Before we digress into how powerful and effective yoga is, let us tell you the answers to these questions:

When is the international day of yoga is celebrated?

The date of International Yoga Day or International Day of Yoga is 21st June 2024 this year.

The United Nations organisation celebrated the first International Day Of Yoga on 21st June 2015, around six years back after it was proposed by Prime Minister Narender Modi in the United Nations General Assembly in September 2014 with his words which reinforced the importance of this holistic approach to well-being.

Do you know the story behind the date, June 21st for International Day Of Yoga?

Well, PM Modi at the UN also proposed the date of international yoga day to be June 21st and officially international day of yoga announced on 11 December 2014.

Why 21st June is of importance to Yoga Day? These are the reasons why:

1. Longest Day in Northern Hemisphere: Yes, June 21st marks the longest day of the year in the mass northern hemisphere and at the same time being the shortest in the southern hemisphere. This has special significance in many parts of the world.

2. Summer Solstice And Adi Yogi: The day observes the longest day in India and it is marked as Dakshinayana, the six months between summer and winter solstice when the sun travels towards the south on the celestial sphere.

   The second full moon after the Summer solstice is Guru Poornima is the day, Shiva, the first yogi or Adi Yogi began imparting the knowledge of yoga to the rest of mankind.

What is the theme of International Yoga Day 2024?

For the past seven years, the world has celebrated the art of wellbeing with International Yoga Day themes of “Yoga for Peace” in 2018, followed by the “Yoga for Heart” theme in 2019 which was celebrated in Ranchi with 40,000 people in attendance along with PM Modi. In 2020, the theme of International Day of Yoga was “Yoga at Home and Yoga with Family”.

Continuing the same as before, the theme for International Yoga Day 2021 was “Yoga at Home and Yoga with Family" and the theme of 2022 event was "Yoga for humanity."

The theme for International Yoga Day 2023 was "Yoga for Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam."

In 2024, the theme of the International Day of Yoga is ‘Yoga for Self and Society.’ This theme is testament to the role Yoga plays in fostering individual and societal well-being.

Significance Of International Yoga Day:

The day signifies the mission of educating the world with awareness about the physical, mental and spiritual benefits of Yoga and its several practices.

As the logo of this significant day includes “brown leaves”, the day signifies our connection with nature and earth. The logo embodies the message which is to be sent to the world, harmony and peace for humanity, which is the essence of Yoga.

Join The International Yoga Day Movement Online With Videos:

On the 10th anniversary of this day, International Day of Yoga videos will be filled on our social media timelines inclusive of health ambassadors of Bollywood like superstar Shilpa Shetty & Akshay Kumar, you can be a part of this video and help boost the mission of educating people about the physical, mental and spiritual benefits that can be derived by practising yoga.

As we have briefed you about International Day of Yoga and the importance of International Yoga Day, we will be sharing with you some of the most essential and need of the hour asanas you can practice for Covid-19 recovery.

These asanas are recommended by the Ministry of Ayush under the guidelines of Yoga Practitioners for COVID-19:

SūkṣmaVyāyāmas: This asana is easy to do as it is essentially the joint movements across the body that you can by moving them as far as possible, rather than stretching them.

These joint movements include neck movements, shoulder rotation, trunk movement, knee movement, & ankle rotation.

Yogasana: Inclusive of standing, sitting prone and supine lying asanas like Ushtrasana, UtthanaMandukasana, Tadasana, Trikonasana, Vakrasana, Bhujangasana, Sarala, & Matsyasana etc will focus on chest expansion and cardiopulmonary functions. Cardiac patients must do it under experts advice.

Kapalabhati: This breathing exercise is inclusive of deep breathing through the nose while sitting in a meditative posture and expelling the breath with forceful contractions of the abdominal muscles and relax.

This strengthens the lungs and increases their capacity. Also, the Yoga Asana is effective in removing blockages in the heart and lungs.

Breathing & Pranayama: The practice of controlling your time duration, frequency of every breath by holding it to essentially focus on connecting your body and mind. It boosts up oxygen levels while removing toxins and reduces anxiety.