Rishikesh (Uttarakhand) [India], March 4 (ANI): As the sacred banks of the Ganga prepare to host the International Yoga Festival at Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh from March 9 to 15, attracting Yogacharyas and yoga practitioners from across India and the world, Chidananda Saraswati Maharaj shared the significance of yoga and its impact on global peace and well-being.

'Yogis from nearly 75 countries come to Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh, to learn yoga, to experience the peace and serenity that this holy land offers,' said Chidananda Saraswati Maharaj. Comparing Mahakumbh, he told ANI, 'Just as so many people participated in the Mahakumbh, now the world will come together to participate in yoga here.'

The Maharaj also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for recognising yoga as a global need for peace.

'PM Modi understood that the world is searching for peace. As soon as he became PM, he made yoga a central theme in his first address to the UN,' he said, emphasising how yoga helps people manage stress and unite the body and mind.

He elaborated on yoga's role in transforming individuals, saying, 'Yoga makes a person udyogi, upyogi and sehyogi.'

'The sages have always told us that yoga provides peace, and it is both soft power and smart power. It is heart power and head power,' he said.

'The Yoga Mahotsav from March 9 to 15 will feature renowned figures such as Kailash Kher, Shri Shrimani Ji, and many other eminent yogis and spiritual leaders. The event promises to highlight yoga's essence--not just as a practice but as a way of life,' he said.

'Yoga is not about doing; it is about living,' said Chidananda Saraswati Maharaj, stressing that yoga is a holistic practice that touches all aspects of life, promoting harmony and peace both within and outside. The International Yoga Festival 2025 will take place at the Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand. The festival is a week-long celebration of yoga, mind, body, and soul.

Each year, the International Yoga Festival helps connect with like-minded, conscious yogis and paradigm-shifters from every part of the world.

In the 7-day immersion and celebration, people have the opportunity to embrace every major style of yoga and learn from enlightened spiritual leaders, master yoga teachers, evolutionary thought leaders, and wellness specialists from around the world.

Parmarth Niketan is home to a 14-foot Shiva statue on the banks of the Ganges.

Since 2015, the Prime Minister has led the International Day of Yoga (IDY) celebrations at various locations, including Kartavya Path in Delhi, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Ranchi, Lucknow, Mysuru and even the United Nations Headquarters in New York. (ANI)