The Yoga Aid Challenge

"The Yoga Aid Challenge of completing 108 Sun Salutations at Sunrise on a Wednesday morning seemed to inspire the Australian yoga community beyond all expectations.

In October the power of the Australian sunrise is truly amazing, to have the opportunity to share the Sunrise by doing Yoga with like minded people was truly magical.

At 21 locations across Australia over 700 Yoga Aid Challengers joined together at Sunrise raising the public's awareness for their love of yoga and generating over $142,000 in online fundraising for local charities.

In Sydney at the Royal Botanic Gardens, for the first time ever, yoga teachers from 12 different styles of yoga united in their love of yoga to share the stage leading the 108 Sun Salutations to over 350 people.

It was a magical morning for the Australian Yoga community, the world peace flame opened the morning and hearts of the Challengers with a dedication to inner peace and our love of yoga.

For the next 2 hours, classical Indian music provided by Ty Burhoe and Subhendra Rao who were visiting from overseas for this year's Yoga Expo inspired the Challengers to go further into their practise with a feeling of wonder through their nada yoga accompaniment.

The Salutations just flowed as one style of yoga lead into another from Power Yoga to Iyengar Yoga, from Yoga in daily life to Yin Yoga the different styles just melted away to the unity of our love of yoga.

The sunrise event was broadcast live across Australia to over 1.4 million people on the Channel 9 Today show.

It was a wonderful celebration of everything yoga, with the backdrop of the Opera House, Harbour bridge and city landscape capturing the hearts of all across Australia and around the world.

At the same time at another 20 venues across Australia, yoga communities came together like never before. The locations organised by volunteers wanting to share their love of yoga with their local communities. From Avalon to Coolum, from Perth to Bryon Bay Australia awoke to the power of Sun Salutations across the lucky country.

That morning the world seemed lighter and full of love, a simple idea embraced by an amazing community and shared across a wonderful country.

The Yoga Aid Challenge represented everything Australian - the power of our Sunrise, the giving of our people and the love of our communities... "

For more information go to www.yogaaid.com