200hr Traditional Ashtanga Immersion
For forty years I have been trying to understand where this practice came from and what it is truly pointing toward. Yoga is not a technique. It is a darśana — a worldview — and to enter it honestly requires study, time, and the guidance of those who carry the tradition in their bones.
The education I have received from the Sanskrit community in Mysore has been the most formative of my life. What is taught here comes through the paramparā that Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya himself came from, sheltered by the Wodeyar court that supported these scholars for generations, and carried today by teachers like Śrī B. N. S. Iyengar and Dr. M. A. Alwar, who have given me, with extraordinary patience, what no book could.
This is not a 200hr built around a sequence. It is a month inside the tradition that produced the sequence — with the scholars who can explain the texts, the temples where the chants still rise at dawn, and the elders who carry what cannot be written down.
There comes a point when the practice asks for something deeper. If it is calling you, come.
— Andrew
Twenty-eight days in three movements
The immersion unfolds in three phases — opening in Gokulam, deepening through the conference, and closing in the temple village of Melkote.
Opening Week
The training begins at 4pm at the Śrī Krishna Temple in Gokulam. After an initial gathering that includes mantra chanting and a tour of the temple, mornings settle into a rhythm of group practice and study. Afternoons open into something different every day: Mantra Chanting, Āsana Adjustments, Teaching Methodology, Applied Anatomy, Postural Assessment, Mudrā, Bandha, Prāṇāyāma, and Thai Bodywork. Śrī B. N. S. Iyengar — the oldest living teacher of Ashtanga Yoga, now turning 100 — joins us to teach his system of Ashtanga Vinyāsa Yoga, Mudrā, and Prāṇāyāma. In our time together you will witness Indian thought and culture in a way that is very rare and precious.
Mysore Yoga Conference
The conference is the heart of the immersion. Mornings begin with Mysore practice — Mudrā, Prāṇāyāma, Vinyāsa refinement, Mantra Chanting, and Ayurveda — followed by brunch and an afternoon of lectures delivered by senior Sanskrit scholars from Mysore. Lectures run 60–90 minutes and are followed by an open group discussion — international, multicultural, and always alive. Visits to the Maharaja's Sanskrit College and Jaganmohan Palace bring the historical roots of Ashtanga Yoga into direct contact with the present.
Three days of rest
A pause between the intensity of the conference and the quiet of Melkote — time to rest, integrate, and prepare for the final phase.
Melkote Immersion
We leave the relative comfort of Gokulam and move to Melkote — a mystical temple village in the hills above Mysore. Days begin before dawn, climbing the sacred hill to the Yoga Narasimha Temple for sunrise mantra chanting. Practice then moves to the thousand-year-old Kalyani Temple — built in the time of Rāmānuja — for āsana, mudrā, and prāṇāyāma. Midday meals are taken in places of natural beauty — beside waterfalls, at sacred ponds. Afternoons are spent with Dr. M. A. Alwar, exploring the sacred and historical places of Melkote that most visitors never find. The phase closes with a verbal examination in Indian philosophy with Dr. Alwar.
The community you'll learn from
Daily āsana practice paired with direct access to senior teachers and Sanskrit scholars in Mysore. These are not panel talks or brief meet-and-greets — there is real time to sit with the elders, ask your questions, and hear their answers.
Andrew Eppler
Founder, Mysore Yoga Traditions · Lead Teacher
Śrī B. N. S. Iyengar
Direct student of Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya · The oldest living teacher of Ashtanga Yoga · Turning 100 in 2026
Dr. T. R. S. Sharma
Direct student of Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya · Age 97
Dr. M. A. Alwar
Senior Professor, Maharaja's Sanskrit College · Scholar of Vishishtadvaita philosophy
Dr. M. A. Jayashree
Mantra chanting teacher and philosopher · Has taught thousands of foreign students
Dr. H. V. Nagaraj Rao
Senior Sanskrit scholar, Mysore
Dr. Satyanarayana
Principal, Maharaja's Sanskrit College
Śrī M. G. Narasimha
Historian · Family has served the Wodeyar kings for five generations
The philosophy course covers the Sankhya Kārikā, Patañjali's Yoga Sūtras, and the Bhagavad Gītā — not from a textbook, but explained in person by scholars from Mysore's Sanskrit community.
From arrival to departure
The Full Program
Daily Mysore-style āsana practice with adjustments six days per week, philosophy study, participation in the Mysore Yoga Conference, and the final Melkote immersion.
