{"id":18231,"date":"2016-06-21T14:28:21","date_gmt":"2016-06-21T14:28:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/sustainabledevelopment\/?p=18231"},"modified":"2018-04-22T11:59:14","modified_gmt":"2018-04-22T15:59:14","slug":"on-international-yoga-day-ban-spotlights-importance-of-healthy-living-in-realizing-global-goals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.un.org\/sustainabledevelopment\/blog\/2016\/06\/on-international-yoga-day-ban-spotlights-importance-of-healthy-living-in-realizing-global-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"On International Yoga Day, Ban spotlights importance of healthy living in realizing Global Goals"},"content":{"rendered":"

United Nations Secretary-General<\/a> Ban Ki-moon today urged everyone to embrace healthier choices and lifestyles and to commit to unity with other human beings, regardless of ethnicity, faith, age, gender identity or sexual orientation.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPracticing yoga can also help raise awareness of our role as consumers of the planet’s resources and as individuals with a duty to respect and live in peace with our neighbours,\u201d Mr. Ban said, marking the second International Day of Yoga<\/a>, since the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution last year dedicating 21 June to the practice. \u201cAll these elements are essential to building a sustainable future of dignity and opportunity for all,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Yoga is an ancient physical, mental and spiritual practice that originated in India and is now practiced in various forms around the world. The word ‘yoga’ derives from Sanskrit and means to join or to unite, symbolizing the union of body and consciousness.<\/p>\n

This year’s observance of the International Day highlights the important role healthy living plays in the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals<\/a> (SDGs<\/a>), adopted last year by all UN Member States.<\/p>\n

Noting the benefits of yoga, the Secretary-General explained<\/a>: \u201cPhysical inactivity is linked with a number of non-communicable diseases, such as cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, which are among the leading causes of illness and death worldwide. By improving fitness, teaching us how to breathe correctly, and working to diminish stress, yoga can help to cultivate healthier lifestyles.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ancient practice of yoga represents the \u201cbreath of the eternal,\u201d according to one of the world\u2019s oldest practitioners, 97-year-old Tao Porchon-Lynch, who began learning yoga in India at age eight.<\/p>\n

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International Day of Yoga celebration at UN Headquarters. Photo: Runa A<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Speaking to UN Radio<\/em> as part of a yoga session at Headquarters today, Ms. Porchon-Lynch said she was pleased to see more and more people participating in yoga an she wanted to teach that \u201cwhen you take a breath, you\u2019re tuning in to the life force inside of you and you\u2019re tuning in to the very spirit of life.\u201d She said people are always telling her what she could not do, but she had no interest in that. \u201cI know that within me is the possibility to go out and do it!\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

As for the United Nations, Ms. Porchon-Lynch said the world body was most necessary. \u201cWe need to be able to sit down and talk to each other; we don\u2019t need to

[search for] what is wrong in life. Whatever you put in your mind, you materialize, so let\u2019s materialize peace and beauty and [the knowledge] that each one of us has something good to offer.\u201d Asked what a world where everyone practiced yoga would look like, she said; \u201cIt would be a beautiful springtime; a world where everything flourishes. I don\u2019t believe in hatred. I believe on the smiles on peoples\u2019 faces.<\/p>\n

Yogi Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, founder of the Isha Foundation said two billion people around the world practice yoga, fundamentally, \u201cbecause it works.\u201d Every human being can have a pleasant and peaceful life experience if they \u201cfix\u201d themselves from the inside. And while it is true that one might not be able to teach yoga lessons in a war zone, war itself is a manifestation of what is happening in human minds. \u201cSo we can\u2019t start with the outside, we have to start inside,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Among the worldwide events taking place to mark the Day, the Permanent Mission of India to the UN in association with the UN Department of Public Information, are gathering people in the UN Secretariat Circle at UN Headquarters, New York.<\/p>\n

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