Chakra Awakening Retreat
Chakra Awakening Retreat in South India
South India is exotic, mysterious and exceedingly rich in culture. A place you must see and experience at least once in your lifetime.
Disengage from your busy life for a week and realign with your heart, balance your chakras, and experience deep emotional healing in mystical South India. Surrounded by tropical gardens, birdsong and the spirit of ancient India, with temples of incredible beauty and history, our yoga villa near Auroville and Pondicherry offers the ideal space for rest, relaxation, reflection and profound healing, not just on the physical but also on the emotional and energetic levels.
Breathe in joy and happiness while breathing out frustration, stress and anxiety. Join us for a life-changing, heart-opening and mind-expanding experience that will realign you with your higher Self and deeper purpose.
Awakening, Healing and Personal Transformation - experience it on this unique chakra balancing yoga retreat combined with meditation and deep insight into the human nature. Ganga Devi offers this retreat in a beautiful villa near the model community Auroville and Pondicherry, in tropical South India. Come away with a powerful practice routine, which you can easily integrate once back home. While on the retreat you will gradually be guided to leave all anxieties, worries and neurosis behind and find balance, harmony and gratitude. Yoga vacations can be a special time to relax and recharge.
What are the 7 chakras and why do they matter?
The seven chakras have been written about in ancient texts of Tantra and yoga as important psycho-energetic centres, which allow us to align with matter and the material world, with the mental and emotional world as well as with the subtle world of spirit. They are not anatomical organs but rather subtle energy centres, which coordinate the flow of prana (vital energy) through our body.
Chakras are closely related to the endocrine glands, and hence imbalances in the chakras will be mirrored in disease, affecting the region of the chakra in the physical body and also as imbalances in the hormone secretion of the related gland.
To maintain physical health and emotional well-being it is crucial to constantly work on stabilizing and balancing the seven chakras.. A chakra imbalance will express itself in physical disease. For example a person often suffering from a sore throat or difficulty speaking and expressing herself could point to an imbalance of the throat chakra. Chest and chronic lung diseases as well as diseases like bronchitis could point to a clogged heart chakra.
Read more about the chakras on our blog...
Join Ganga on her Signature Chakra Awakening & Healing Yoga Retreat
Seven days of pure bliss aligning, balancing and harmonizing your chakras
- Every day we will devote to work on one particular Chakra and practice asanas specifically targeted to this chakra.
- We will explore sound and mantra for each of the chakras.
- Learn to use mudras, specific hand gestures, used for balancing, opening and healing your chakras.
- Learn which foods feed which chakras and how you can heal yourself by working on your chakras and glands.
- Learn about the relationship between chakras, glands and hormones
- We will also use visualization to develop awareness of the chakras location
Why choose our retreat?
We guarantee a quality yoga retreat with expert guidance from our highly experienced teachers.
Ganga Devi - your teacher and guide on this retreat
Ganga Devi is the founder/director of the Himalayan Yoga Institute. She is a senior yoga and meditation teacher and has crafted an exceptional yoga retreat. With her nearly 3 decades of experience teaching yoga retreats, conferences and yoga teacher training courses, she is an expert in helping students experience a profoundly transformational inner journey, by accessing progressively deeper states of consciousness and the bliss inherent in the body. Ganga has taught and practiced yoga and meditation for more than thirty years. She has also trained and performed as a professional dancer of Bharatanatyam – the classical dance of India.
She passionately uses her special gift of bringing people together in ceremony to connect, sing, dance, heal and release. With her intricate knowledge about the use of breath she skilfully uses a unique system of breathing and breath retention when adapting yoga as a therapy for body, mind and soul.
Ganga is also a talented musician and nada yogini (sound healer), sharing bhajans, kirtan and Indian raga music to complement the deeply transformational work she undertakes on each of the 200h programmes. In addition she offers personalized instruction in meditation and an individually tailored daily yoga routine for you to take back home and continue your yoga journey with a unique set of asanas and other techniques, adapted to your specific needs.
Chakra Awakening Retreat Highlights
- Guided nature and beach walks
- Yoga classes specifically designed for each chakra
- Sound, mantra and visualization techniques for healing and balancing chakras
- Guided meditation sessions in the morning/evening
- Guided nature and beach walks
- Mudras for each chakra
- Excursion to the Auroville community, to the beach and Pondicherry
- Kirtan and chanting, sound healing
- 8 nights accommodation
- 3 Organic Vegetarian meals
- Two Excursions during the week
- 7 day(s) with instructions in English
Visit to Mahabalipuram
You will have a chance to see Mamallapuram (or Mahabalipuram) on the way from Chennai to our venue. Mamallapuram is a UNESCO protected heritage site, displaying gorgeous stone carvings and temple structures of great beauty. Mahabalipuram is an ancient historic town and was a bustling seaport during the time of Periplus (1st century CE) and Ptolemy (140 CE). Ancient Indian traders who went to countries of South East Asia sailed from the seaport of Mahabalipuram.
