Reasons to learn yoga are multiple. No matter the age we are when we start, the benefits of yoga practice outweigh the time we spend and the pain that may cost us at the beginning. The best way to learn always leads going to the sources, so we are going to show 5 reasons to learn yoga in India.
Yoga is an ancient discipline that can be divided into nine parts, which are the branches of the tree of yoga. Each of these branches makes stress upon a different aspect to improve and seeks to generate overall well-being through the union of the mind with the body.
Yoga practice helps us focus more on our present, focus on our being and separate for a while from the demands of our jobs. Although it may not seem it helps to burn more calories than other exercises more vigorous and strenuous. It is cheaper too, because we only need a mat and some quiet space. Yoga not only helps our bodies, but our brains, making us feel energetic and rejuvenated. It is a stress buster.
But these are the reasons to learn and practice yoga anywhere. Learning yoga in India has a lot of added values. The following list shows the Top 5 reasons to pick up your mat and travel to India to learn yoga.
- India is the birthplace of yoga. Traditional yoga is still practiced and taught the same way it was 5000 years ago. Understanding the culture and connecting with traditions can improve anyone´s yoga experience and bring new perspectives. The physical part of yoga can be learned anywhere, but the spiritual part that can help to evolve mind and soul, can be bestlearnt in India. When we come back to our countries, we bring with us all the spiritual learning and the philosophical context of Yoga. In short, Yoga in India goes beyond the physical exercise, it is a mind and soul experience.
- Life in the Ashrams can help to break bad habits. Ashrams are like hermitage or monasteries. Most yoga schools are situated in Ashrams, and no self-respected travel to India can be complete without a stay in an Ashram. But life in the Ashrams is not made for luxury, they are designed to be simple because they are helping us to focus in our inner selves. But we can also gain healthier habits, because drinking, smoking and eating meat are forbidden. While thinking about changing those habits can be very difficult or almost impossible, living in the ashrams will give us the opportunity to try and achieve.
- Choose your own guru. Gurus are spiritual leaders. They guide us through the journey of life. Yoga must be learned through the gurus. Many gurus have daily satsangs where students can gather and have discussions among them and with the guru. Some yoga schools in India still offer the Guru-Shishyaparampara. Here students can receive the same personal attention and equal importance from the guru. This is very important to reach not only the proficiency to perform all the asanas, but the philosophical aspect, the deep understanding of Yoga Philosophy can be got only from the teachings of the gurus.
- Learn to chant mantras. The power of chanting mantras comes from the blend of sound, breath and rhythm and can be used to increase the impact of yoga on our internal emotions and our overall health. The high emotional status of the chanting can strengthen the immune system, reduce stress and balance our nervous system. Mantras are Sanskrit sentences, where the words are arranged to gain the power of increasing the energy of the chakras in our bodies. Only by chanting mantras we can learn the true power of them. And we only can feel the right rhythm of the Mantras in India.
- Learning Yoga in India is economical. Traditionally Yoga was taught by gurus only to those students who were considered worthy. And it was absolutely free. Well, that has changed. But we can find affordable yoga teacher trainings in India catering all kinds of budgets. But the added value of India Yoga training centers is not economical. We will be immersed in the culture of India, where yoga tradition was born, grew and now lives. We can gain a boarder view of yoga, because although yoga can be a physical discipline, the main accent of Yoga in India is the spiritual aspect. Nature is awesome in India. From the Himalayas to the beaches in the South, every landscape is an amazing adventure to be lived. Besides travel in India is easy, and if we are street smart, it will be safe too. And while traveling and discovering India we will meet a lot of like-minded
There is no reason to stay at home. If we want to learn yoga, we must go to India.