International Yoga Day to be celebrated at National Mall in US on June 21

Washington: The first International Day of Yoga would be celebrated at the historic National Mall here on June 21 featuring yoga demonstrations by experts and Indian dance and music, Indian envoy to the US Arun K Singh has said.

Being organised by the Indian Embassy in the US in association with the 'Friends of Yoga', which is an association of Yoga organisations in the region, the event from 8-30 to 11 AM on June 21 would feature an exclusive video message by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Singh said.

Open free to the public; the Ambassador said the Indian Government is planning to celebrate the First International Day of Yoga in all countries, including the US.

He was speaking at an Indian Embassy organised talk by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev on 'Relevance of Yoga in Modern Life'.

During his talk, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, emphasized the relevance of Yoga in today's world. He said that yoga helps one to make one's individual life a pleasant experience.

"While we may be the generation that enjoys most comforts and conveniences, we are not necessarily the most joyful and peaceful generation. The dimension of transforming into joyful human beings is what yoga is all about. Yoga is a tool and technology," he said.

"While we have science and technology for external comfort, we should learn to use the tool and technology of yoga for internal well-being. Today about 2 billion people of the world are doing some form of yoga, and it should grow more," he said.

Indian Embassy is organising a series of curtain raiser Yoga events during the months of May-June 2015, including at the World Bank, at Durga Temple and Rajdhani Temple in Virginia.