Sun Salutations as Worship
2023-11-19 09:00 - 2023-11-24 12:00 (Asia/Kolkata) | Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama, Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama Dhyana Gurukulam, Virpur Khurd, Virbhadra Road, P. O Pashulok, Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, 249203, India
The practice of Surya Namaskara consists of a succession of twenty four Hatha Yoga postures done in a smooth flow according to a specific progression. Since it came into manifestation, this practice has been closely associated with the attitude of devotion and worship and can be experienced as a form of prayer involving movement and full body awareness.
In this seminar with Pandit Priyadarshan (Pierre Lefebvre), we will learn the basic postures constituting the sequence of the Solar Salutation as taught in traditional Hatha Yoga according to the Himalayan Tradition. We will also highlight the different directions in which we can bring our practice, as well as how to bring the element of devotion, worship and bhakti into our daily practice of Surya Namaskara.

Choosing a Path
2023-10-29 09:00 - 2023-11-03 12:00, 2022-11-20 09:00 - 2022-11-25 12:00
Sharing the essential wisdom and living practices of yoga’s major paths: Jnana Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Karma Yoga, Raja Yoga, etc.
In today’s modern times, we have done so much research on matter, mind, and energy, yet we have not discovered the ways and methods of attaining happiness and loving others selflessly. The search for truth alone thus provides a ray of hope for the individual and for humanity as a whole.
This in-person retreat with Rabindra Sahu offers a glimpse into some of the paths of yoga so that we are able to choose the one path that is most appropriate for our own personal spiritual journey.

Navaratri Retreat - Cultivating the Divine Feminine
2023-10-15 - 2023-10-23

Meditation and Its Practice
2023-09-03 09:00 - 2023-09-08 12:00, 2023-04-23 09:00 - 2023-04-28 12:00, 2022-11-27 09:00 - 2022-12-02 12:00
This six-day programme is as much appropriate for beginners as for more advanced seekers treading the path of spirituality. The foundation stones of meditation will be approached in a scientific and systematic manner. Preparations and progressions of meditation practice will be shared step by step. This course will give you the tools to establish and pursue a regular personal meditation practice.
In his book Meditation and Its Practice, Swami Rama of the Himalayas wrote:
“For thousands of years, the science of meditation has been studied and practiced by aspirants who sought to make their lives more serene, creative and fulfilling. Meditation will give you the capacity to improve your health, your relationships and the skilfulness with which you perform your activities. This is because meditation can do something no other technique can accomplish – it introduces you to yourself on all levels and finally leads you to the center of consciousness within, the higher self, which is called Atman.”

Recommended Readings:

Meditation and Its Practice by Swami Rama
“Beginning Meditation” in Night Birds by Swami Veda Bharati
Meditation: Art and Science by Swami Veda Bharati
Audio with book: Learn to Meditate (plus relaxation exercises) by Swami Veda Bharati.
Video: Treading the Path of Superconscious Meditation by Swami Rama
The Royal Path by Swami Rama
Holistic Living Manual by Swami Rama
Conscious Living by Swami Rama

Hatha Yoga Retreat: From Movement to Stillness
2023-08-13 09:00 - 2023-08-18 12:00, 2023-04-16 09:00 - 2023-04-21 12:00, 2023-01-01 09:00 - 2023-01-06 12:00, 2022-12-18 09:00 - 2022-12-23 12:00
The Himalayan Tradition is a meditative (dhyana) tradition. All the practices, including asanas are practiced to prepare oneself for meditation. Hatha yoga is taught as an integrated practice, which includes centering, correct breathing, breath-awareness, stretching sequences, joints & glands movements, asanas, subtle-body relaxations, pranayamas, and meditation. There is a focus on not only positioning the body correctly, but also on experiencing what is happening within. Asanas are performed with reverence and gentleness in the mind, moving from outside inwards.
Hatha Yoga, as taught within the Himalayan Tradition is understood as “a continuum” involving all the eight limbs of Raja yoga, especially Ahimsa.

