Kochi: The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) has expressed unhappiness over a federal government decision to observe Yoga Day on a Sunday, a sacred day for Christians.

“We are not against Yoga. But it is sad that such important events are being observed on Sundays these days,” CBCI President and Syro-Malankara Major Archbishop Cardinal Baselios Cleemis told reporters in Kochi, Kerala, on Thursday.

The cardinal said holding such programs on Sundays clashes with “our belief” as Sundays are holy day for Christians.

On June 21, the first International Yoga Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will perform yoga exercises with 35,000 government employees, students and others. The venue chosen for the Sunday program is the Rajpath boulevard in New Delhi where India’s holds its Republic Day parade on January 26.

The yoga routines will be beamed from New Delhi on big screens in more than 100 countries around the world. The United Nations celebration of the event will be shown in New York’s Times Square.

The United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 2014, declared June 21 as the International Day of Yoga on a suggestion from Modi.

While addressing the general assembly on September 27, 2014, Modi hailed yoga as “an invaluable gift of India’s ancient tradition.”

He said the more than 6,000 years old physical, mental and spiritual practice that originated in India embodies unity of mind and body; thought and action; restraint and fulfillment; harmony between man and nature; a holistic approach to health and well-being.

“It is not about exercise but to discover the sense of oneness with yourself, the world and the nature. By changing our lifestyle and creating consciousness, it can help us deal with climate change. Let us work towards adopting an International Yoga Day,” the prime minister said.
Modi’s suggestion was eventually supported by 177 countries and ratified by the United Nations. It’s all part of Modi’s hope to rebrand India’s yoga to the world.

On June 21, India’s Ministry of Yoga and Traditional Medicines aims to set a Guinness world record in the “largest yoga demonstration/class at a single venue” category.

Modi practising yoga

Modi suggested June 21 as the International Yoga Day since it is the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. The day has special significance in many parts of the world.

From the perspective of yoga, the Summer Solstice marks the transition to Dakshinayana. The first full moon after Summer Solstice is known as Guru Poornima. According to Sadguru Jaggi Vasudev, in the yogic lore, the first transmission of yoga by Shiva, the first Guru, is said to have begun on this day.

Dakshinayana is also considered a time when there is natural support for those pursuing spiritual practices.

The Catholic Church’s reservations against Yoga came amid opposition from some minority groups, including All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), against holding compulsory yoga classes in schools. Some Muslim groups have described yoga as anti-Islam.

The government has said participation in the June 21 events was not “compulsory.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that there will be a website for this http://mea.gov.in/idy.htm, and will be maintain by Ministry of External Affairs, and gives all the details.

Modi rises every day around 5 a.m. for stretches and deep-breathing exercises and credits his practice as key to his workaholic lifestyle.

Muslim groups had earlier objected to the inclusion of “Surya Namaskar,” otherwise known as Sun Salutation, so the drill was dropped from the program, according to the Times of India. AIMPLB said that the practice “is against our religious beliefs and should not be forced on our children.”

Then, a member of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, Yogi Adityanath, suggested that all those objecting to sun salutes should be drowned at sea.

“Sun is the source of life-giving energy,” the Member of Parliament from Uttar Pradesh state said at a religious event in June first week. “Whoever thinks sun is communal, I would like to humbly request them to drown themselves in the sea or they should stay in a dark cell.”

Modi’s administration has tried to distance itself from the controversy, saying the event is not a religious one, despite the tradition’s deep roots in the Hindu faith.

“It is yoga and has nothing to do with religion,” Shripad Naik, India’s yoga minister, told the Press Trust of India. “The event is not a compulsory one, and it has no connection with religion. We have not made anything mandatory. … It is an opportunity for everyone in the country to showcase before the world our ancient legacy.”