Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Modi supports yoga at Lord Shiva bust unveiling

India’s prime minister Narendra Modi urged people to embrace the age-old practice of yoga, saying that rejecting an idea because it is ancient could be “potentially harmful”.

Yoga is constantly evolving, the prime minister said as he unveiled a 112-foot statue of Adiyogi, Lord Shiva, on the occasion of Mahashivratri at the Isha foundation in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu last Friday (24).


As a tribute to Adiyogi, Modi lit the sacred fire to commence the Maha Yoga Yagna across the world. He urged one million people to take an oath to teach a simple form of yoga to at least 100 other people each over the course of the following 12 months, so that 100 million additional people practised yoga by Mahashivratri next year.

“Yoga is ancient yet modern, constant yet evolving, but the essence of yoga has not changed. It is important to preserve this essence,” Modi said.

A brainchild of spiritual leader Jaggi Vasudev Sadhguru, the statue showcases Shiva’s contribution as Adiyogi.

“It is essential that the next generations of people on this planet are seekers, not believers. As philosophies, ideology, belief systems that don’t stand the test of logic and the scientific verification will naturally collapse in coming decades, you will see the longing for liberation will rise. When that longing rises, Adiyogi and the science of yoga will become very important,” Sadhguru said.

During his visit to the Isha Foundation ashram, Modi took part in the “Pancha Bhuta Aradhana”, a yogic process of cleansing. He also visited the shrines of Dhyanalinga and the Linga Bhairavi.

The tallest bust of its kind, the height of Adiyogi’s face is symbolic of the 112 possibilities he explored for human beings to reach their ultimate potential, besides scientifically representing the 112 chakras of the human system.

Sadhguru said: “For the first time in the history of humanity, Adiyogi introduced the idea that the simple laws of nature are not permanent restrictions. If one is willing to strive, one can go beyond all limitations and attain liberation, moving humanity from assumed stagnation to conscious evolution.

“But, it also has a scientific significance – there are 112 chakras in the human system, with which you can work, to explore 112 dimensions of life. In pursuit of the divine, you don’t have to look up because it is not somewhere else. Each of the 112 possibilities is a method to experience the divine within you. You just have to pick one.”

The statue was designed by Sadhguru over a period of two and a half years, and built over the next eight months by the foundation’s in-house team. Sadhguru also expressed a desire to place similar statues of Adiyogi in the other three corners of the country.

Excerpts from Modi’s speech

Maha-Shivratri symbolises a union of divinity with a purpose, of overcoming darkness and injustice.

It inspires us to be courageous and fight for good. It marks the shift of seasons, from the cold to the lively spring and brightness.

From Somnath to Vishwanath, from Kedarnath to Rameshwaram and from Kashi to Coimbatore where we have gathered, Lord Shiva is everywhere.

Standing here before this 112-feet face of Adiyogi and the Yogeshwar Linga, we are experiencing a colossal presence enveloping everyone in this space.

In the times to come, the place where we have gathered is going to be a source of inspiration for all, a place to immerse one’s self and discover truth.

Today, yoga has come a long way. This is the beauty of yoga – it is ancient, yet modern, it is constant, yet evolving. The essence of yoga has not changed.

Yoga is the catalytic agent, ushering the transformation from Jiva to Shiva.

By practising yoga, a spirit of oneness is created – oneness of the mind, body and the intellect. Oneness with our families, with the society we live in, with fellow humans, with all the birds, animals and trees with whom we share our beautiful planet… this is yoga.

Yoga is the journey from ‘me’ to ‘we.’ Today, the whole world wants peace, not just peace from wars and conflict but peace of the mind. The burden of stress takes a heavy toll and one of the sharpest weapons to overcome stress is yoga.

There is ample evidence practising yoga helps combat stress and chronic conditions. If the body is a temple of the mind, yoga creates a beautiful temple.

That is why I call yoga a passport to health assurance. More than being a cure to ailments, it is a means to wellness.

Yoga is about Rog Mukti (freedom from diseases) as well as Bhog Mukti (desisting from worldly greed). Yoga makes the individual a better person in thought, action, knowledge and devotion.

It would be very unfair to see Yoga only as a set of exercises that keeps the body fit. You may see people twist and turn their bodies but they are not all yogis.

Yoga is far beyond physical exercises. Through Yoga, we will create a new yuga – a yuga of togetherness and harmony.

The coming together of so many nations to mark the International Day of Yoga illustrates the real essence of yogatogetherness. Yoga has the potential to herald in a new yuga (a new era)– a yuga of peace, compassion, brotherhood and allround progress of the human race.

More For You

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

TWO brothers accused of assaulting a man inside a Starbucks and later attacking police officers at Manchester Airport are standing trial, with the prosecution arguing they used "unlawful and extreme violence".

Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and his older brother Muhammad Amaad, 26, both from Rochdale, are said to have acted aggressively on July 23 last year while at the airport to pick up their mother, who had arrived on a flight from Qatar.

Keep ReadingShow less
Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case
Bhim Kohli

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case

THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

The Attorney General’s Office confirmed on Friday (5) that the teenager’s sentence will now be considered by the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in the northern hill town of Dharamshala, India, July 5, 2025. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

THE Dalai Lama said on Saturday (5) he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday (6), and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK heatwave by mid-July

Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C

iStock

Met Office warns of potential third UK heatwave by mid-July

Key points

  • Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
  • Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
  • High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
  • Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria

Possible heatwave to return by mid-July

The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.

June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.

Keep ReadingShow less
crypto

Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Two jailed over £1.5m crypto investment scam

TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.

Keep ReadingShow less