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20 Incredible Facts about the International Day of Yoga 2015

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With the successful commencement of International Day of Yoga on June 21, the world saw a revival of the ancient art of physical and mental well-being. From new coins to stamps and many records, the day gave a much needed boost to the traditional philosophy as well as practice. Here are 20 exciting things that happened on IDY 2015.

1. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi led thousands in a spectacular mass participation attempt for two Yoga world record titles on June 21, 2015 in New Delhi.

[caption id="attachment_26626" align="aligncenter" width="863"]THOUSANDS OF PARTICIPANTS AT THE RAJPATH ON THE  INTERNATIONAL DAY OF YOGA (IDY) ON THE JUNE 21, 2015 Thousands of participants at the Rajpath on the International Day of Yoga (IDY) on June 21, 2015.[/caption]
Photo: PTI
"The event, which took place in front of India’s government buildings on the iconic Rajpath saw 35,985 people take part in the attempt which set a new record for the largest yoga lesson (single venue). The attempt beat a previous benchmark which had stood for almost ten years of 29,973, which was set in Gwalior, back in November 2005. With a total of 84 different and unique nationalities taking part in Sunday’s attempt, a second record was also set for most nationalities in a yoga lesson”, said official sources from the Guinness World Records.

2. Approximately 900 million mobile users across India received an SMS from the Prime Minister in connection with the International Day of Yoga.

[caption id="attachment_26639" align="aligncenter" width="1027"]MINISTRY OF AYUSH AWARDED 2 GUINNESS WORLD RECORD TITLES ON INTERNATIONAL YOGA DAY FOR PARTICIPATION AT RAJPATH Ministry of AYUSH awarded 2 Guiness World Record titles on IDY for participation at Rajpath[/caption]
Photo: intoday.in
Probably a world record too!

3. Dubai expat Ivan Stanley set the first world record of performing Shirshasana for 61 minutes non-stop.

[caption id="attachment_26627" align="aligncenter" width="675"]IVAN STANLEY PERFORMING THE SIRSANA IN UAE Ivan Stanley performing the Shirsasana in UAE[/caption]
Photo: www.thenational.ae

4. Yoga at the highest altitude in the world - Siachen Glacier: Indian Army Jawans and Officers at 18,800 feet above sea level (probably a World Record).

[caption id="attachment_26628" align="aligncenter" width="975"]ARMY PERSONNEL AT A YOGA SESSION ON INTERNATIONAL YOGA DAY AT SIACHEN GLACIER ON SUNDAY. Army Personnel at a Yoga session on International Yoga Day at Siachen Glacier on Sunday, June 21.[/caption]
Photo: PTI

5. INDIA POST released commemorative Stamps, First Day Covers and Minisheet on the occasion of the International Day of Yoga on 21 June, 2015.

[caption id="attachment_26630" align="aligncenter" width="720"]MINIATURE STAMP SHEET (WITH ₹ 5.00 STAMP) RELEASED BY INDIA POST ON IDY 21 JUNE 2015 Miniature Stamp Sheet (With ₹ 5.00 Stamp) released by India Post on IDY - 21 June, 2015[/caption]
Photo: rainbowstampclub.blogspot.in

6. The Reserve Bank of India released two commemorative coins of denominations ₹ 10/- and ₹ 100/- on the International Day of Yoga.

[caption id="attachment_26633" align="aligncenter" width="1000"]COMMEMORATAIVE COINS RELEASED ON IDY 2015 Commemorative Coins released on IDY 2015[/caption] [caption id="attachment_26632" align="aligncenter" width="876"]COMMEMORATAIVE COINS RELEASED ON IDY 2015 Commemorative Coins released on IDY 2015[/caption]
Photo: lh3.googleusercontent.com

7. Website of the International Day of Yoga, http://idayofyoga.org/, has a countdown clock indicating the number of days left for International Day of Yoga 2016.

