Around 500 yoga enthusiasts gathered in Beijing's Chaoyang Park on Saturday to mark the second International Day of Yoga on June 21.
 
The event, organized in part by the Indian embassy in Beijing, saw the group practice limbering sun salutations under the scorching sun under the guidance of Indian yoga masters.
 
The popularity in China of the ancient Indian practice, which combines meditation with sequences of poses, was reflected in the largely female group ranging from students to middle-aged moms.
 
“Yoga does not help me slim down but it brings me focus and inner peace," said Wang Panpan, 26, pleased she had completed the pose with the group 108 times.

"I sleep better and it freshens me up.”
 
Though commercially successful in China, yoga in its home country is largely without a physical infrastructure, Bala Bhaskar, attendant of Charge d'Affaires at the embassy, told the Global Times.
 
"Indians do yoga like a daily activity. There are a large number of people [who practice yoga] but we don’t see them in institutes,” said Bhaskar.
 
"You can sit at home and do, and there still will be challenges,” he added.
 
As more students seek Indian masters to perfect their techniques, in this way yoga is helping India connect with the rest of the world, Bhaskar explained.
 
And that can go the other way around. During the event an enthusiastic participant with a ponytail invited others to take photos of her. “I just want to remember the special moment that this is the first time I joined the international yoga day," she said.

Similar events will be held in cities across China through June 26, according to the embassy.