Yoga teacher training in Nepal and India
Happy new year! I hope you’ve had a lovely start to this 2020 and are able to start fresh with attainable and sustainable goals for yourself. My year began out of the ordinary with a very impressive and somewhat overwhelming but beautiful wedding in India. Afterwards, my dear friends, husband and I headed towards Rishikesh, also known as the “yoga mecca” of India and the world. I’ll tell you a little secret, Rishikesh is magical in January. We close to had the city to ourselves with very few yoga tourists and as a trade-off, a lot of rain and cold weather. Being from Sweden I prepared as well as I could with the motto “there’s no bad weather, just bad clothes” and made the most out of it!
Vedic yoga academy
Located close to the Himalayas in north India is the Vedic yoga academy, an authentic and traditional yoga teacher training in Nepal, as well as in Rishikesh. They also offer meditation teacher training in India and we had the opportunity to join the school for almost a week and take part in the ongoing course classes.
The main classes are run by Rahul, a true yogi dedicating his life to the teachings of yoga and meditation. It’s rare that I come across teachers with such integrity and deep knowledge as Rahul. In the six days we were there, my well-traveled tight upper body opened up with gentle practices performed with detailed precision. It’s incredible how small the postures can become and still have powerful effects when done correctly.
When yoga asana is practiced from the inside out, we can relearn the listening to subtle signals of our body. It becomes a practice of moving meditation, and what it looks like on the outside less important. One or two practices done correctly with intention and suited for your body, is often more effective than a long class with loads of variety hasting through the asanas. Rahul and the other teachers were very attentive and little misalignments in my asanas that I hadn’t been aware of previously, were gently corrected. I gained a new awareness of the meridians in my body and how prana flow. Both my body, mind, and spirit sank into a serene state, grateful to slow down, calm Vata dosha, have energy flow freely through my nadis in preparation for meditation with the asana and pranayama.
Meditation teacher training in India
We also joined the evening meditation classes where we explored different types of practices. Some I had heard of, others not. It made me really curious and enthusiastic to take a meditation teacher training in India with Rahul and Vedic Yoga academy. The guided energy practices I’ve learned from Hale Pule is still the foundation upon where I build my meditation, but these practices and Rahul’s excellent competence in holding space as well as he did, supported me to go deeper. My friends’ experience with Vedic Yoga academy was as positive as mine.
“I’m still finding my feet with Yoga (literally) so have very much to still learn. Doing Yoga practice each morning with Rahul was an amazing way to start each day and he introduced us to stretches that allowed me to push my body much deeper than I previously thought I could go. His teaching went beyond the physical and also included many important mental and spiritual elements of Yoga which allowed for a great deal of inner strength development”
“
Yoga with Rahul was refreshing. His classes were grounded with interesting teachings, and explored meditation, as well as calm yet deep postures. From one day to the next, I enjoyed working on different areas of the body, especially the tight areas of my back and legs.”
I already look forward to my next visit back with the Vedic yoga academy, possibly for continued training or to teach. If you’re looking for an authentic, meditation-based training that truly integrates and teaches all the eight limbs of yoga, has an understanding of the vedas and combine both Yoga and Ayurveda, this might very well be the place for you.
