Solstice Yoga by MC
These days my days are too long even without there being the summer solstice when the day is at its longest. That is today.
Although I am a lifelong morning and day person by temperament, these days the dawn of a new day mostly means the onset of mundane annoyances. Days also mean constant reminders that survival costs money with which one has had an adversarial relationship.
June 21 happens to be the International Yoga Day as declared by the United Nations under promptings from India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 27, 2014. I was in the United Nations General Assembly that day when the prime minister suggested it during his maiden speech. Just as Modi said it, I wrote on a scrap of paper “This will go through”.
In less than three months after that the United Nations did indeed declare June 21 to be the International Day of Yoga on a resolution moved by the Indian delegation. It was remarkable that 175 countries supported the Resolution A/69/L.17 that was moved by India’s Permanent Representative Asoke Kumar Mukerji. The resolution was adopted on December 11 which by the standards of the UN time was lightening fast.
It bears repeating what I had reported then.
In moving the resolution Mukerji said, “It is a matter of great satisfaction to all of us in this Assembly that today, less than 90 days after the proposal for an International Yoga Day was made, we have the honor to introduce before you a very forward looking, simple, yet substantive, draft Resolution calling for establishing the International Day of Yoga.”
The resolution was finalized after just two rounds of informal consultations with all member states. “The Resolution fully addresses the concern of some of our colleagues, notably from the European Union, that this proposal does not entail any additional budgetary implications for the UN system. All activities held in connection with this Day would be resourced solely through voluntary contributions,” Mukerji said.
Sam K. Kutesa, president of the 69th session of the UNGA said, “Today’s adoption of a resolution on the International Day of Yoga with overwhelming support, as shown by the more than 170 member States that have co-sponsored it, demonstrates how both the tangible and the unseen benefits of yoga appeal to people around the world.
For centuries, people from all walks of life have practiced yoga, recognizing its unique embodiment of unity between mind and body. Yoga brings thought and action together in harmony, while demonstrating a holistic approach to health and well-being.”
I was going through the list of 175 countries that co-sponsored the resolution and found that Saudi Arabia was missing from it, which was no surprise. However, what was more heartening was that major Islamic countries such as Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates were among the co-sponsors. Evidently, they could make a distinction between Yoga and Hinduism.
Since its declaration and its conscious coincidence with the summer solstice, I am yet to start doing yoga. The idea of doing yoga seems far more fascinating than actually doing it. I did try once to learn it at a local yoga class in a Hindu temple nearby. It was not a joyous experience for me because I kept stepping out of my body and visualizing how awkward I looked. It is me and not yoga that is the problem. Some day soon I may overcome that and actually begin doing it. Until then it is easier to write about it than to actually do it.
As for the summer solstice, it is all about the sun, a subject I have written about frequently. I have also painted the sun frequently. One is constantly aware that we are what we are because we have the sun. There is a reason why all physical yoga begins with Surya Namaskar or Sun Salutation. The summer solstice offers one the longest window to salute it.
My sun salutation is almost daily but it is not yogic. I step out soon after waking between 4.30 and 5 a.m. look eastward at breaking dawn and nod as if I am greeting a friend. Yoga thus done, I start my day which I no longer look forward to these days. It brings mundane annoyances.