International Yoga Day: Record 10,000 people participate in event in China's largest ever congregation

Beijing: More than 10,000 people took part in the final event marking the third International Day of Yoga in China on Sunday, the largest participation of enthusiasts in a yoga programme organised in the communist nation this year.

The event — the final in a series of programmes organised in 12 cities — was held in Wuxi in Jiangsu province in eastern China. The setting to celebrate the grand finale was the scenic Lingshan Dafo (Buddhist Temple in Wuxi) and the Buddhist Palace.

Spread over 10 practice venues, with nearly nine Indian yoga teachers taking the stage, a mass yoga session was held concurrently for the 10,000 participants, according to a statement from the Consulate General of India, Shanghai.

Representational image. Getty Images

The record number of participants turned up from Wuxi and its neighbouring cities for the event jointly organised by the consulate and Wuxi Municipal People's Government.

A large number of Indian students, pursuing medicine at Suzhou and Yangzhou, also travelled to Wuxi for the event.

Mayor of Wuxi, Wang Quan, said that yoga is another facet of the long-standing cultural cooperation between India and China, and with Sunday's massive event he expects that yoga will become the "signature name card" for his city.

Since Buddhism came from India to China, it was ideal for Lingshan Dafo Buddhist Temple to host the event, he added.

Stanley Tong, Director of 'Kung Fu Yoga' - a Chinese-Indian co-production movie, also attended the event and urged greater cultural exchanges between the peoples of India and China.

The film's lead actress, Muqi Miya enacted a special yoga performance during the session.

The event concluded with a conference on the objectives of yoga and ayurveda at the Buddhist Palace, which was attended by yoga teachers and ayurveda doctors from India.

Over the past three days, Wuxi hosted a three-day workshop on the benefits of yoga. These sessions were conducted by KYM teachers and more than 300 participants turned up each day to participate in the workshops.

The consulate had organised yoga events in the eastern China region of Shanghai, Zhejiang and Jiangsu from 17-25 June, bringing together 20,000 yoga lovers closer to India and promoting healthy and harmonious lifestyles.