international day of yoga: 25 inspiring yoga and meditation quotes to honor the journey within

Every year on June 21st, millions of people around the world come together to celebrate International Day of Yoga, honoring an ancient practice that has transformed lives for over 5,000 years. This special day, recognized by the United Nations since 2015, marks not just the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, but also a global awakening to the profound benefits of yoga and meditation.

Yoga, derived from the Sanskrit word "yuj" meaning "to unite" or "to join," represents the beautiful harmony between mind, body, and spirit. It's a practice that transcends physical postures, offering a complete system for achieving inner peace, mental clarity, and spiritual growth. From the bustling streets of New York to the serene temples of India, from corporate boardrooms to community centers, yoga has become a universal language of wellness and self-discovery.

On this International Day of Yoga, we celebrate more than just physical flexibility and strength. We honor a practice that teaches us to breathe deeply in moments of stress, find balance in times of chaos, and discover the infinite potential that lies within each of us. Whether you're a seasoned practitioner or someone taking their first steps on the mat, yoga offers something profound for everyone.

As we commemorate this day, let these timeless words of wisdom from yoga masters, spiritual teachers, and meditation guides inspire your own journey. May they remind you that yoga is not about perfecting poses, but about finding peace within yourself and sharing that light with the world.

Namaste - the light in me honors the light in you.

On Yoga Practice:

1. "Yoga is a light, which once lit will never dim. The better your practice, the brighter your flame." - B.K.S. Iyengar
2. "Yoga is not about touching your toes. It is about what you learn on the way down." - Judith Hanson Lasater
3. "The success of yoga does not lie in the ability to attain the perfect posture but in how it contributes to happiness in daily life." - T.K.V. Desikachar
4. "Yoga is a way of moving into stillness in order to experience the truth of who you are." - Erich Schiffmann
5. "The body benefits from movement, and the mind benefits from stillness." - Sakyong Mipham

On Inner Peace and Balance:

6. "Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without." - Buddha

7. "You cannot always control what goes on outside, but you can always control what goes on inside." - Wayne Dyer
8. "Meditation is not about stopping thoughts, but recognizing that we are more than our thoughts and our feelings." - Arianna Huffington
9. "The quieter you become, the more able you are to hear." - Rumi
10. "Inhale the future, exhale the past." - Anonymous

On Self-Discovery:

11. "Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self." - The Bhagavad Gita

12. "The pose begins when you want to leave it." - Baron Baptiste
13. "Yoga takes you into the present moment, the only place where life exists." - Anonymous
14. "Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it." - Rumi
15. "Meditation is the ultimate mobile device; you can use it anywhere, anytime, unobtrusively." - Sharon Salzberg

On Mindfulness and Awareness:

16. "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift, which is why we call it the present." - Bill Keane

17. "Wherever you go, there you are." - Jon Kabat-Zinn
18. "Be present in all things and thankful for all things." - Maya Angelou
19. "The mind is everything. What you think you become." - Buddha
20. "Yoga is not a work-out, it is a work-in. And this is the point of spiritual practice; to make us teachable; to open up our hearts and focus our awareness so that we can know what we already know and be who we already are." - Rolf Gates

On Transformation and Growth:

21. "Change is not something that we should fear. Rather, it is something that we should welcome." - Wayne Chirisa

22. "The very heart of yoga practice is 'abyhasa' - steady, dedicated practice, and the fruits of that practice are 'detachment.'" - Sharon Gannon
23. "Yoga is about clearing away whatever is in us that prevents our living in the most full and whole way." - Cybele Tomlinson
24. "In meditation, healing can happen. When the mind is calm, alert and totally contented, then it is like a laser beam - it is very powerful and healing can happen." - Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
25. "The nature of yoga is to shine the light of awareness into the darkest corners of the body." - Jason Crandell