Yoga answer to need for mental, moral well-being: Prez

Amidst preparations for the International Yoga Day on June 21, President Pranab Mukherjee today strongly endorsed yoga as a complete answer to people's need for mental, moral and spiritual well-being.
"Yoga is an art, science and philosophy. It helps to join the powers of body, mind and soul for achieving self- realisation. Modern medical science has validated that the practice of yoga not only reduces stress but has multiple long-lasting beneficial effects.
"Yogic discipline not only helps control the wavering mind but also inspires the pursuit of excellence," he said at an event where he was presented the first copy of 'Yogi ka sparsh' (yogi's touch) written by Nivedita Joshi, daughter of senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi.

Noting that the book is a yoga manual in Braille to help the visually-impaired, Mukherjee said the ancient Indian practice offers "a complete answer to people's need for physical, mental, moral and spiritual well-being".
He said the United Nation's decision to observe June 21 as International Yoga Day will help popularise yoga globally and enable people to benefit from this "priceless Indian heritage".
Marking the occasion in India, about 40,000 people are expected to be part of International Yoga Day celebrations, to be held at Rajpath here, where the government is trying to create a record so that it finds place in the Guinness Book of Records.

Mukherjee said yoga was arguably the most valuable Indian cultural heritage and it was an art, science and philosophy which helps people in self-realisation.

Speaking on the occasion, Joshi said she was bed-ridden by a host of crippling ailments for years before she regained health and vigour with practice of yoga under the guidance of noted guru late B K S Iyengar.
She was long driven by a quest to take yoga to the blind, 39 million globally and one-third of them living in India, Joshi said.
"This effort will bring so much more light to those who thought they could not move in that direction (of yoga)," she said.

"As we prepare to celebrate the International Day of Yoga, it gives me immense satisfaction that the Yoga manual in Braille is being offered as a unique gift to the visually impaired," the President said.