Participants from multiple countries perform yoga at Parmarth Niketan’s yoga fest

Rishikesh: The International

Yoga

Festival being held at the Parmarth Niketan ashram in Rishikesh saw participants from several countries take part in yoga sessions, panel talks as well as cultural performances. On the second day of the festival, Maharashtra governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari as well as Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar attended the festivities. Speaking to the participants, Koshyari said that “even though I am currently occupying the post of governor, I practice complete surrender to the path of spirituality.”

Elaborating on the benefits of yoga, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said, “Through yoga, we are able to be connected with everyone on the planet, cutting across race, religion and gender. Through yoga, we are able to relieve ourselves of the past and be satisfied fully in the present, live happily and spread happiness.”

Parmarth Niketan head Swami Chidanand Saraswati in his address said that “life is not to have more but to be more.” “It's not about hoarding and having but it's really about giving and sharing. The real Art of Living is in learning to give, give and give like Mother Ganga, Mother Nature and the Sun with no hesitation, no expectation, no vacation and no discrimination.”

A panel discussion was also held on the topic ‘Yoga in the Marketplace’, during which one of the panelists, international life coach and ISKCON seer Gaur Gopal Das said, “The very word yoga comes from the word yuj which is to connect — a connection of course with ourselves, but also with someone or something beyond us. When you connect, your heart lights up, and when your heart lights up, you light up the world.”


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