37th International Yoga Festival concludes in Rishikesh

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The International Yoga Festival (IYF) 2025 at Parmarth Niketan, Rishikesh, featured high profile guests, saints, thinkers, and devotees on the banks of the river Ganga.

The Governor of Uttarakhand Lt. Gen. (Retd) Gurmit Singh was the chief guest and was joined by approximately 1,500 participants from some 75 countries, along with revered saints, yogacharyas, and global thought leaders, a March 15, 2025, press release from Parmarth Niketan said.

A week of yoga, spirituality, and conscious living, and a musical performance by Padma Shri recipient Kailash Kher, were the highlights of the event, which has been held for years under the leadership of President of Parmarth Niketan Swami Chidanand Saraswati.

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The festival’s theme is Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam – The World is One Family, and the event weaves together the ancient traditions of yoga with modern insights on wellness and transformation.

The final Spiritual Plenary Session of the International Yoga Festival 2025, titled “The Yoga of Love,” brought together a panel featuring Swami Chidanand Saraswati, Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati, director of the International Yoga Festival, and spiritual leader Sri Prem Baba. The panel was moderated by Ganga Nandini, senior Yogacharya of Parmarth Niketan. The  session explored the transformative power of love as the essence of yoga.

“When you are not in love, you count every minute, but when you are in love, time flows effortlessly. It is the love of yoga that has kept you connected to this path, and it is the love of the Divine that has brought us all together in this beautiful creation. To me, this is yoga.”

Sadhvi Bhagawati Saraswati guided the audience through a reflection session. “Close your eyes and think of someone you love—feel that love in your body, your breath. Now, think of someone you struggle with. Notice the shift. A simple thought creates a profound change,” she noted.

Emphasizing love as the highest path, Sri Prem Baba shared, “Love is the force that dissolves all barriers and unites us with our true nature. When we learn to love unconditionally, we step into the fullness of our being.”

Numerous activities were held on the final day which started at 6 AM and continued

The final morning of International Yoga Festival 2025 began at 6:00 AM with a “At the Heart of Yoga” class led by Ganga Nandini, a senior yogacharya at Parmarth Niketan, Sunrise Chanting with Sudhanshu Sharma, and other activities such as “Yoga & Children with Special Needs” by Dr. Nishi Bhatt, Morning Sadhna Full Body Flow with Jahnavi Claire Missingham.

Shreya Radhika Lakhani, a Sanskrit scholar and mantra specialist, led “Mantra Medicine: Harnessing the Power of Mantra,” and “Ahimsa in a Modern World” was led by Dr. Zach Bush, and another session, “Achara Rasayan” by Dr. Padmanayani, as well as “Heart of Stillness – Yin & Restorative Yoga” with Dasa Das.

As the sun set, the festival culminated in a Sacred Ganga Aarti at Aarti Ghat, with a special Sufi music performance by Kher.

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