Gabbard will support in Congress ‘International Yoga Day’.
By Sujeet Rajan
NEW YORK: In a thoughtful and personal gesture, which testifies to the deep respect and admiration she has for India, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard presented prime minister Narendra Modi her personal copy of the Bhagavad-Gita, which she has had since she was a child and was “a source of courage and comfort†during her two tours of duty in the Middle East as a soldier, and which she took her Congressional Oath of Office on.
Gabbard – the first practicing Hindu in the US House of Representatives – also presented Modi with a ginger flower garland from her home state of HawaiÊ»i, which Modi pointed out was a tradition in India as well, when the two met at the Madison Square Garden, on Sunday.
“It was a great privilege to meet with Prime Minister Modi and personally welcome him on his historic visit to America. The Prime Minister’s visit to the U.S. is a great opportunity to further develop the vital friendship and cooperation between the world’s largest and oldest democracies,†said Gabbard. “We had a wide-ranging discussion on several issues our countries have in common, including how America and India can work together to help combat the global threat posed by Islamic extremism.â€
Gabbard said she made a commitment to Modi to take the lead in Congress to pass a resolution in support of the Prime Minister’s appeal to the UN to create an “International Yoga Day.†Both agreed that “Yoga is widely misunderstood as a system of physical exercise rather than a lifestyle consciousness and world view that can help improve health, provide insight for addressing environmental challenges, facilitate world peace, and much more.â€
Gabbard said she and Modi agreed that “The West would be surprised by the vast knowledge and solutions the ancient Vedic texts have to offer the modern world.â€
On Tuesday, Gabbard attended a lunch held in Modi’s honor in Washington, D.C. hosted by Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State John Kerry.