Mahasamadhi Retreat
2023-07-10 - 2023-07-14
On the sacred day of 14 July 2015, our beloved Swami Veda Bharati left his physical body and entered Mahasamadhi.

“We gather as a celebration on the anniversary of our beloved Swami Veda’s samadhi. Here, we are not adoring the physical body which was placed in this space a few years ago; we are present to embrace the subtlety of his example, the beauty of his teaching, and faith in his mandate – ‘share with the world the pure form of meditation and only initiate into the same.’” – Swami Ritavan Bharati
Every year, we celebrate our dear Swamiji’s Mahasamadhi Anniversary by gathering together at Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama (SRSG) Ashram in Rishikesh, India. This includes a 5-day long yajna with the Guru-Gayatri Mantra with 12 priests.

अखण्डमण्डलाकारं व्याप्तं येन चराचरम्।
तत्पदं दर्शितं येन तस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः॥
akhaṇḍa-maṇḍalākāraṁ vyāptaṁ yena carācaram,
tat-padaṁ darśitaṁ yena tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ.
(Which) pervades the entire unbroken form of the circle (of creation), moving and unmoving. To that beautiful and benevolent Guru through whom that state was revealed (to me), salutations.
ॐ तत्सवितुर्वरेण्यं भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि धियो यो नः प्रचोदयात्॥
Om Bhur Bhuvah Svah
Tat savitur varenyam
Bhargo devasya dhimahi
Dhiyo yo nah prachodayat.
Om. In Earth, Sky and Heaven, I do meditate on, and sustain in myself, the beautiful brilliance of God who shines in the splendor of the sun.

Guru Disciple Relationship
2023-07-02 09:00 - 2023-07-07 12:00
ॐ गुरुर्ब्रह्मा गुरुर्विष्णुर्गुरुर्देवो महेश्वरः।
गुरुः साक्षात्परं ब्रह्म तस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः॥१॥
Om Om Om gurur brahmā gurur viṣṇur gurur devo maheśvaraḥ,
guruḥ sākṣāt paraṁ brahma tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ. (1)
Om, Om, Om. To that beautiful and benevolent Guru who is Brahmā, the Creator, Viṣṇu, the Maintainer, and Śiva, the Great Lord through whom all things return to their origin. To that Guru who is the direct experience of Brahman, salutations.
On the sacred occasion of the Guru Purnima (July 3rd) and awaiting for our beloved Swami Veda Bharati’s Mahasamadhi (July 14th), let us get together to delve deeper into the meaning of the Guru Prayer and the sacred relationship between a Guru and a disciple with Rabindra Sahu.

Guru Purnima Retreat
2023-06-25 - 2023-07-03
ॐ गुरुर्ब्रह्मा गुरुर्विष्णुर्गुरुर्देवो महेश्वरः।
गुरुः साक्षात्परं ब्रह्म तस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः
Om gurur brahmā gurur viṣṇur gurur devo maheśvaraḥ,
guruḥ sākṣāt paraṁ brahma tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ.
Om. To that beautiful and benevolent Guru who is Brahmā, the Creator, Viṣṇu, the Maintainer, and Śiva, the Great Lord through whom all things return to their origin. To that Guru who is the direct experience of Brahman, salutations.
“This day, the day of Guru Purnima is considered to be the holiest day for the students of life; for those that have been treading the path of light; for those aspiring to attain enlightenment in this lifetime. They remember this day and celebrate it by becoming aware the purpose of life is to attain enlightenment; the state of mind, internal state, that makes one free from all pains and miseries.” – Swami Rama
On the sacred occasion of the Guru Purnima, a 9-day celebration is held annually at the Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama (SRSG) Ashram in Rishikesh. This includes akhanda-patha (24-hour non-stop recitation) of the Guru-Gita, the Song to the Guru, preceding the Guru Purnima Day. The akhanda-patha of the Guru-Gita is offered both at the SRSG and the Sadhana Mandir Ashram by 11 Pandits each. This special celebration is a reminder for us to pay our homage to the Guru Lineage that has bestowed upon us the great blessings of mantra, meditation, initiation and the teachings of the Himalayan Yoga Tradition. This way we also recommit ourselves to our practices.
This year, the Guru Purnima is celebrated on 3 July, 2023. The Guru Purnima Retreat will be organised at SRSG from 25 June – 3 July 2023.

