Celebrate health and peace on International Yoga Day this Wednesday

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Yoga is a practice of physical, mental, and spiritual exercises that originated in ancient India. This Wednesday, June 21st, marks International Yoga Day.

Dr. Raj Kumar, founder of the Gandhi International Institute For Peace (GIIP), and Michele Santos, owner and instructor of Sun Yoga, will join HNN’s Sunrise Weekends this Sunday to talk about the benefits of practicing yoga and demonstrate some poses.

GIIP is organizing its 5th annual International Yoga day event at the MOA Wellness Center, 600 Queen Street, Suite C-2, in Kakaako, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday.

The theme of this year’s event is “Yoga for Health, Healing and Peace.” Hawaii State Senator Mike Gabbard will be the keynote speaker, with guest presenters from across Hawaii, California, Canada and Belgium.

Kumar is the author of “The Secrets of Health and Healing” and says some of the health benefits of yoga include increasing flexibility and keeping joints healthy, improving breathing, lowering blood pressure, helping build strength, reducing stress, making healthier life choices and enhancing the body’s natural healing process.

An estimated 300 million people practice yoga around the world, with more than 36 million practitioners in the U.S. alone.

GIIP has promoted peace, youth education about nonviolence, and awareness about healthy living in Hawaii for the past 17 years. For more information or to make a donation, visit gandhianpeace.org.

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