Meditation Retreat in Rishikesh – 7 Days, Sanatana Yog Sandesh

This is a seven-day meditation retreat in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, hosted by Sanatana Yog Sandesh. It is offered to people who want a week set aside for meditation in the town long known as a centre for yoga in northern India. The retreat is run onsite at the school, and the same seven-day format is repeated through the year, so there is a good chance of finding a stretch that suits your own calendar.

Sanatana Yog Sandesh is a yoga school in Rishikesh that also runs teacher training courses in Hatha, Kriya, Kundalini, Raja and Bhakti yoga, along with other retreats for yoga, women, children and yoga therapy. The meditation retreat is the shortest of its onsite retreats, which makes it a practical way to experience the school without committing to a longer programme.

The Shape of the Week

The retreat lasts seven days. Intakes begin at the start of a month and again on the eleventh, so each month holds two separate weeklong retreats. The school lists the retreat as open to both international and Indian participants, each with their own fee structure.

The organizer's page gives the length, the location and the schedule of start dates, but it does not set out a day-by-day timetable or name the meditation methods taught. If you are weighing a particular technique or style of sitting, it is worth asking the school directly what a typical day contains before you register.

The Setting

Rishikesh sits in the foothills of the Himalaya in the state of Uttarakhand, on the banks of the Ganga. The retreat takes place in the town itself, at Sanatana Yog Sandesh. Rishikesh has a long association with yoga and contemplative study, and many people travelling for a week of meditation choose it for that reason.

Before You Go

The retreat is open to people coming from India and from abroad. Fees differ between the two groups, and the current amounts are shown on the registration page. Check there for the latest availability of each weeklong intake, since dates are listed as open and can fill.

Because the school also offers longer yoga teacher trainings and yoga retreats, some people combine a meditation week with other programmes there. If you plan to do that, compare the dates carefully so the weeks follow one another without overlap.