Dehradun: Describing yoga as the "most powerful medium of achieving physical and intellectual purity", Uttarakhand Governor K K Paul today asked people to make this excellent art of physical and mental well-being an integral part of their life.
Greeting the people of the state on the occasion of International Yoga Day, he said it is a holistic health system which helps people focus their minds and develop qualities like self-control, patience, compassion and discipline.
Asking people not to associate it with any religious activity, he said they should make yoga a part of their daily life and make an effort to make the whole world understand it better.
"The entire world has today recognised and accepted the scientific temper of yoga which is an integral part of India's culture, civilisation and lifestyle."
He said it is significant that on India's initiative, 177 of the 190 countries of United Nations gave their consent to observe June 21 as International Yoga Day.
This is a proof of yoga's international acceptance as a holistic health system.
Paul said Uttarakhand is the land where the yogic tradition had its origins and International Yoga Day is a golden opportunity to establish the state as the "yogic capital of India".
