COIMBATORE: Calling people to embrace the age-old practice of Yoga, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said rejecting an idea because it is ancient could be "potentially harmful".

The Prime Minister, who recently unveiled a 112-foot statue of Adiyogi, Lord Shiva, on the occasion of Mahashivratri at the Isha foundation here, said Yoga is constantly evolving.

As a tribute to Adiyogi, he lit the sacred fire to commence the Maha Yoga Yagna across the world, under which he said,"1 million people will take an oath to teach a simple form of yoga to at least 100 people each in the coming year, and touch at least 100 million people before the next Mahashivaratri".

"Yoga is ancient yet modern, constant yet evolving, but the essence of yoga has not changed. It is important to preserve this essence," Modi said.

A brainchild of spiritual leader Jaggi Vasudev Sadhguru, the statue showcases Shiva's contribution as Adiyogi.

"It is essential that the next generations of people on this planet are seekers, not believers. As philosophies, ideology, belief systems that don't stand the test of logic and the scientific verification will naturally collapse in coming decades, you will see the longing for liberation will rise. When that longing rises, Adiyogi and the science of Yoga will become very important," Sadhguru said.

The Prime Minister also took stock of the sprawling precincts of the Isha Foundation's ashram, as he visited the 22-feet underground water body at the Suryakund that aims at the physical cleansing and balancing of the human body.

He participated in the Pancha Bhuta Aradhana by Sadhguru - a yogic process of cleansing the five elements of the human system - at the Dhyanalinga, a multi religious meditation shrine, followed by a visit to the Linga Bhairavi, a feminine shrine for physical, material and spiritual wellbeing.

The tallest bust of its kind, the height of Adiyogi's face is symbolic of the 112 possibilities he explored for human beings to reach their ultimate potential, besides scientifically representing the 112 chakras of the human system.

"For the first time in the history of humanity, Adiyogi introduced the idea that the simple laws of nature are not permanent restrictions. If one is willing to strive, one can go beyond all limitations and attain liberation, moving humanity from assumed stagnation to conscious evolution.

"But, it also has a scientific significance -- there are 112 chakras in the human system, with which you can work, to explore 112 dimensions of life. In pursuit of the divine, you don't have to look up because it is not somewhere else. Each of the 112 possibilities is a method to experience the divine within you. You just have to pick one," Sadhguru said.

The statue was designed by Sadhguru over a period of two-and-a-half years, and built over the next eight months by the foundation's in-house team, right in time for celebrating Shivratri.

Sadhguru also expressed a desire to place similar statues of Adiyogi in the other three corners of the country, "The eastern one will most likely be in Varanasi. For the north, it will be somewhere north of Delhi and for the western one, will be in Mumbai."

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Important to preserve the essence of yoga: PM Narendra Modi - Economic Times