Journey to the India of Yoga (3rd edition)
with Gonçalo Correia (Senior Yoga Teacher) and Marco Peralta (Senior Yoga Teacher)
PRESENTATION AND AIM
India is mentioned in books, articles, TV shows, classes, workshops, Yoga courses, etc., as the birth place of Yoga. But from so many references what can one actually consider to be trustworthy? Which authors and professors learned directly from India’s yogis and yoginis? How do they live and what do they practice? Which is their vision and interpretation of Yoga?
The aim of this journey is to practice, study, live and get to know Yoga and its roots – not from a touristic perspective but with the intent a personal and real experience of Yoga in the way it is nowadays practiced in India, learning directly from the yogis who keep the tradition alive, perpetuating the yogic lifestyle in the same places for thousands of years.
In a time in which there are more schools, communities, and Yoga teachers in the West than in the East, what is the remaining relevance/importance of going to India in the context of Yoga?
The invitation is for you to come and experience for yourself the answer to this question!
Apart from the deepening of yoga sadhana and the benefit of having the chance to be all together and share the same goal in this journey, the intention is also to keep the spirit of a pilgrim in the more personal sense of stopping, reflecting, and meditating on one’s own Existence.
We will stay mainly in the Rishikesh area, situated in the foothills of the Himalayas, at the banks of the river Ganges and surrounded by mountains. It is a very relaxing and pleasing place with many temples, ashrams, Yoga schools and caves. In spite of the number of visitors increasing every year, Rishikesh remains a reference place chosen by those who dedicate themselves to the study and practice of Yoga, Meditation and Vedanta.
In the cafés and restaurants we find travellers just like us, on the streets we walk among the local population, not to mention the bookshops in the list of meeting points and true libraries of Yoga! In all these places we create empathy and begin conversations which will almost always end up in… Yoga, spirituality, the meaning of life and self-knowledge! Here the most mundane conversations are incontrovertibly… about Yoga!
Having been in India for the first time around 15 years ago, and in Rishikesh in particular, it has had a great impact in us, in our practice and way of looking at Yoga.
We want to share it with you!
GONÇALO CORREIA
Senior Yoga Teacher by Yoga Alliance Professionals, Gonçalo came across Yoga and Meditation in 1997, did his first Yoga teacher training in 2003, and in 2004 went in his first trip to India. He went back in the following years, completing a total of 10 months of Yoga practice and intensive study.
He has been teaching Yoga in Porto for 14 years, currently in his own centre Yoga Kshetra together with his partner Lídia Marques. He also dedicates his time to training teachers and collaborating with other collegues.
MARCO PERALTA
Senior Yoga Teacher by Yoga Alliance Professionals. Marco has been dedicated to the study and practice of Yoga since 1996 and started teaching around 19 years ago. He has studied in Portugal, Brasil, England, Greece and India, in various styles of Yoga.
Author of CD's: Yoganidrá - Descontração Profunda (Yoganidrá – Deep Relaxation) and Sê Quem Tu És - Meditações Guiadas (Be Who You Are – Guided Meditations). Currently he dedicates his time, for the most part, to training new Yoga Teachers and writing his future publication on the themes of Yoga, Consciousness, Non-duality and Meditation.
PROGRAM INDICATION
- 2-days stay in a traditional Ashram with a Swami from the Shivananda and Satyananda lineage (Bihar School of Yoga). Life in an ashram, daily study and practice of yoga, karma yoga, satsang and meditation. Direct experience of the running and routines of a yogi community from the Himalayas.
- 3-day experience of Hatha Yoga with a Yogacharya according to the Iyengar method. One of the greatest and most significant references in the area of Rishikesh. The Yoga Centre excels for its simplicity and sincerity in the science of Yoga.
- Visit and satsangs with a Sadhu with more than 40-years experience of living in a cave. One of the most ancestral ways of living and deepening one’s practice of Yoga and Meditation with self-knowledge as the goal.
- Visit to temples, caves, museums, bookshops and relevant ashrams.
- Participation in rituals (arati), pujas and satsangs in the tradition of Advaita Vedanta and Jñana Yoga.
- One free day; time for personal exploration.
- Talk with a renowned Teacher and Yogini in the Tantric tradition.
- Company of and practices and satsangs with senior yoga teachers Gonçalo Correia and Marco Peralta.
- Meetings with other yogis and yoginis may come up during the trip. India is also that: the unexpected and the surprises.
Note:
The program is subjected to changes.
We know personally all the teachers, sadhus, swamis and sannyasins whom we will be, practice and study with.
SUMMARY OF ITINERARY
(16 days / 16 nights)
28th Jan: Departure from Portugal
29th Jan: Arrival at Delhi
30th Jan: Delhi / Rishikesh
5th Fev: Rishikesh/Haridwar/Rishikesh
12th Fev: Rishikesh / Delhi
14th Fev: Departure from Delhi (and arrival in Portugal)
The journey program will be from the 29th January to the 13th February in India, whereby flights should happen one day before and one day after these dates, as exemplified in the itinerary above.
COST
1650 eur. + VAT according to legal rate in force (per person, shared double room)
2200 eur. + VAT according to legal rate in force (per person, individual room)
In case of withdrawal, paid amounts will not be refunded.
INCLUDED IN THE COST:
- Stay, breakfasts and dinners, transfers, train tickets, trips in private vehicle, dakshina, mineral water, help/escorting in all places.
NOT INCLUDED:
- Plain ticket, passport, visa, travel insurance, lunches and snacks, beverages other than mineral water, tips.
REGISTRATION AND RESERVATION:
Prior to registration in Journey to the India of Yoga, one must arrange an interview.
Contacts for information and registration:
yogakshetraporto@gmail.com
