200-Hour Yoga Teacher Training
Rishikesh, India
Two Opportunities to Attend
21-Day Immersive Training
SESSION ONE
February 12 - March 5, 2027
$700 TUITION
SESSION TWO
March 7 - March 28, 2027
$700 TUITION
Meet Your Teachers
Yogi Charu
Yogi Charu was sixteen when a friend in Belize handed him a Bhagavad Gita. Within months he had left home for a life of yoga — a path that led through ashrams in Los Angeles and India and up into the Himalayas, where he lived among yogis in simplicity: fasting, cleansing, mantra, and kirtan, studying the Vedas under HH Bhakti Charu Swami and other yoga masters.
He learned through years of immersion. At the Bihar School of Yoga he studied asana and meditation in their classical form, and in Australia he trained under Anandakapila Saraswati. What he carries is a body of knowledge most modern teachers never encounter: pranayama, kriya, yoga nidra, tantric meditation, and the philosophy that gives them meaning, which he shares in workshops on the Yoga Sutras and Vedic numerology.
He has taught for over twenty-five years — first in Hong Kong, where he was among the city's earliest yoga instructors, then in Australia, and from 2009 in New York, where he helped establish the yoga and meditation programs at The Bhakti Center and Pure Yoga. He co-manages Pure Yoga's 200-hour teacher training and directs its 100-hour Meditation Teacher Training. In Hawaii he founded Yoga For All, a donation-based studio.
Today he divides his life between Thailand and Rishikesh, teaching retreats, privates, and online classes to students worldwide. In 2027 he begins offering teacher trainings in Rishikesh.
Kaustubha Das
Kaustubha Das is Senior Educator at The Bhakti Center in New York City and co-host of Wisdom of the Sages, a daily podcast that has been rank #1 in Religion & Spirituality on Apple Podcasts.
He is known for his ability to make the tradition's most demanding material — the nature of the self, the workings of consciousness, the discipline of devotion — clear, useful, and directly applicable to contemporary life. His teaching is approachable and precise in equal measure, never trading depth for accessibility.
From the age of 21 to 34, Kaustubha lived as a Vaishnava monk, immersing himself in study and practice in ashrams throughout India and America. For nearly four decades he has dedicated himself to sharing the philosophy and meditation practices of Bhakti-yoga in the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition — presenting it not as a subject of study, but as a way of living.
Yogi Charu
Yogi Charu was sixteen when a friend in Belize handed him a Bhagavad Gita. Within months he had left home for a life of yoga — a path that led through ashrams in Los Angeles and India and up into the Himalayas, where he lived among yogis in simplicity: fasting, cleansing, mantra, and kirtan, studying the Vedas under HH Bhakti Charu Swami and other yoga masters.
He learned through years of immersion from teachers from Bihar School of Yoga and the Himalayas. At the Bihar School of Yoga he studied asana and meditation in their classical form, and in Australia he trained under Anandakapila Saraswati. What he carries is a body of knowledge most modern teachers never encounter: pranayama, kriya, yoga nidra, tantric meditation, and the philosophy that gives them meaning, which he shares in workshops on the Yoga Sutras and Vedic numerology.
He has taught for over twenty-five years — first in Hong Kong, where he was among the city's earliest yoga instructors, then in Australia, and from 2009 in New York, where he helped establish the yoga and meditation programs at The Bhakti Center and Pure Yoga. He co-manages Pure Yoga's 200-hour teacher training and directs its 100-hour Meditation Teacher Training. In Hawaii he founded Yoga For All, a donation-based studio.
Today he divides his life between Rishikesh in India and other South East Asian countries such as Cambodia, Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines.
Kaustubha Das
Kaustubha Das is Senior Educator at The Bhakti Center in New York City and co-host of Wisdom of the Sages, a daily podcast that has been rank #1 in Religion & Spirituality on Apple Podcasts.
He is known for his ability to make the tradition's most demanding material — the nature of the self, the workings of consciousness, the discipline of devotion — clear, useful, and directly applicable to contemporary life. His teaching is approachable and precise in equal measure, never trading depth for accessibility.
From the age of 21 to 34, Kaustubha lived as a Vaishnava monk, immersing himself in study and practice in ashrams throughout India and America. For nearly four decades he has dedicated himself to sharing the philosophy and meditation practices of Bhakti-yoga in the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition — presenting it not as a subject of study, but as a way of living.
What You’ll Learn
Topics covered by Yogi Charu
Topics covered by Yogi Charu
• Asana (Posture Clinic and Sequencing / Practice Teaching)
• Meditation
• Bhakti Practices (Tulsi Puja, Japa, Deity Puja)
• History of Yoga,
• Patanjali's Yoga Sutras,
• Prana and Pranayama
• Intro to Mantras — (Maha Mantra, Gayatri, Maha Mrityunjaya, Peace, Guru mantra)
• Hatha Yoga Pradipika (Koshas and Chakras, Intro to Meditation, Bandhas)
Topics covered by Kaustubha Das
• The nature of the self (sat, chit, ananda)
• Material & spiritual energies (purusha & prakriti)
• Dharma (knowing your purpose - temporary and eternal)
• The applications on the computer of the mind (manas, ahankara, buddhi)
• The forces that govern our world (time, karma, the gunas)
• The 4 paths of yoga (Ashtanga, Jnana, Karma, Bhakti)
• The Vedic Literature of the Sage Vyasa (4 Vedas, Upanisads, Vedanta Sutra, Mahabharata, Puranas)
• The varieties of Divine Love (rasa)
Topics covered by Kaustubha Das
Set Within the Rishikesh Kirtan Festival
This training doesn't take place near a festival. It takes place inside one.
The Rishikesh Kirtan Fest runs for six weeks at the Anand Dham Ashram near the banks of the Ganges River, drawing thousands of visitors from around the world. Every evening, hours of extraordinary kirtan fill the grounds — open to you as a student, never required. You won't be just studying in a classroom. You'll be living inside a festival while you learn.
The festival is free to the public, and stays that way because of trainings like this one. Roughly 800 plates of vegetarian food are served to guests each evening. Sacred music, wisdom teachings, and community remain open to everyone who comes, regardless of what they can pay. (Kaustubha das’s classes will be open to the public as part of the festival.)
That's why tuition is kept so low and why your teachers serve as volunteers. 100% of the proceeds go directly to the festival. Your enrollment helps feed the guests, fund the programs, and keep the gates open.
You come to learn. You leave having also helped sustain something that thousands of people receive for free.
Travel, Accommodation & Location
What’s Included:
Training tuition covers the full educational program
3 vegetarian meals per day
What’s Not Included:
Accommodations
Travel
Students are responsible for arranging their own accommodations, travel, and personal needs during their stay in Rishikesh.
Rishikesh offers a wide variety of lodging options to suit different budgets and preferences, including guesthouses, hotels, hostels, ashram stays, and boutique retreats. Many accommodations are within walking distance or a short ride from the training and festival area.
Location
The training takes place at Anand Dham Ashram, one of the oldest ashrams in Rishikesh. Located in the Tapovan area, the ashram is just a short walk from the famous Laxman Jhula Bridge and is surrounded by the vibrant spiritual atmosphere for which Rishikesh is known.
We encourage students to book accommodations early, as Rishikesh can be especially busy during festival season!
Before traveling, please be sure to arrange your Indian visa, transportation, travel insurance, accommodations, and other personal travel needs in advance.
Begin Your Yoga Teacher Training
Become certified, deepen your practice, support a festival of service, and immerse yourself in the spiritual heart of Rishikesh.