WHO, India working to standardise Yoga training practices

In a first-of-its-kind initiative, the World Health Organisation (WHO), in collaboration with India, is working to bring in standardisation in Yoga training practices to ensure that Yoga serves as a preventive, promotive, and rehabilitative intervention, said Kashinath Samagandi, Director of the Morarji Desai National Institute of Yoga (MDNIY), in an interaction with The Hindu.

MDNIY, an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Ayush, is the nodal centre for the programme.

Standardisation is aimed at creating guidelines for Yoga practice, training, and application. The exercise will also define global benchmarks for professional competency and knowledge, ensuring diverse traditions of Yoga can coexist under uniform quality standards.

“Yoga has become popular all over the world but it lacks uniform standards for its wider adaptability,” said Prof. (Dr.) Samagandi.

He noted that Yoga enhances overall health by addressing physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of life, but “can be counterproductive if done without adequate knowledge and supervision.”

“Through the standardisation process, which is currently underway, we are working on a technical report which can then be used across the world. We hope that this will eliminate the misuse and misinterpretation of Yoga,” he said.

Explaining that Yoga is “not about being able to bend and turn the body but about systematic, sustained practice,” he added: “Yoga is about the blending of the body and mind.”

On research, Prof. (Dr.) Samagandi said, “We are battling with a lack of research evidence in the field of Yoga which has been a stumbling block in ensuring that Yoga gets its due recognition. This too is set to change as MDNIY continues to strengthen its research base, with many of its studies indexed in Scopus, PubMed, UGC CARE listed and other publications lending them global visibility.”

Speaking about the reported rise of fatal heart attacks among the young in India and the role of Yoga in prevention, he pointed to the stresses of modern life. “The youth today is dealing with an overstressed lifestyle, with unregulated sleep, exercise and food cycle. Overindulgence in gadgets is another factor and all these together are leading to physical and mental breakdown among the young,” he said.

“The answer is – keep it simple and get back to the basics. We should try and get a minimum of six hours of deep sleep, eat dinner between 7-8 p.m. [which should not be very heavy and spicy], wake up 96 minutes before sunrise, ensure outdoor activity, etc. These are not new things but currently seem surprisingly difficult to follow,” he added.

MDNIY also offers Yoga therapy in its NABH-accredited OPD for various diseases from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. Prof. (Dr.) Samagandi noted that the Institute has the capacity to handle double the patient load it currently receives.