YOGI’S INDIA
Delhi
My journey started in New Delhi, all ready
for International Yoga Day on 21 June – it
was in its second year of celebrations
following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s
proposal to the United Nations General
Assembly in 2014. “Yoga is an invaluable
gift of India’s ancient tradition. This
tradition is 5000 years old. It embodies
unity of mind and body; thought and action;
restraint and fulfilment; harmony between
man and nature; a holistic approach to
health and well-being. It is not about
exercise but to discover the sense of oneness
with yourself, the world and the nature. By
changing our lifestyle and creating
consciousness, it can help in well-being.”
Having been adopted by majority of the
member nations, International Yoga Day is
then celebrated by yogis worldwide.
Although colloquially interchangeable,
Delhi and New Delhi are distinct entities,
the latter city being a small part of the
former state.
Haridwar
The next stop was to visit Haridwar, in the
state of Uttarakhand, where tourists can
witness devotees washing their sins away in
the holy Ganges river in the daily Aarti
ritual to attain Moksha or true freedom. The
river flows from the Himalayas and enters
North India for the first time in this city. It is
regarded as one of the 7 holiest places to
Hindus. It is said that Amrit, the elixir of
immortality, was spilt at Har ki Pauri while
carried by the celestial bird Garuda and that
is celebrated every 12 years with a huge
festival of ritualistic bathing by both
pilgrims and tourists alike. Nevertheless,
even the daily rituals are incredible to
behold, where sadhus or pilgrims clad in
orange robes or just loincloths join the
masses on the banks of the Ganges with both
pilgrims and devotees bathing in the
freezing waters as the priests chant.
Everyone else can also join in the fun by
lighting the beautiful flower offerings and
setting them afloat in the river and joining in
the chants.The many gods in Hinduism each represented pieces of the whole puzzle, showcasing
different facets of the universal truth. It is said that humans created these stories in
order to help them grasp the vast concept of the One.
Rishikesh
Just a short distance away (25km) is
Rishikesh, also known to many Western
yoga enthusiasts as the Yoga Capital of the
World and to Hindu pilgrims, one of the
holiest places where sages have visited to
gain enlightenment since ancient times.
The city is meat and alcohol free, one where
cows have right of way and cow poop is
constantly swept away. Rishikesh came to
fame thanks to the Beatles who visited in
1968 and were inspired to record the ‘The
Happy Rishikesh Song’. Here, one is
reminded of the extremes of India, where
poverty and pollution litter the streets.
However, when one steps into an Ashram,
it’s a completely different story - almost as
though they were two separate places.
The largest ashram with over 1000
rooms in Rishikesh is the Parmarth
Niketan, along the banks of the Ganges,
founded in 1942. Visitors can stay in its
many rooms to take part in the daily
schedules of yoga, meditation, kirtan,
lectures and enjoy Ayurvedic treatments.In Haridwar, Kumbh Mela is
practiced once every twelve
years, a mass pilgrimage of
faith when Hindus gather to
bathe in the sacred waters of
the Ganges