By the 7th century it was a port city of the South Indian dynasty of the Pallavas. It has a group of sanctuaries, which was carved out of rock along the Coromandel coast in the 7th and 8th centuries: Rathas (temples in the form of chariots), Mandapas (cave sanctuaries), giant open-air reliefs such as the famous 'Descent of the Ganges', and the Shore temple, with thousands of sculptures dedicated to Shiva.
While travelling to our venue on the arrival day, the minibus that picks up students at the airport and from Chennai, will stop in Mahabalipuram for about two hours for sightseeing, exploration and lunch.
Excursions to Auroville and Pondicherry
We will visit Auroville (City of Dawn) is an experimental township in Villupuram district mostly in the state of Tamil Nadu, India with some parts in the Union Territory of Pondicherry (Puducherry) in South India. The city is dedicated to the vision of Sri Aurobindo.It was founded in 1968 by Mirra Alfassa (known as "the Mother") and designed by architect Roger Anger. As stated in Alfassa's first public message in 1965,
Auroville wants to be a universal town where men and women of all countries are able to live in peace and progressive harmony, above all creeds, all politics and all nationalities. The purpose of Auroville is to realize human unity.
— Mirra Alfassa
Pondicherry will be another destination. Pondicherry, called Puducherry in the local language, is a unique town, which used to be a French colony, hence it combines French and Indian architecture. It is a unique city like no other in India, where India meets France with all the uniqueness of each style in architecture and culture. Many streets retain French names, and French-style villas are a common sight. In the French quarter, the buildings are typically colonial style with long compounds and stately walls. The Indian quarter consists of houses lined with verandas and with large doors and grilles. These French and Indian style houses are preserved as they are considered heritage buildings. The French language can still be heard in Puducherry. We will visit temples, the promenade and the Aurobindo ashram in Puducherry.
8 nights accommodation
All meals organic, vegetarian, water
1-2 Yoga classes per day with Ganga Devi
Morning and evening meditation
Optional walks on the beach
Morning Serenity walks
Breathing Techniques
Philosophy classes
Sightseeing of Auroville
Sightseeing of Pondicherry
Flights and airport transfers
Excursions
Any meals other than those mentioned above
Any portage at Airport and Hotels tips, Mineral water, Telephone charges and all items of personal nature and meals and drinks not specified in the inclusions.
Any services not specifically mentioned in the inclusions
Insurance
Yoga mat - please, bring your own mat
Alarm clock
Money: It is best to exchange cash to rupees, the Indian currency, at the airport, and there are also some ATMs within a 15 minute taxi ride from Ropa. You would want to have some funds on your arrival, which you can purchase at your airport of departure, however rupees are not to be taken out of India on your return. For the up to date exchange rate see www.xe.com
Electrical adaptors: South India operates on 220V, the same 2 prong plugs as Europe, which are different from the UK ones, so you may want to bring an electrical converter plug.
Torch / flashlight: Power outages are frequent in India and part of the charm but you might want some help seeing in the dark.
Earplugs: If you are a sensitive sleeper, you may want to bring them along, even if it is just the snoring of your room mate, that may make its way to your ears.
Sunscreen: You will need to take care against the strong sun, especially when arriving from winter.
Clothing: please be sensitive to the local culture and dress modestly. Always cover your legs (long trousers, no skirts), your belly and wear short- or long-sleeved upper body clothing. You may want to pick up some of the beautiful Indian clothing called Salwar Kamiz, consisting of pants and a dress in the local shops or bring them with you from London (they can be bought in Indian stores across the city).
Also remember to bring:
Meditation cushion, flip flops (one pair for indoors and another one for outdoors), trainers, writing pad, alarm clock, towel, sleeping bag, private toiletry items, soap, clothesline, detergent, money belt.
A copy of your visa, passport and plane ticket should be kept separately from your luggage.
Arrival and departure
You arrive on the day of the first retreat date (1st of Nov) by 12 noon at Chennai airport, and depart on the last retreat date in the morning by 10am.
When you arrive you will have the chance to relax, unwind and recuperate from your travel. In the evening you’ll have a chance to meet others on the retreat over dinner and your yoga retreats' programme will start the following morning.
