We have been intrigued by news reports that the leader of the country where many of Raxa Collective’s contributors are based, and where yoga comes from, is leading an effort to get his country more devoted to its practice, and thereby export more of one of India’s most important innovations.

This intrigue is piqued especially after listening to an interview with the author of a book on this very subject–how yoga came to be disseminated from India to elsewhere–which puts the book on the top of our monsoon season reading list.

If you happen to be in Delhi two weeks from today, join in:

…On 21 June – the new International Yoga day – Narendra Modi, India’s prime minister, hopes the world will join in. The grass near India Gate will be transformed into the venue for what it is hoped will be the biggest single yoga session ever held, with up to 45,000 people running through a 35-minute routine.

The participants will include 64-year-old Modi, most of his government and, they hope, a range of celebrities. Officials have been sent to round up volunteers from scores of countries to reinforce the international credentials of the ancient Indian practice…

Meanwhile, listen to this interview to learn more about yoga’s journey to the West:

How Yoga Came To America

In her new book, ‘Goddess Pose,’ Michelle Goldberg traces the Western practice of yoga to a Russian woman named Indra Devi. Goldberg says that many of the poses in modern yoga can’t be traced beyond 150 years ago.