Mysuru rubs shoulders with Rishikesh, Pune as yoga hub

Nearly 12,000 people set to perform ‘asanas’ on Mysuru palace premises today

For harmony and peace:There are over 200 yoga schools and institutions catering to students in Mysuru.— file PHOTO: M.A. SRIRAM

The city will go all out to reinforce its reputation as a yoga hub with nearly 12,000 practitioners set to perform asanas on Mysuru palace premises at the crack of dawn to mark International Day of Yoga on Tuesday.

While the picturesque Rishikesh in Uttarakhand and Pune in Maharashtra are international yoga hubs that draw students from across the world, Mysuru is not far behind. The fact that the Wadiyars patronised the ancient Indian system of exercise, combined with meditation and pranayama, has given it a firm foothold here.

Wadiyar legacy

Mummadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar (1794-1868) was a great yoga exponent and was credited with authoring a treatise on the subject titled ‘Sritattvanidhi’ with descriptions of nearly 100

asanas or postures. “Mysuru is emerging as a global hub and the city is attracting a large number of foreigners, who come here to learn yoga. The city is growing on a par with Rishikesh, Pune or Varanasi in the field of yoga education,” said yoga guru Shashikumar, founder, Mystic Yoga School at Gokulam in the city.

The city’s historic association with yoga has spanned a mini industry in the present times and there are over 200 yoga schools and institutions catering to students — both local and international. In fact, yoga has become one of the USPs of Mysuru as a destination for foreign travellers.

The Mysuru Yoga Okkuta alone has about 66 member organisations. The cascading effect is on the local economy as scores of guesthouses and paying guest accommodations have cropped up here to cater to international yoga students. Over 2,500 foreigners arrive here every month between October and March (the peak season) to learn yoga. On a lean season, the arrivals are around 500 a month. Foreigners clutching yoga mats are a common sight in the upmarket Gokulam and Lakshmipuram, hubs of many well-known institutions.

Today’s big event

In keeping with its reputation as a yoga hub, the city is going all out to make International Day of Yoga a memorable event with the Mysuru Yoga Okkuta, Pathanjali Yoga Shikshana Kendra, JSS Institutions, AYUSH (Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy), NCC, and Scouts and Guides taking the lead, while the district administration too is providing support.

Ganesh of Viveka Yoga Balaga told The Hindu that about 8,000 yoga students from different schools apart from 4,000 others will take part in the events from 6 a.m. to 7 a.m., underlining the city’s historical links with this ancient discipline.