2024-06-21. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
  36. ^ a b "Yoga helps us live in the present moment without the baggage of the past: PM Modi". The Hindu. 2024-06-21. Retrieved 2024-06-27.