200hr Online Curriculum
The moment you register, you receive immediate access to the full 200hr online curriculum, covering āsana, teaching methodology, and the Sankhya Kārikā, Yoga Sūtras, and Bhagavad Gītā in depth. Course materials are available from day one so the live month in India can go further.
Accommodation in Gokulam
In Gokulam, your room comes with a kitchen, washing machine, hot water, clean linens, and wifi.
Accommodation in Melkote
In Melkote, the accommodation is simpler, reflecting the quieter and more traditional character of that final week.
Meals
In Gokulam, meals are taken together at Anokhi Gardens, drawing on both Indian and western influences. In Melkote, meals are prasādam — food offered to the divine — prepared by the priests of the Cheluva Narayana temple. The family who cooks for us has been doing so for over a thousand years, ever since they arrived in Melkote with Rāmānuja. All meals are vegetarian, with vegan and gluten-free options available.
Certification
Upon completing all three phases, participants earn a 200hr RYT certificate recognised by both Yoga Alliance and the Saṃskṛti Foundation in Mysore.
Travel & Practical Info
We help you plan every step — visa application, flights, and ground transportation. Most students arrive through Bengaluru International Airport (BLR); we recommend taking a taxi directly to Mysore rather than connecting onward, and we are happy to arrange reliable drivers so you are met at the airport. Airfare is not included. Extra nights of accommodation can be booked on request. Wifi is available in your room; for daytime connectivity, an E-sim or international plan is recommended. Please bring any regular medications. Full FAQ for India Travel →
Testimonials
Missoula, Montana
Brno, Czech Republic
Montclair, New Jersey
Reserve your place
Andrew Eppler
Andrew has been practicing and teaching Ashtanga Yoga for over forty years. He is the director of Ashtanga Yoga Studio, the creator of the Mysore Yoga Traditions Film, and the founder of the Mysore Yoga Conference. He has spent years collaborating with Sanskrit scholars in Mysore to understand the deeper roots of the practice he loves. His teaching is grounded in traditional sequences while remaining genuinely open to the people in the room — wherever they are in their practice and their lives. This immersion reflects everything he has learned about what it means to bring students into real contact with this tradition.
Mysore Yoga Traditions · 2027 Events
Andrew Eppler & the Mysore Yoga Traditions Team
200hr Traditional Ashtanga Immersion
For forty years I have been trying to understand where this practice came from and what it is truly pointing toward. Yoga is not a technique. It is a darśana — a worldview — and to enter it honestly requires study, time, and the guidance of those who carry the tradition in their bones.
The education I have received from the Sanskrit community in Mysore has been the most formative of my life. What is taught here comes through the paramparā that Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya himself came from, sheltered by the Wodeyar court that supported these scholars for generations, and carried today by teachers like Śrī B. N. S. Iyengar and Dr. M. A. Alwar, who have given me, with extraordinary patience, what no book could.
This is not a 200-hour built around a sequence. It is a month inside the tradition that produced the sequence — with the scholars who can explain the texts, the temples where the chants still rise at dawn, and the elders who carry what cannot be written down.
There comes a point when the practice asks for something deeper. If it is calling you, come.
— Andrew
Twenty-eight days in three movements
The immersion unfolds in three phases — opening in Gokulam, deepening through the conference, and closing in the temple village of Melkote.
Opening Week
The training begins at 4pm at the Śrī Krishna Temple in Gokulam. After an initial gathering that includes mantra chanting and a tour of the temple, mornings settle into a rhythm of group practice and study. Afternoons open into something different every day: Mantra Chanting, Āsana Adjustments, Teaching Methodology, Applied Anatomy, Postural Assessment, Mudrā, Bandha, Prāṇāyāma, and Thai Bodywork. Śrī B. N. S. Iyengar joins us to teach his system of Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, Mudrā, and Prāṇāyāma. In our time together you will witness Indian thought and culture in a way that is very rare and precious.
Mysore Yoga Conference
The conference is the heart of the immersion. Mornings begin with Mysore practice — Mudrā, Prāṇāyāma, Vinyāsa refinement, Mantra Chanting, and Ayurveda — followed by brunch and an afternoon of lectures delivered by Mysore's most respected Sanskrit scholars. Lectures run 60–90 minutes and are followed by an open group discussion — international, multicultural, and always alive. Visits to the Maharaja's Sanskrit College and Jaganmohan Palace bring the historical roots of Ashtanga Yoga into direct contact with the present.
