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Here's how people around the world celebrated International Yoga Day

180 countries took part in the 5,000-year-old body and mind practice.
180 countries took part in the 5,000-year-old body and mind practice. 180 countries took part in the 5,000-year-old body and mind practice.

In case you couldn’t tell from your Instagram feed, today marks the third annual International Yoga Day which sees some 180 countries unite under the 5,000-year-old body and mind practice.

Established by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015, the UN-approved celebration takes place annually on June 21 to coincide with the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.

Modi himself set the tone on Wednesday morning with a 20-minute practice among thousands of others in Lucknow, India.

Prime Minister Modi performs yoga in Lucknow, India (Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP)
Prime Minister Modi performs yoga in Lucknow, India (Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP)
Prime Minister Modi performs yoga in Lucknow, India (Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP)

“Yoga is an invaluable gift of India’s ancient tradition,” Modi said in 2014 as he made his case to the UN for the global event.

“It embodies unity of mind and body, thought and action, restraint and fulfilment, harmony between man and nature, a holistic approach to health and wellbeing.”

Take a look at how people celebrated around the world…

Londoners gathered in a colourful display in Trafalgar Square.

A Hindu holy man took on a complex pose in Gauhati, India.

A Hindu holy man performs Yoga at Kamakhya temple in Gauhati, India (Anupam Nath/AP)
A Hindu holy man performs Yoga at Kamakhya temple in Gauhati, India (Anupam Nath/AP)
(Anupam Nath/AP)

A group adopted the three-legged downward dog pose in Milan, Italy.

People perform yoga to mark International Yoga Day in Milan (Luca Bruno/AP)
People perform yoga to mark International Yoga Day in Milan (Luca Bruno/AP)
(Luca Bruno/AP)

Tao Porchon Lynch, a 98-year-old yoga instructor, performed in Bangalore, India.

(Aijaz Rahi/AP)
(Aijaz Rahi/AP)
(Aijaz Rahi/AP)

Hindu holy men struck the tree pose in Gauhati, India.

Hindu holy men perform Yoga as others follow to mark the International Yoga Day at Kamakhya temple in Gauhati, India (Anupam Nath/AP)
Hindu holy men perform Yoga as others follow to mark the International Yoga Day at Kamakhya temple in Gauhati, India (Anupam Nath/AP)
(Anupam Nath/AP)

New York joined in with some Bikram yoga in Times Square.

Children joined the mass session in Seoul, South Korea.

Children perform yoga to mark the International Day of Yoga in Seoul, South Korea (Ahn Young-joon/AP)
Children perform yoga to mark the International Day of Yoga in Seoul, South Korea (Ahn Young-joon/AP)
(Ahn Young-joon/AP)

In Kabul, Afghanistan, foreigners joined Afghans to mark the day at the Indian Embassy.

Afghans and foreigners perform yoga to mark International Yoga Day at the Indian Embassy, in Kabul (Massoud Hossaini/AP)
Afghans and foreigners perform yoga to mark International Yoga Day at the Indian Embassy, in Kabul (Massoud Hossaini/AP)
(Massoud Hossaini/AP)

The cobra pose was seen in action in Yangon, Burma.

People practice yoga in Yangon, Myanmar (Thein Zaw/AP)
People practice yoga in Yangon, Myanmar (Thein Zaw/AP)
(Thein Zaw/AP)

Dozens took part in a mass yoga class in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Israelis practice yoga at the Rabin square in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, June 21, 2017 (Sebastian Scheiner/AP)
Israelis practice yoga at the Rabin square in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, June 21, 2017 (Sebastian Scheiner/AP)
(Sebastian Scheiner/AP)

In times like these, an entire day dedicated to yoga sounds close to ideal.