LISPON, PORTUGAL, June 21, 2015 (Noticias Locais): United by the motto “The Light is Coming,” more than 1,000 people gathered at the Prof. Moniz Pereira to Athletics Track practice yoga, contribute to a day without bloodshed throughout the planet, celebrate ethnic and cultural diversity and inter-religious tolerance.
The Portuguese capital was thus one of the world epicenters of the first official commemoration of the International Day of Yoga, celebrated since 2002 by the Portuguese Yoga Confederation on the summer solstice and recognized by the UN in December 2014.
Organized by the Portuguese Confederation of Yoga and the Embassy of India – with the co-organization of the Lisbon City Council and supported by the Portuguese Government through the Secretary of State for Sports and Youth – the International day of Yoga brought together practitioners of all ages and representatives of the countries that have come to be associated with this cause that Portugal pioneered for the World in 2001, the year it sent a manifesto to the UN and UNESCO.
The celebrations began at 8:00 am in Prof. Moniz Pereira Athletics Track field, with an official message from the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, followed by a Global Classroom Yoga based on the Common Protocol of India.
The activities included tributes to key figures of Yoga in Portugal, Yoga demonstrations and a Master Class of Yoga, as well as Bharatanatyam (classical Indian dance), a duet by the famous Indian sitar master Ajay Sharma and Rao Kyao, a Lyrical Duet by countertenors Luis Pecas and Joao Paulo Ferreira, a presentation by the Naqshbandi Sufi Order and a presentation of the Omkara Choral Orchestra of the Portuguese Confederation of Yoga. Also a class of Yoga for Children and a class of yoga for pregnant women was held.