June 21st 2015 was the world's 1st International Day of Yoga. United Nations proclaimed it as such on proposal of Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi in his UN Speech , when he visited US for the first time last September. The resolution was supported by 177 countries and passed  in a record 75 days.

This is so amazing because I started to do yoga in school since 8th grade and my favorite yoga is the one where you stand on your head upside down against the wall and stay there for a count of 10 or 20 or however many you can manage. This is called Sirsana, "sir" coming from the word "head"  and asana meaning pose. I still to this day enjoy this and other yoga exercises. Its a spiritual as well as a physical experience.

On June 21st, I had the opportunity to attend festivities celebrating 1st International Day of Yoga at the UN in New York, organized jointly by the UN and India's Permanent Representative to the UN. The program consisted of speeches by dignitaries, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon being the Key Note Speaker , joined by Indian Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj, President of 69th UN Secretary General Sam Kutesa and Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii who introduced a International Day of Yoga resolution in Congress. Then came the fun part, where a well known spiritual teacher and founder Living Art Foundation, Swami Ravi Shankar led the whole group of attendees in group yoga exercises. Even Secretary Ban Ki Moon and Mrs. Ban Ki Moon joined in, dressed in their track suites.
                              
Yoga is a form of life style, where not only you get your body and mind nourished through exercise but also eat healthy. A concept called "My Thali"  which I introduced earlier, is based on USDA's My Plate, like Mi Plato (Spanish version) and allows for healthy portions of all food groups based on the design of the plate which has numerous compartments in it. Thali , meaning plate in Hindi (language of India), allows for nutrition without giving up tradition.

|