Thousands of people rolled out their mats in the heart of the Indian capital today to celebrate the first International Day of Yoga championed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Some 35,000 people gathered a little after dawn to do the half camel, cobra and 13 other poses in a 35-minute mass outdoor yoga session on a New Delhi boulevard.
They are hopeful of qualifying for the Guinness Book of Records.
In his maiden address to the United Nations General Assembly, Mr Modi pitched the idea for a day dedicated to the ancient Indian discipline, prompting the UN to proclaim the 21 June as the International Day of Yoga.
And to mark the day, instructors have been teaching stretches, breathing control and meditation from 7am local time along the historic avenue that connects the president's palace with the iconic India Gate monument.
Mr Modi, who credits yoga for his ability to work long hours on little sleep, will however make only a speech and not take to the mat himself at the mass.
Rajpath, or King's Avenue, was sealed off and carpeted, with dozens of metal detectors placed and multiple checkpoints erected for the day.
While people in 650 districts across the nation stretch it out, yoga enthusiasts in 192 other countries were also expected to join in the celebrations.
Indian scholars believe yoga dates back 5,000 years, based on archaeological evidence of poses found inscribed on stones and references to Yogic teachings in the ancient Hindu scriptures of the Vedas.
And Mr Modi wants to reclaim yoga as an historical part of Indian culture which has been lost to the West where it has become a multi-billion-dollar industry.
Since storming to power, the Hindu nationalist premier has set up a ministry dedicated to promoting yoga and other traditional Indian treatments and also started free yoga classes for his government's three million bureaucrats and their families.
