All the schools in Delhi, both public and private, have begun to participate in a unique 9-9-9 Yoga challenge initiated by the C20 Working Group for IHH (Integrated Holistic Health - Mind, Body, Environment). This campaign is being organised in collaboration with AYUDH, an international youth movement inspired by the C20 chair, Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi.
Thousands of students all across Delhi are participating enthusiastically in this challenge. Pictures and videos of the students participating in this challenge from Delhi schools can be seen on social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and so on) with hashtags — #delhi999challenge #999challenge
During a recent C20 conference organised by IHH (Integrated Holistic Health) Working Group from April 7 to 9, Himanshu Gupta (IAS), Director of Education, Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi, announced the launch of 999 Challenge in all the schools of Delhi.
This conference was hosted in the world-class Amrita Hospital Campus at Faridabad, which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year in August.
“We are extremely delighted to work closely with the Directorate of Education to make students all across Delhi take part in this unique 999 challenge. Himanshu Gupta and his team have been extremely supportive and helpful in making this happen,” said Br Mokshamrita, National Coordinator of AYUDH India.
All about the initiative
Br Mokshamrita also said, “The success of this initiative is going to be of great importance for the C20 policy draft. The challenge highlights how yoga and meditation can have a major impact on mental health and physical well-being. This 9-day challenge comprises of 9 rounds of Suryanamaskar, followed by 9 minutes of world peace meditation devised by Amma. So far, the participants of the challenge have reported experiencing positive changes in their life outlooks, energy levels and overall sense of well-being. We are hoping that young students all over India will take this challenge further in their lives and make Suryanamaskar as well as meditation an integral part of their daily routine."
"Youth are our future and we want the future of India to be bright. The health benefits of Suryanamaskar are well known. It improves blood circulation, strengthens heart function and stimulates a rhythmic breathing process which increases the oxygen content of the blood, expands the lungs and is beneficial for digestive health. Its consistent practice sharpens one's ability to focus and calms down the nervous system, helping manage anxiety, depression and insomnia. Meditation helps in improving concentration, focus and attention span, help improves the brain structure, reduces chronic stress and counters the effects of anxiety, fear, worry and tension. Our goal of this campaign is to reach a mark of having one million people take up the 999 challenge around the world before International Day of Yoga on June 21st,” he stated.
On launch day
On its first day of launch in Delhi school on April 18, Himanshu Gupta visited a school in the Defence Colony area along with Br Mokshamrita, Br Harshamrita, Pradeep Gupta, Praveen Bist, Mini and other members of the Amrita team.
Himanshu Gupta, Br Mokshamrita and other members of the Amrita team also participated in performing the 9 rounds of Suryanamaskar followed by 9 minutes of World Peace Meditation. The AYUDH team is visiting different schools every day to motivate the school students to participate enthusiastically in 999 challenge.
For more information about the 9-9-9 Challenge, visit https://c20.amma.org/ihh-wg/
