Originating from India in 2014, International Day of Yoga has been celebrated worldwide on 21 June as the official date. Today, people all around the globe will celebrate the journey of yoga. The word yoga means union, or yolking together, and this is wholly what International Day of Yoga Cape Town 2018 was about. If you weren’t at CTICC on 16 June, then you missed out on feeling some radical magic! Over 800 people from all walks of life came together in celebrating the gift of yoga and saying “namaste” in a beautiful gathering of like minded people.

The event kicked off with the first 250 people to arrive receiving an adidas goodie bag, followed by a mega yoga session (our Earthchildren were even invited up on stage!) guided by the incredible Joelle Sleebos, yoga workshops and meditations, the opportunity to browse the yoga market and a raffle with amazing prizes. Adidas have been the perfect event sponsors for the past two years with their belief that “sport has the power to change lives”, which is why Earthchild Project was chosen as the event beneficiary. By providing over 3500 children with weekly yoga lessons every year, we certainly are using the power of yoga to change lives.

Joëlle hosted the first Cape Town event in celebration of this remarkable day in 2016 and it has since grown from strength to strength. She says “In 2016, during the level two teachers training at Radiantly Alive Yoga, we were all asked to think of a Dharma Project. While meditating, I came up with a way I could give back and humbly decided to organise International Day of Yoga (IDY) in Cape Town. Little did I know that this event was going to grow into an annual yoga celebration and that I now own my own NGO called Dharma Project. It will focus on giving back to the community and making yoga as accessible as possible for everyone.”

With Earthchild Project being the sole beneficiaries of the event, we received a whopping donation of R96,000 which was raised through ticket as well as raffle sales and donations made on the day. This  significant amount will be put to use in out programmes and will allow another 384 little yogis to receive weekly yoga lessons for an entire year! Truly amazing how yoga encompasses the dedication of seva, dharma and sharing love. Thank you to all of those who were there on the day and contributed in any way at all. We hope to see even more of you at next years International Day of Yoga event!

Happy International Day of Yoga, and Namaste.