मनःप्रशमनोपायो योग इत्यभिधीयते॥

“The recourse to pacify the mind is called yoga.”

Maha Upanishad

ONGC celebrated the ninth edition of International Day of Yoga (IDY) on 21 June 2023 at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, with a slew of events that witnessed the participation of Hon’ble Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) Hardeep Singh Puri and Secretary MoPNG Pankaj Jain.

The celebration began with the rendition of the national anthem early morning. On the occasion, Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recorded video message was broadcast on an LED screen at the venue. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on an official state visit to the United States, said that Indians have welcomed new ideas, conserved them and celebrated the country's rich diversity.

“This spread of yoga is an extension of the idea that the whole world is included as one family. Expansion of Yoga means expansion of the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. Therefore, the theme of the G20 Summit being chaired by India this year has also been kept as One Earth, One Family, One Future. Today, millions of people in the world are doing yoga together on the theme of Yoga for Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam,” the Prime Minister said in the recorded video.

Hon’ble Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri performing yoga with other participants at Vigyan Bhawan

After Hon’ble Prime Minister’s message was screened, recorded messages of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar who led the yoga day celebration in Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur, followed by Hon'ble Union Minister of Ayush and Ports, Shipping & Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal, Hon'ble Governor of Madhya Pradesh Mangubhai Patel, Hon'ble Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan, were displayed during the event at Vigyan Bhawan.

ONGC Chairman and CEO Arun Kumar Singh, Managing Director-ONGC Videsh Rajarshi Gupta, ONGC Director (Technical & Field Services) Om Prakash Singh, ONGC Director (Finance) Pomila Jaspal, ONGC Director (Exploration) Sushma Rawat, ONGC Director (Human Resource) Manish Patil, along with Directors and senior officers of major oil companies, participated in the IDY celebration by practicing Common Yoga Protocol (CYP).

Senior ministry officials and ONGC performing different yoga asanas

International Yoga Day is celebrated every year on June 21. It serves as a global platform to raise awareness about the various benefits of practicing yoga. The idea of observing International Yoga Day was first proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his speech at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September 2014. This year, the global celebration of International Day of Yoga will be led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on June 21. This year the theme of Yoga Day is – 'Yoga For Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' i.e. yoga for the welfare of all in the form of 'One World-One Family'. It expresses the spirit of yoga, which unites and takes everyone along.

Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recorded message being played during the IYD event

Later, Union Minister Puri tweeted yoga is for the Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. He said he was excited to participate in the Yoga Day celebration and joined exponents and practitioners of yoga in a global celebration of the ancient practice of fitness at Vigyan Bhawan. He also shared a clip of him performing various asanas.

The recourse to pacify the mind is called Yoga: Mahopaniṣad 5.42

The primary objective of International Yoga Day is to raise awareness about the numerous benefits of yoga for physical and mental health. Yoga, with its ancient roots in India, has gained immense popularity worldwide because of its transformative effects on overall well-being.