What is Yoga? International Yoga Day (IYD) Retreat
2023-06-18 09:00 - 2023-06-21 21:00
The Himalayan Tradition is a meditative (dhyana) tradition. All the practices, including asanas are practiced to prepare oneself for meditation. Hatha yoga is taught as an integrated practice, which includes centering, correct breathing, breath-awareness, stretching sequences, joints & glands movements, asanas, subtle-body relaxations, pranayamas, and meditation. There is a focus on not only positioning the body correctly, but also on experiencing what is happening within. Asanas are performed with reverence and gentleness in the mind, moving from outside inwards.
Hatha Yoga, as taught within the Himalayan Tradition is understood as “a continuum” involving all the eight limbs of Raja yoga, especially Ahimsa.

As our beloved Swami Veda Bharati has said,
“What is this yoga? What is it? What are the signs of one practicing yoga?
On the very first sutra of the Yoga-sutras of Patanjali, Vyasa, the first and foremost sage commentator, defines:
Yogah samadhih
Yoga [means] samadhi.
‘Yogah samadhih’ is also in the logo of our organization AHYMSIN – the Association of Himalayan Yoga Meditation Societies International – with headquarters at Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama in Rishikesh.
The most authentic ancient text of yoga speaks of it in these terms.
The most authentic ancient text of Ayurveda, Charaka-samhita, states:
Yogo moksha-pravartakah
Yoga is that which impels and grants spiritual liberation (moksha)
Sharira-sthana 1.137”
This International Yoga Day (IYD), let us try to understand what truly and traditionally yoga is, beyond the asanas, as it is now popularly understood.

Sacred Journey
2023-06-11 09:00 - 2023-06-16 12:00
Innately all human beings know that life has a higher purpose, even though they may argue and create philosophies that maintain that life is aimless or an accidental phenomenon in an infinite universe, and thereby nourish and strengthen an inner emptiness and discontentment.
We tend to project that unhelpful and unhealthy interior state into our daily lives and begin to try to fulfil that sentiment of absence looking for completion from the objects and comforts of the world – mostly through our relations and possessions – or even in all kinds of vices, which eventually leads us to even more misery and sorrow. But the paradox is that, despite all of it, we remain attached to the transitory little pleasures. Without realizing what could give us eternal happiness, we keep on going gathering things and renewing relations, and thereby intensifying our bondage and attachment to them. This dependency on the worldly objects for pleasure leads to a very deep-rooted fear of death – the fear of losing all these material things.
“In one way or another everyone strives for happiness, calmness, and peace of heart and mind.”
The Ancient Sages, through the transmission of the perennial wisdom revealed to them, especially in the Upanishads, have showed us that the way to dispel the darkness of confusion and ignorance from our mind is by learning how to think properly in order to discriminate between what is the Absolute Reality and what is Its temporal manifestation, which is subjected to change, death and decay.
Swami Rama also stated in the Introduction of the book on same title:
“To understand death, a person must try to understand the purpose of life and the relationship between life and death. The two are partners, each providing a context for the other. Death is not a period, but merely a pause on a long journey. When life and death are accepted as having real meaning and purpose, and death is understood and accepted as part of the human journey, then the fear of death disappears, and life can be lived fully.”
By thinking properly and correcting our understanding we can live a life purposefully and experience the transition period gracefully. In this residential retreat with Rabindra Sahu, we will make an attempt to understand the purpose of our life, and how to move forward towards our purpose in life.