Screen Shot 2015-06-24 at 11.14.47 am

8. Try the yoga puzzle on the official website of PM Modi: http://yogapuzzle.narendramodi.in/

9. Watch the full documentary of the International Day of Yoga event held at Rajpath on 21st June, 2015.

[embedvideo id="SaJZfujgU4E" website="youtube"]

10. The Ministry of AYUSH was formed on 9th November, 2014.

The Department of Indian Medicine and Homeopathy (ISM&H) was created in March 1995 and renamed as Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH) in November 2003, with a view to providing focused attention to development of Education and Research in Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy systems.

11. The resolution for the Yoga Day was co-sponsored by 175 of the 193 UN member nations in a short period of 75 days.

IDY  
Photo source: Twitter

12. Forty-seven of the 56 members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation countries too joined as co-sponsors, in a telling example of the universality of yoga.

[caption id="attachment_26637" align="aligncenter" width="975"]KASHMIRI STUDENTS PERFORMING YOGA IN SRINAGAR abclocal.go.com Kashmiri students performing Yoga in Srinagar[/caption]
Photo: abclocal.go.com
While Pakistan did not co-sponsor, it did not object to the resolution either.

13. It is estimated that 250 million people around the world practice yoga, over 20 million of them in the US.

yoga
Photo source: twitter.com/IntlDayofYoga

14. About Rs. 30 Crores ($4.67m; £2.97m): Cost of Delhi event on 21 June, 2015.

[caption id="attachment_26635" align="aligncenter" width="793"]AERIAL YOGA OR ANTI-GRAVITY YOGA BEING PERFORMED BY STUDENTS IN AHMEDABAD AP PHOTO/AJIT SOLANKI Aerial Yoga or anti-gravity yoga being performed by students in Ahmedabad
(AP PHOTO/AJIT SOLANKI)[/caption]
Photo: darkroom-cdn.s3.amazonaws.com

15. 650 of India's 676 districts participated.

[caption id="attachment_26636" align="aligncenter" width="975"]NAVY PERSONNEL PERFORMING YOGA ON THE DECK OF INS VIRAAT Navy personnel performing Yoga on the deck on the deck of INS VIRAAT[/caption]

16. Of the 193 UN member countries, celebrations were held in 192 countries - the exception is Yemen, because of the conflict there.

[caption id="attachment_26671" align="aligncenter" width="600"]Yoga at Times Square Yoga at Times Square[/caption]
Photo source: twitter.com/IntlDayofYoga

17. “Spice Jet crew and the Isha Foundation instructors will perform yoga at a height of 35,000 feet on June 21, the International Day of Yoga. Approximately 50 Isha instructors and Spice Jet crew members will undertake a 10-minute session onboard select Boeing flights across the network,” reported ANI.

[caption id="attachment_26629" align="aligncenter" width="682"]PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI RELEASING THE FIRST DAY COVER, STAMP AND MINI SHEET ON INTERNATIONAL DAY OF YOGA AT THE VIGYAN BHAWAN ON 21 JUNE 2015 Prime Minister Narendra Modi releasing the first day cover, stamp and mini sheet on IDY at the Vigyan Bhawan on 21 June, 2015[/caption]
Photo: philamirror.info

18. Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved alone recorded revenues of Rs 1,200 crore in the fiscal year 2014, and claims to have crossed Rs 2,000 crore last year.

[caption id="attachment_26647" align="aligncenter" width="520"]ramdev Baba Ramdev[/caption]
Photo: knowledgecocktail.com

19. Delhi is celebrating a week of Yoga Festival or 'Yoga Parv' from June 21st - 27th with exhibitions, music and dance events across the city.

Watch the live yoga session at Rajpath. [embedvideo id="14z7QKI0f6s" website="youtube"]

20. Worldwide, yoga is estimated to be an $80 billion industry.

[caption id="attachment_26674" align="aligncenter" width="599"]Bird's eye view of the yoga day celebration under the Eiffel Tower in Paris Bird's eye view of the yoga day celebration under the Eiffel Tower in Paris[/caption]
Photo source: twitter.com/Indian_Embassy

Like this story? Or have something to share? Write to us: contact@thebetterindia.com, or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter (@thebetterindia).

About the author: Sharath Ahuja works at the Indian Institute of Science, plays badminton, billiards and snooker and is also an amateur photographer.

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