We will organize a group transfer from the airport in Chennai on the arrival day (the 1st of November for a small additional fee of £10 – one way). The taxi driver will be instructed to stop in Mahabalipuram, which is a UNESCO heritage site, where you will have a chance to view the ancient temples and stone carvings.
Please make sure to arrive at Chennai airport by 12 noon on the retreat start date. On special request we may be able to arrange individual pick up from the airport, which will cost about £30 one way.
Climate
The temperature usually remains at around 20'c and 33’c in October/ November and tends to be sunny and dry, with occasional showers so you would want to bring summer clothing with you. Just be aware and respectful of the local culture and avoid shorts and tank tops.
How to get there
Please book your flight to the city of Chennai, from where we will organize a pick up.
From Chennai airport
We will arrange pick up from the airport at around 12 noon of the retreat start date. If your plane arrival doesn’t coincide with our pick up time we may be able to arrange for an individual pick which will cost between £25 and £30. Please inform us well in advance so we can arrange for this option.
It is a 2 and a half hours drive to the venue and the driver will stop for about 2 hours in Mahabalipuram for sightseeing, so your arrival at the venue will be around 5.30 pm in the afternoon.
Flights
We recommend:
http://www.skyscanner.net
or
www.ebookers.com
These are reliable ticket providers and offer a good variety of prices and flight options.
Insurance
Please ensure you have comprehensive travel insurance before you come to India on yoga vacations. You can find some great deals on the Internet and sometimes they are can be bought as part of your flight ticket.
Visa
You will need a simple TOURIST VISA. Normally a tourist visa is given for 90 – 180 days, but please check the Visa regulations in the Indian Consulate of your country.
For those residing in the UK: Application for a Visa should be given minimum 2 weeks before planned flight. From the UK, enquire via The India Visa Application Centre, which is officially authorised by the High Commission of India, London to accept applications for tourist visas.
Visit their website:
http://in.vfsglobal.co.uk/
There are a number of companies, on the internet, who organise visas directly with the Indian Visa Centre.
Remember that the visa is valid from the date of ISSUE, not the date of ARRIVAL!
Our privacy policy
We don’t share any information that you give us such as your name, email or contact details with anyone else.
Booking conditions
In order to book your place, you would pay a deposit 50% of the total price. The remaining 50% is due 10 weeks before the start of the retreat.
If you cancel more than 30 days before your retreat start date, 100% of your payment may be applied to another retreat within 1 year from the retreats start date..
If you cancel 15-29 days before your retreat start date, 50% of your payment may be applied to another retreat.
If you cancel less than 15 days before your retreat start date, the fee is neither refundable nor transferable.
Accepted payment methods
Bank Transfer, Credit card via online booking or paybylink
Additional Information on yoga vacations
Our Retreat Venue
Our yoga retreat venue is a beautiful villa near the model community Auroville in South India. A long private driveway leads you to the 4500sq ft villa set in grounds of 1.5 acres. The villa is built in the traditional Kerala style using rammed earth. This eco-friendly method of construction results in a structure that is naturally cool throughout the year. The house has 4 bedrooms with private bathrooms, a family room, a large kitchen and utility and an open terrace. The large central courtyard acts as a focal point of the villa allowing in natural light and ventilation. The villa is simply decorated yet has all the comforts of home. The house is sufficiently away from the main road to keep out the noise and ensure almost total silence. Enjoy some of the organically grown fruits and vegetables from the garden with our compliments.
Wholesome Meals
As part of the yoga retreats package three buffet-style, organic vegetarian meals will be served daily. Some of the produce comes from the villa's own garden. The cuisine is a South-Indian ogic diet, flavourful but not too spicy.
Accommodation
- Shared accommodation (up to 4 people sharing a room)
- Triple accommodation (up to 3 people sharing a room)
- Double accommodation – (twin and double beds, 2 persons in one room)
Daily Routine
- 6.30- 8.00 Chakra Yoga Class & Breathing Exercizes
- 8.00 – 8.30 Breakfast
- 9.00 – 11.00 Meditation, Chanting, Sound Healing, Mudras, Visualization Techniques
- 11.15 – 12.15 Discussion and learning about the chakras
- 12.30 Lunch
- Afternoon - free time to go for walks, beach, swimming, sightseeing and/or exploring Auroville
- 17.30 Optional Yoga class
- 18.30 Dinner
Price of the complete package
£860
for shared accommodation
£910
for triple accommodation
£950
for double shared accommodation (double bed)
£960
for double shared accommodation (twin beds)
All prices given above are in GBP (British pounds) and per person
For further information please contact Ganga Devi by sending an email to
info@himalayanyogainstitute.com or you may call on +44 (0)7969157994