Contemplations on Bhagavad-Gita - Chapter One
2023-05-07 09:00 - 2023-05-12 12:00
Times of despair prod us into enquiry and can be our stepping stones on the path of divinity.
It was in such a state of anguish that Arjuna faced on the battleground when he turned to Lord Krishna for guidance. The first chapter of the Bhagavad-gita is titled Arjuna Vishada Yoga, the yoga of Arjuna’s despondency and sorrow. In a state of confusion and dejection, Arjuna the mightiest warrior of his times sinks into grief and depression, and casts his bow and arrow aside. Sri Krishna as his charioteer imparts the teaching of the Bhagavad-gita to bring Arjuna out of the deluded state.
The Bhagavad-gita is a condensed essence of wisdom of the Upanishads. The first chapter provides the foundation for this major text as a starting point of the enquiry of a seeker. Many readers pay less attention to the first chapter. However, it provides valuable insights into human personality. It introduces the characters, the participants in the war and their symbolic personalities that open up many psychological and philosophical lessons.
In this residential retreat with Rabindra Sahu, we will attempt to study the Bhagavad-gita through a disciplined process of Study-Contemplation and Implementation (Shravana-Manana and Nidhidhyasana).

Maunam – Guided Silence Retreat
2023-04-30 09:00 - 2023-05-05 12:00, 2023-04-02 09:00 - 2023-04-07 12:00, 2022-12-04 09:00 - 2022-12-09 12:00
As our beloved Swami Veda Bharati has said, “The most profound teachings of the Tradition are in silence. The greatest growth of the human mind takes place in silence.”

Come experience deeper levels of your inner self through the practice of silence. This six-day retreat, away from the business of daily life, will help you calm down the constant flow of random thoughts and emotions and rejuvenate yourself on all levels. This retreat includes two days of foundations and preparations to silence, three days of silence practice and introspection, as well as one day of sharing and assimilation.
“Silence is such a profound and deep experience of human existence that only when we have understood silence would we understand all the inspiration that has ever flowed to humanity from the minds and mouths of its great saints and sages.”
– Swami Veda Bharati

Fearless Living Retreat
2023-04-09 09:00 - 2023-04-14 12:00
Fear is one of the base emotions of four primitive fountains – food, sleep, procreation and self-preservation.
During this in-ashram retreat with Rabindra Sahu, we will learn to examine our fears, thoughts and actions and their source. With proper understanding and regulation, the program will guide ways to living with clarity, faith and courage.
Living fearlessly introduces one to always remain in spiritual delight.

Holistic Health
2023-03-19 09:00 - 2023-03-24 12:00
The new yet ancient concept known as holistic health affirms the complete interrelationship between body, mind, and spirit. As an authority in both Eastern and Western techniques, Swami Rama presents a philosophy of total health, in his book titled – “A Practical Guide to Holistic Health”.
This residential retreat with Pt. Priyadarshana (Pierre Lefebvre) will be a wonderful opportunity for all those who are health-conscious and are interested in healthy living. We will explore fundamental questions, such as: “What is the purpose in life?” and “How are you going to achieve that purpose?” Maintaining that each individual possesses the responsibility and the tools to regulate his own well-being, we will discuss the practical aspects of cleansing, nourishing, being still, utilizing the emotions, self-training, and exercise.

