Swami Ramdev to Visit Houston in August

Ramdev-In

2009 Houston Yoga camp at George Brown convention center

By Manu Shah

HOUSTON: Yoga is an ancient science given to the world by Indian sages and is practiced by millions of people in parks, living rooms and exercise studios around the world. What makes it unique is that it needs no fancy equipment or machines, not only burns calories but also clears the mind and is practiced by saints and the common man alike.

Today it is a global phenomenon and India’s most famous export.

A great deal of the credit for making yoga a worldwide movement goes to Yogrishi Swami Ramdev Baba, India’s most renowned yoga proponent. Yoga camps and televised yoga sessions led by him throughout the country won him legions of followers who strongly believe he turned their health around by teaching them a range of yoga postures (asanas) and breathing techniques (pranayama). In short, he spearheaded a revolution that advocated the use of an ancient holistic technique for modern mind-body ailments. At this year’s International Day of Yoga, he helped lead over 100,000 people in a mass yoga session at Faridabad, India.

Swami Ramdev Baba has been invited by the Federation of Indian Association (FIA) to be the Chief Guest and bless their 70th Independence Day Parade in New York on August 21. As part of his North American tour, he will also be visiting Toronto  on 19 and  20 August and Houston on 23 August to address yoga teachers, Patanjali Yogpeeth members and yoga practitioners.

A farmer’s son, Swami Ramdev was drawn towards spirituality from an early age and spent several years in the Himalayas practicing meditation and yoga. He started the Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust in 2006, named after the first compiler of the Yoga Sutras in Indian history. Along with encouraging the practice of yoga, the Trust runs several charitable hospitals, Ayurvedic schools and research centers to propagate natural foods and remedies. Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. manufactures and markets more than 700 products ranging from herbal toothpastes to foodstuff and is startling business pundits by giving multinational companies like Colgate and Unilever a run for their money. The Wall Street Journal and the New York Times also profiled him for his notable success in encouraging consumers to opt for a chemical free lifestyle in all strata of people in India.

His visits unfailingly draw huge crowds of people eager to listen to the man who has not only done more to spread the practice of Yoga than any other human being but also passionately espoused the cause for a corruption free India. Not least, he electrifies audiences with his mindboggling yoga postures and abdominal exercises.

For more information and registration details, visit pyptusa.org. The event in Houston will address Yoga and Inner Peace and will be held at VPSS Haveli from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm on August 23. The event is free, seating is limited and registration is required.