Should you Study Yoga in Rishikesh?

If you’re serious about completing a Yoga Teacher Training course, Rishikesh, an infamous city in Northern India, is probably on your radar. Considered to be the ‘Yoga Capital of the World’, Rishikesh is host to hundreds if not thousands of yoga schools, ashrams and spiritual communities that offer regular retreats, festivals and intense teacher trainings. But is it really the best place to begin your teaching journey and will you come away ready to navigate a career in yoga?

Below we’ll explore what the life of a yoga student looks like and ponder the pros & cons of coming to India’s holiest city to complete your certification.

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The Positives

Food

I LOVE Indian food so I was very happy to receive 3 amazing vegetarian meals each day. Breakfast ranged from spiced porridge, to curried chickpeas or crispy rice, always alongside fruit, toast and a good helping of peanut butter & honey. For lunch and dinner there was freshly made chapathis, lentil dahl, rice and a variety of delicious curries. I think this diet is pretty standard for a yoga programme in Rishikesh. The city itself is also meat-free, so you can dine in a number of amazing cafes and restaurants with crazy amounts of veggie dishes.

Friendship

Yoga communities tend to attract a colourful array of personalities so you will no doubt meet special people from all over the world. I was in a group of 20 yoga students that had travelled from France, Argentina, Czechia, Slovenia, Germany, the UK – so many places! Some were aspiring yoga teachers, others were already fitness or health coaches, or beginners looking to improve their practice. You’ll be immersed in international languages, not just Hindi, learn heaps about foreign cultures and form lifelong friendships. The intimate social setting encourages deep connections and a family vibe is established.

Extra Activities

The city itself is an amazing base for exploring the region. It is surrounded by mountains, waterfalls, national parks and lays on the banks of one of the most famous rivers in the world. In your spare time you could walk through the jungle, spot tigers on safari or raft through a beautiful valley. Included in our yoga programme was a climb to a temple on the highest peak around to watch the sunrise. We meditated in an underground cave and practised acro-yoga on the beach. We joined crowds of worshippers to dance and sing in a devotional ritual to the sacred river Ganga. I was also lucky enough to be there during Diwali, which saw many parties, kirtans and endless fireworks.

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The Negatives

A Lack of Teaching Instruction

Though we had 3 hours of physical yoga each day, we did not receive very in-depth instruction on the logistics of actually teaching a class. I was hoping to learn about sequencing, cueing, hands-on adjustments, and how to cater for the injured. It was only on the last week that these topics were briefly mentioned. The teachers demonstrated adjustments on basic poses like Downward Dog and Warrior 1 but didn't encourage us to practise these within the lesson, so we left class unsure we could perform these correctly. The basic anatomy taught was not enough to prepare us for the safe handling of a student, especially one with a severe injury.

In terms of sequencing, we were only advised in relation to our course exam, which involved teaching a 45 minute class to our fellow students. Methods of cueing and engaging your students were not covered.

Shatkarma

This could be a pro or a con, depending on your perspective, but should be something you’re aware of before you commit to a traditional yoga experience. If you study in Rishikesh, you will have the opportunity to practice ‘Shatkarma’. These are cleansing actions detailed in traditional Hatha Yoga texts that ready the practitioner for asanas and deeper meditation. They involve flushing out the nasal passage, digestive tract, abdominal organs and frontal areas of the brain via somewhat intrusive methods that can be a little to very uncomfortable.

During my training we tried out 3 of these methods.

- We began everyday with Jala Neti – using what looked like a tiny watering can, we’d pour a pint of salt water into one nostril that then flowed out of the other. This wasn’t too bad and actually felt quite refreshing once you’d tried it a few times.

- The dreaded Rubber Neti we attempted once a week – this requires you to thread a rubber string into your nostril and out of your mouth with the aim of flossing extra mucus out of the passage. It feels like your brain is being scraped out of you! Some students managed this fine, but others suffered nose bleeds as a result.

- We also tried Dhauti. You had to drink 2 litres of saltwater very quickly to induce vomiting.

Though nothing was compulsory, you were expected to at least try these exercises.

A Neglected Environment

Litter is a problem that is prevalent throughout India and Rishikesh is no exception. It seemed a little contradictory to spend the afternoon studying karma yoga, the yoga that encourages respect & care for other beings, to then witness trees strangled in plastic, ashes of burnt litter in the ‘sacred’ river and holy caves surrounded by seas of rubbish. I had been to India already so expected this a little, but in a ‘spiritual’ place such as Rishikesh I’d hoped yogis would feel compelled to nurture the land and ensure the health of the community. It seemed a little disingenuous to teach yoga in such a neglected environment.

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The Timetable

6.30 Shatkarma

We would shock ourselves awake with a little bit of saltwater.

7.00 Pranayama

After cleansing the airways, we would perform typical breathing exercises. We began with tamer techniques like Nadi Sodhana (alternate nostril breathing) before progressing onto Kapalbhati and other exercises that involved hyperventilation and breath retention.

8.00 Ashtanga

We worked our way through the Ashtanga sequences. This was the most physically challenging class and an ace way to start the day.

9.30 Breakfast

11.00 Mantra/Teaching Methodology/Naturopathy (or Kundalini)

This lesson changed week to week. Mantra involved translating and singing Sanskrit chants. Teaching Methodology readied us for our practical exam. I chose to complete a module in Naturopathy in the final, which introduced alternative therapies, but a Kundalini class was also offered - this was a more intense practical class that delved more into chakras and energy channeling.

12.30 Anatomy

We discussed the Ayurvedic diet and learnt in detail about the Skeletal System.

13.30 Lunch

15.30 Philosophy/Alignment & Adjustment

We studied yoga philosophy in reference to texts like Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, Bhagavad Gita & The Hatha Pradipika. In our last week we honed alignment and briefly covered hands-on adjustments.

17.00 Hatha

This was a traditional yoga class, slightly more restorative than the high energy Ashtanga we had in the morning.

18.30 Meditation

We explored a different meditation technique each day, some derived from traditional yoga others from more modern mindfulness exercises.

19.30 Dinner

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If you're an aspiring yoga teacher, on a budget, love lentils and want an authentic yoga experience, I would recommend studying in Rishikesh. It will improve your practice and allow you to delve deeper into the origins and philosophies of the tradition. If you're hoping to come away with impeccable teaching skills, I would consider looking elsewhere for courses that spend a bigger portion of your 200 hours on holding space and facilitating safe and constructive learning.

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