Sadhguru Jagadish Vasudev has today (13 April) been conferred India’s second-highest civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan, for his contribution to spirituality. President Pranab Mukherjee presented the award today to the yogi and mystic, among others, at a Civil Investiture Ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
When Sadhguru became aware of the honour in January this year, he said in a statement that the award was a “recognition of over seven million volunteers of Isha worldwide, involved in transmitting the science of inner wellbeing” and “the Tamil people” in particular.
Jaggi Vasudev founded Isha Foundation in Coimbatore in 1994. The Foundation’s focus ever since has been ‘yoga for all’, delivering yoga programmes to not just India but the United States, United Kingdom, Malaysia, China, Lebanon and other countries.
Sadhguru has also initiated several large-scale social projects like Project GreenHands and Action for Rural Rejuvenation. For its involvement in various community development programmes, the United Nations has recognised the Foundation by granting it special consultative status with the intergovernmental organisation’s Economic and Social Council.
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