Three days of rest
A pause between the intensity of the conference and the quiet of Melkote — time to rest, integrate, and prepare for the final phase.
Melkote Immersion
We leave the relative comfort of Gokulam and move to Melkote — a mystical temple village in the hills above Mysore. Days begin before dawn, climbing the sacred hill to the Yoga Narasimhan Temple for sunrise mantra chanting. Practice then moves to the thousand-year-old Kalyani Temple — built in the time of Rāmānuja — for āsana, mudrā, and prāṇāyāma. Midday meals are taken in places of natural beauty — beside waterfalls, at sacred ponds. Afternoons are spent with Dr. M. A. Alwar, exploring the sacred and historical places of Melkote that most visitors never find. The phase closes with a verbal examination in Indian philosophy with Dr. Alwar — a meaningful and memorable end to 28 days together.
The community you'll learn from
Daily āsana practice paired with direct access to senior teachers and Sanskrit scholars in Mysore. These are not panel talks or brief meet-and-greets — there is real time to sit with the elders, ask your questions, and hear their answers.
Andrew Eppler
Founder, Mysore Yoga Traditions · Lead Teacher
Śrī B. N. S. Iyengar
Direct student of Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya · Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga, Mudrā, Prāṇāyāma
Dr. M. A. Alwar
Ācārya, Nāthamuni Sampradāya · Sanskrit scholar of Vishishtadvaita philosophy
Dr. T. R. S. Sharma
Direct student of Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya
Dr. H. V. Nagaraj Rao
Senior Sanskrit scholar, Mysore
Dr. Satyanarayana
Principal, Maharaja's Sanskrit College
Śrī M. G. Narasimha
Historian · Family has served the Wodeyar kings for five generations
The philosophy course covers the Sankhya Kārikā, Patañjali's Yoga Sūtras, and the Bhagavad Gītā — not from a textbook, but explained in person by scholars from Mysore's Sanskrit community.
Everything taken care of
The Full Program
Daily Mysore-style āsana practice with adjustments six days per week, philosophy study, participation in the Mysore Yoga Conference, and the final Melkote immersion.
200hr Online Curriculum
The moment you register, you receive immediate access to the full 200hr online curriculum, covering āsana, teaching methodology, and the Sankhya Kārikā, Yoga Sūtras, and Bhagavad Gītā in depth. The journey begins now, not when you land in India — so the live experience can go deeper, faster.
Accommodation in Gokulam
In Gokulam, your room comes with a kitchen, washing machine, hot water, clean linens, and wifi — everything you need to feel settled and at home.
Accommodation in Melkote
In Melkote, the accommodation is simpler, reflecting the quieter and more traditional character of that final week.
Meals
In Gokulam, meals are taken together at Anokhi Gardens, prepared with care using the finest local ingredients and drawing from both Indian and western influences. In Melkote, meals are prasādam — food offered to the divine — prepared by the priests of the Cheluva Narayana temple. The family who cooks for us has been doing so for over a thousand years, ever since they arrived in Melkote with Rāmānuja. All meals are vegetarian, with vegan and gluten-free options available.
Certification
Upon completing all three phases, participants earn a 200hr RYT certificate recognised by both Yoga Alliance and the Saṃskṛti Foundation in Mysore.
Travel & Practical Info
We help you plan every step — visa application, flights, and ground transportation. Most students arrive through Bengaluru International Airport (BLR); we recommend taking a taxi directly to Mysore rather than connecting onward, and we are happy to arrange reliable drivers so you are met at the airport. Airfare is not included. Extra nights of accommodation can be booked on request. Wifi is available in your room; for daytime connectivity, an E-sim or international plan is recommended. Please bring any regular medications. Full FAQ for India Travel →
Testimonials
Missoula, Montana
Brno, Czech Republic
Montclair, New Jersey
Reserve your place
Andrew Eppler
Andrew has been practicing and teaching Ashtanga Yoga for over forty years. He is the director of Ashtanga Yoga Studio, the creator of the Mysore Yoga Traditions Film, and the founder of the Mysore Yoga Conference. He has spent years collaborating with Sanskrit scholars in Mysore to understand the deeper roots of the practice he loves. His teaching is grounded in traditional sequences while remaining genuinely open to the people in the room — wherever they are in their practice and their lives. This immersion reflects everything he has learned about what it means to bring students into real contact with this tradition.