Background and Training of Teachers

Background and Training of Teachers

Background and Training of Teachers

Upon successful completion of the first-level course of teacher training and examination, teachers of Sivananda Yoga receive a diploma from the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centers and Ashrams, which is a copy of the original diploma Swami Sivananda used to issue to his disciples at the Yoga Vedanta Forest Academy of Rishikesh, India. This first level of training is comprised of an intensive, four-week residential program in the theory and practice of all aspects of yoga. The program is offered throughout the year at a variety of retreat centers (ashrams) located at numerous sites in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, Europe, India, and throughout the rest of the world.

The Sivananda Yoga teacher training program was developed by Swami Vishnu-devananda. The first level includes instruction in such various yoga practices as yoga postures, breathing exercises, cleansing techniques, proper diet, meditation, mantra, yoga philosophy, and anatomy and physiology. In addition, an advanced yoga teacher training course is offered once a year.

You should be able to find a teacher of Sivananda Yoga near you: Since 1968, when Swami Vishnu-devananda created the first yoga teacher training course ever taught in the West, more than 15,000 teachers of yoga have been trained worldwide in accordance with the teachings of Swami Sivananda.