How Yoga Can Make the Earth a Better Place to Live In

INTERNATIONAL DAY of Yoga, celebrated on June 21, highlights the physical, mental and spiritual benefits of yoga, emphasizing its connection to both individual wellbeing and environmental harmony. ​The theme​ for IDY 2025, “Yoga for One Earth, One Health,” underscores the interconnectedness of personal health and the planet’s health. The theme emphasizes the fact that caring for the self and the earth are the same.

Yoga, originating in India, promotes mindfulness, balance and a deeper bond with nature, encouraging sustainable practices and environmental consciousness. International Day of Yoga was proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his address to the 69th United Nations General Assembly on September 27, 2014, where he urged the UN to declare a global day for yoga on June 21 due to its symbolic significance as Summer Solstice – the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. Indian mythology believes that this day marks the start of Lord Shiva’s teachings on yoga to his disciples.

By practicing yoga, we cultivate a sense of inner peace and harmony, which can inspire us to make more conscious choices that benefit both ourselves and the environment. Ecology and human consciousness cannot be separated. The first fundamental fact of looking inward is always to see that we are naturally a part of everything around us. But the problem is, we are always looking at life in pieces – and that will never work. Only because human beings have become insensitive, we talk of saving the environment but forget that we are protected by Mother Earth. We should understand that, whether we like it or not, we are reverberating as a part of this existence.

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Yoga is an essential science based on nature to bring this understanding and coexistence. This knowledge was transmitted thousands of years ago by the yogis.

When we go for human wellbeing, we destroy the very basis of our existence. That we give with different names–ecological problems, pollution, climate crisis–but human beings are just looking out in pursuit of wellbeing. The only ultimate solution and the only way human beings will truly know wellbeing, is by turning inward. This is what yoga means. Not up, not out, but ​the only way out is in.

Environmental Consciousness – Ultimate Benefit of Yoga

Yoga is the only process in which you can exercise without any equipment. In Yoga, you can drive away your diseases without any medicine. With yoga, you can increase the flexibility of your body. If there is flexibility, then the pain is much relieved in that body. If a person does yoga for 20/30 minutes daily, then his body does not get tired throughout the day.

Yoga is beneficial for children. Yoga is also helpful in calming the mind and it is also helpful in showing the right attitude and improves human posture. Doing Yoga produces positive thoughts and it also takes the mind to do the right things. Muscles get strong by doing yoga. Going to the gym also strengthens muscles, but yoga not only strengthens your muscles but also makes them flexible. Yoga can help reduce anxiety. It also helps to prevent mental stress and hypertension.

Yoga helps bones remain strong. It reduces joint pain, arthritis and back pain. Yoga increases blood flow and heart rate, boosts immunity, and helps in controlling blood pressure and blood sugar levels. Practicing yoga is a quick and easy way to reduce weight, and enhances peace in mind. It makes the person happy all the time, leading to good sleep.

Yoga, with its emphasis on holistic wellbeing, can help people become more mindful and environmentally conscious. People gain a deeper understanding of the interconnectedness of all living things and the significance of protecting the planet by incorporating yoga into their daily lives. Yoga also encourages a positive relationship with nature by instilling in its practitioners respect for and awareness of the environment. By practicing Yoga, people eat less, helping the environment by reducing their carbon footprint and promoting a healthier planet.

Consistent with yoga’s core principles, which promote finding equilibrium both inside oneself and with the rest of the world, the International Yoga Day can act as a catalyst for a change by creating a setting where people can discover their inner selves, foster wellbeing and take positive action for a sustainable future. It offers a forum for yoga enthusiasts, environmentalists and proponents of the shared knowledge.

Yoga for Wellbeing of Entire World

Yoga is not only for personal physical and mental wellness but also for planetary and ecological wellbeing. Considering the close connection between human health and the health of the planet, PM Modi stated that yoga is not only important for individual health but also for the wellbeing of the entire world.

The theme of International Yoga Day 2025 echoes a vital truth that personal wellness and planetary health are inseparably intertwined. This mindfulness allows one to choose healthier and more sustainable lifestyles. In caring for ourselves, we begin to care for the Earth, reflecting the enduring Indian ethos of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam—the world is one family.

We definitely should do something on this day that will bring a big change for the planet. Events planned for the day in Manipur and across the country, include yoga sessions, tree plantation and awareness programmes on Yoga, environment and sustainable future for all. Let’s embrace the fusion of environmental and inner wellbeing to promote peaceful coexistence with humanity and the environment we live in.

​The author is an Environmentalist, presently working as District Forest Officer, Chandel district, Manipur. The author can be reached at nmunall@yahoo.in

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