AHYMSIN Sangha Gathering - 2023
2023-02-12 09:00 - 2023-02-25 12:00
“Be a Light unto Oneself”

Coming Home
Celebrating Gifts of Illumination and Perennial Presence of Guru:
Swami Ritavan and Guru’s Spiritual Family with the Grace of Mother Gayatri are inviting you to your spiritual home SRSG in Rishikesh with the Global Sangha from 11-25 February, 2023.
“Be a Light unto Oneself” is our theme for our gathering next year.
Rediscover the self-illumined nature of Being, that Truth, the goal of the seekers of liberation. Let the flame of love shine brightly as we invoke this splendour of Mother Gayatri and Guru’s perennial presence in our gathering of kalyana-mitras.
The first week would involve various sessions on our theme, along with a week-long yajna of the Ganesha Gayatri Mantra. We will conclude our year-long ongoing sangha practice of the Ganesha Gayatri Mantra, before the Mahashivaratri Celebrations on the 18th February. We will also receive the new AHYMSIN Sangha Practice for the next three years from Swami Ritavan Bharati on the sacred occasion of the Mahashivaratri. The following week will continue with special programs and sessions on the theme with Swami Ritavan, the senior members of the AHYMSIN Spiritual Committee and our senior faculty members.

Invitation from Swami Ritavan Bharati
“Come Back Home… To the Homeland of your Consciousness”
Priya sarva-shri,
Recognize the source of yearning, and listen to the pleading of your soul.
Come soul and meet my soul and let us all as magnets of mantric silence join in meditation to know this family – this field of Consciousness is One. Your breath is the river Ganges calling you back home. Your mantra is the sacred chant of the Ancients beckoning your return to your Himalayan Sanctuary. Listen to that inspired message: I Can, I Will, I Must.
Join our Sangha of Sadhakas, our AHYMSIN Sangha Gathering from February 11 – 25, 2023 at Swami Rama Sadhaka Grama, Rishikesh, India. As many of our family members have already planned their visit home, do write to the AHYMSIN office to confirm your accommodation at the earliest.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours in service of the Lineage,
Swami Ritavan Bharati

The Royal Path
2023-02-05 09:00 - 2023-02-10 12:00
Whether our goal is improved health, emotional balance, enhanced creativity, or spiritual exploration, the practices of Raja Yoga or the Royal Path hold the key.
Swami Rama in his book – The Royal Path introduces us to the ancient yogic techniques as they were practiced by those who attained the highest goal of life: samadhi. In this step-by-step program with Pt. Priyadarshana (Pierre Lefebvre), we will outline the basic physical exercises, mental disciplines, and ethical commitments of Raja Yoga, the Royal Path to self-transformation and enlightenment.
This residential retreat will offer both theoretical and practical aspects of the science, structure, and philosophy of Raja Yoga. We will also learn more about the process, philosophy and practice of meditation within the principles of meditation as the unifying stream of all the world religions.

Happiness is Your Creation
2023-01-22 09:00 - 2023-01-27 12:00
To be happy is to live free of worries and disappointments. Yet this seems often elusive as we go about leading our day-to-day life. It is important thus to identify the causes of our unhappiness and find the direction that allows us to keep centered and joyful at all times.
Swami Rama in his book by the same title has said, “You are a Creation of God, but happiness is your creation. You are equipped with everything you need to live a happy life. Your only job is to discover the source of happiness within and infuse your surroundings with that inner happiness.”
In this in-person retreat with Rabindra Sahu, we explore the keys to unlocking the happiness within by learning to transform our habit patterns and by creating a harmonious balance between our body and mind. By cultivating the right attitude towards our duties, relationships, and our relative position in the world, we can consciously create the conditions that allow us to live happily within and in this world.

Spirituality: Transformation Within & Without
2022-12-11 09:00 - 2022-12-16 12:00
Today, we have access to every conceivable kind of knowledge about the world around us, yet few of us have even the dimmest knowledge of our innermost selves. The ancient teachings of the Himalayan Tradition call on us all to return to the fundamental values of mankind, especially as they are articulated by the sages.
In this residential retreat with Rabindra Sahu, we will learn how to integrate these values in our own day-to-day life to find our own inner truth.
As Swami Rama has said in his book – Spirituality Transformation within & without, “Nothing is more mysterious than life itself, and there is no peace without penetrating that mystery. The mystery lies deep in the stream of life. There is an eternal knowledge, not in the outer world, but in the center of Consciousness.”

