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Noof Marwai – Photo: PTI
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When the doctors told my parents that I would not survive due to my illness, I stayed at home in Riyadh and learned yoga and it really changed my life. This was said by Nouf Marwai, the first certified yoga instructor of Saudi Arabia and the first Arab woman to receive the Padma Shri award.
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Marwai says that the people of Saudi Arabia had adopted yoga without any hesitation seven years ago. Now this ancient Indian method is very popular in this country and it is dominated by women. Marwai was diagnosed with the autoimmune disease Lupus Erythematosus at the age of 17 and this is where her yoga journey began. Learned yoga while staying at home in Riyadh. Later she decided to come to India to learn yoga and in 2008 she came to India to study yoga and Ayurveda.
Marwai started yoga in Saudi Arabia in 2017
Marwai himself started yoga in Saudi Arabia in 2017. This was the reason why the Government of India honored him with Padma Shri in 2018. She now heads the Saudi Yoga Committee, formed in 2021, and also runs the Arab Yoga Foundation. He says that today yoga is mostly practiced by women in Saudi Arabia. He said that there were 56 girls and only 10 boys in the second Saudi Open Yoga Asana Championship organized by Al-Wahda Club and Saudi Yoga Committee in Mecca this January.
Had to face resistance from outside, not within Saudi
When he was asked how difficult it was to start yoga in Saudi Arabia, where Islam originated. On this, Marwai said that people here just needed to understand that the practice of yoga is not against their religion. There was no opposition to yoga in Saudi Arabia. On the contrary, some resistance had to be faced from outside. She says that there is no harm in studying and learning any philosophy to improve your life. Of course, Vedic philosophy and yoga come from the same background as the Vedas, which are truly ancient and have been beneficial to humanity for thousands of years.
No hesitation in adopting a different culture
Marwai said-Saudi people know their religion. They do not hesitate to learn about different cultures and adopt something that is not controversial. They are interested in adopting anything which is good for health, fitness. Last year, 10,000 people, including Saudi citizens, participated in International Yoga Day. At the same time, despite Haj holidays this year, 8,000 people participated in the event.
2024-10-18 23:51:00