Johannesburg: The Sivananda World Peace Foundation (SWPF) in South Africa has created a world record for hosting the largest yoga performance on a floating platform in the Indian Ocean, just off the town of Richards Bay.
SWPF founder Ishwar Ramlutchman said the idea came to him as he was thinking of doing something different on the occasion of the International Day of Yoga, which is celebrated on June 21.
“We chose June 16 to do this because it is a public holiday in South Africa called Youth Day, commemorating the protests and sacrifices made by students in Soweto in 1976 that sparked off the events that eventually secured us democracy in 1994,” Ramlutchman said.
As many as 40 yoga enthusiasts performed a range of yoga exercises in keeping with the protocols set by the Canadian-based Amazing Olympia World Records (AOWR) for the event.
“This event in Richards was the first ever, largest yoga performance on the floating platform on the Indian Ocean and has been certified by AOWR, who scrutinised the entire process via live streaming,” Ramlutchman said, proudly sharing the confirmation certificate from the organisation.
“I am very delighted that we were able to demonstrate the common yoga protocol on a floating platform on the Indian Ocean. The ocean is a source of inspiration that binds us all as a nation. It teaches us to remain calm through turbulent times.
“The event also highlighted social cohesion, as we had participants from all race groups, genders and ages eagerly adopting our theme of 'Yoga for health, wellness and humanity,” he said.
Yoga Day is celebrated across South Africa at popular public venues by a number of organisations, including yoga schools and the Indian missions in the country, on the Sunday closest to June 21 for convenience.
On June 19, one of the largest events is expected to attract over 2,500 participants on the Durban beachfront, while the Indian Consulate in Johannesburg will use one of the most popular public parks in the city, Zoo Lake, to host the event.
Ramlutchman said this year, after two years of a slowdown because of the Covid-19 pandemic, a number of programmes were initiated as a buildup to the Yoga Day.
“For the first time we had a programme for peace and harmony at the historic Nelson Mandela Capture site this year,” he said.
Mandela was arrested at the site in Howick while he was evading apartheid-era security agents. His capture resulted in the Rivonia trial, which sent him to prison for 27 years before he was freed and became the country's first democratically-elected president In 1994.
Ramlutchman said schools and the National Department of Health had also become partners in the campaign to promote health and wellness through Yoga.
“For the past two months we have been to schools across the province to highlight the benefits of yoga to students. We feel that students need to be taught yoga to encourage them to concentrate more in their studies,” he said. PTI FH SCY SCY
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