Yoga Nidra Retreat
2022-10-30 09:00 - 2022-11-05 12:00
Yoga Nidra is a state of conscious sleep in which one is in deep sleep and yet remains fully conscious. The yogis use this technique for both sleep and meditation. The quality of rest one receives through this method is entirely different from that which is derived through ordinary sleep.
“For decades we have guided the shavasana practices and yoga nidra in sessions where the teacher does the ‘recital’ and others listen and follow. But we have not TAUGHT the procedures.” — Swami Veda Bharati
Guided practices done in shavasana will be taught in proper sequence, leading to different stages of Yoga Nidra, so students can better absorb and assimilate the effects and awareness which the posture and practices have generated.
Under the guidance of senior teachers, some of whom have been practicing for over 30-50 years, this in-person retreat offers a revitalizing practice that gives total rest to the mind, brain, nervous system, senses, and body. Yoga nidra supports and strengthens the meditational technique and can be applied to learning subtleties of life.
To learn more about Yoga Nidra:

Four States of Yoga Nidra by Swami Veda Bharati
Defining Yoga-Nidra: Traditional Accounts, Physiological Research, and Future Directions by Swami Veda Bharati, Dr. Stephen Parker (Stoma) and Dr. Manuel Fernandez.
Yoga Nidra Refined Silence by Swami Veda Bharati
Mastering Yoga Nidra by Swami Veda Bharati
Yoga Nidra, Part 1 (video) with Swami Veda Bharati
Yoga Nidra, Part 2 (video) with Swami Veda Bharati
Yoga Nidra (video) with Swami Veda Bharati
My Experiments with Yoga Nidra: Inward Perceptions by Swami Veda Bharati
A Brief Form of Yoga Nidra by Swami Veda Bharati
Dear Yoga Mentor, My Question Is… “difference between yoga nidra and meditation” by Swami Ritavan Bharati
A Successful Yoga Nidra Retreat by Dr. Stephen Parker (Stoma)
Use of Yoga Nidra for Creativity and for Enhancing Intuitive Faculty by Swami Nityamuktananda Saraswati
After 3 Years of Yoga Nidra by Riccardo Valdettaro
After Years of Yoga Nidra I Am Moved from the Inside
Conquering Sleep: The Practice of Yoga Nidra by Randall Krause (Mokshadeva)

Recommended study materials:

Path of Fire and Light, Volume 2 by Swami Rama
Enlightenment without God by Swami Rama
Om the Eternal Witness: Secrets of the Mandukya Upanishad by Swami Rama
Exercise without Movement as taught by Swami Rama, Vol. 1, by Swami Rama
Mandukya Upanishad (Video Series) by Swami Rama: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqWXsj2xZg4&list=PLEF1719C37C7BA62E
Proving the Power of Meditation, Swami Rama in Probe magazine, 1973: http://www.swamiramasociety.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/swamiramaprobe1973.pdf
1973 Britannica Yearbook of Science and the Future, Excerpted from “The Psychic Boom” by Samuel Moffat http://www.swamij.com/pdf/swami-rama-britannica-1973.pdf
Exercise without Movement audio with Swami Ritavan Bharati
My Experiments With Yoga Nidra, by Swami Veda Bharati

There are also three audios below. However, Swami Veda has listed prerequisites for these; please see http://ahymsin.org/main/himalayan-tradition/standard-reading-list.html

Advanced Relaxation audio by Swami Veda Bharati
Yoga Nidra Series audios by Swami Veda Bharati
OM Kriya audio (as taught by Swami Rama, recorded by Ma Radha Bharati).

The books are available through a number of bookstores; those that are out of print can be found at used bookstores and will come up at sites like Amazon.com. For the audios, please contact Himalayan Yoga Publications Trust at info@yogapublication.org
