Mysore Yoga Traditions
Yoga at its source.
Immersive programs in Mysore, original films, and online courses with the scholars who carry the tradition forward.
A Brief History of Yoga in Mysore
Mysore's contribution to modern yoga cannot be overstated.
Śrī Tirumala Kṛṣṇamācārya, the scholar whom many call the father of modern yoga, taught Pattabhi Jois, B.K.S. Iyengar, T.K.V. Desikachar, and Indra Devi, and their lineages together account for the majority of postural yoga practiced anywhere in the world today.
Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya had a deeply traditional background. He was formed within the Śrīvaiṣṇava tradition from childhood and continued his education at the Parakāla Maṭha in Mysore, a monastery rooted in Rāmānuja's Viśiṣṭādvaita philosophy. His scholarship brought him to the Mahārāja of Mysore, under whose patronage he opened the Yoga Śālā and taught the students who would carry his methods to the world.
Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya belonged to the Māṇḍyam Śrīvaiṣṇava community — a community of scholars who had studied, practiced, and transmitted the Yoga Sūtras, the Bhagavad Gītā, the Upaniṣads, and the philosophy of Viśiṣṭādvaita under the patronage of the Woḍeyar kings, without interruption, from the time of Rāmānuja in the 11th century to the present day.
At Mysore Yoga Traditions, we are passionate about studying and sharing the sacred yoga texts as they have always been understood within the tradition that formed Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya — taught by scholars who stand in that same living tradition today. We offer courses, retreats, and immersive programs for students who wish to encounter these teachings at their source.
This is not a historical artifact. The tradition that formed Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya — the Svayam Ācārya Puruṣa Paramparā of Śrīvaiṣṇavism — remains unbroken to the present day. The scholars who teach within the Mysore Yoga Traditions program stand inside that same living tradition.
The history of this tradition →Three programs. One source.
Practice, philosophy, and direct study with the scholars and elders who carry Mysore's yoga heritage — in the city and the temples where it was shaped.
Traditional Ashtanga Immersion
With Andrew Eppler · Dr. M. A. Alwar · Dr. H. V. Nagaraj Rao · and senior teachers of the Mysore tradition
A guided month in Mysore and Melkote — daily Ashtanga practice, the Mysore Yoga Conference, and direct study with Mysore's Sanskrit scholars. Philosophy, temple visits, and full immersion in the cultural and devotional world from which the yoga emerged. Accommodations, meals, and transport included. The 200hr online curriculum is yours from day one.
Full program details →
Mysore Yoga Conference
With Andrew Eppler · Mysore's leading Sanskrit scholars · Sri Krishna Temple, Gokulam
Ten days in Gokulam with some of the greatest living scholars of the Mysore Sanskrit tradition. Daily Ashtanga practice woven together with an extraordinary afternoon lecture series — intimate conversations with elders who have spent their lives inside a tradition that has been quietly shaping yoga for centuries. Open to all levels. Available in person or online.
Full conference details →
Melkote Yoga Immersion
With Dr. M. A. Alwar · Scholar, Nāthamuni Sampradāya · and Andrew Eppler
Eight days in Melkote — an ancient temple village an hour from Mysore where the philosophical and devotional roots of yoga have been alive and cared for for over a thousand years. Āsana practice in the thousand-year-old Kalyani Temple, sunrise mantra chanting on the sacred hill, and afternoon study with one of the few scholars on earth qualified to transmit this tradition directly. Available standalone or as the closing phase of the 200hr Training.
Full immersion details →
The philosophy that made your practice.
Studied at its source — with the living scholars of the tradition that shaped modern yoga. Three foundational courses, prerecorded for permanent access. Saṃskṛti Foundation certificate. Yoga Alliance CEUs.
Patañjala Yoga Sūtras
Dr. H. V. Nagaraj Rao · Traditional Sanskrit Scholar, Mysore
The philosophical backbone of everything you practice — the entire text, verse by verse, woven together with Sāṅkhya, the Upaniṣads, and the Bhagavad Gītā. The text as this tradition has always read it.
Bhagavad Gītā
Dr. M. A. Alwar · Scholar, Nāthamuni Sampradāya · Mysore
All eighteen chapters, transmitted within the same Śrīvaiṣṇava tradition from which Śrī Kṛṣṇamācārya descended. The Gītā as this paramparā has understood it for nearly a millennium.
Sāṅkhya Kārikā
Dr. H. V. Nagaraj Rao · Traditional Sanskrit Scholar, Mysore
The philosophical system underlying the Yoga Sūtras and the Gītā — the vocabulary of yoga explained from its source. Sāṅkhya is the theory; yoga is its practical application. Verse by verse, with Dr. Rao.
All courses are offered in collaboration with the Saṃskṛti Foundation, Mysore. Certificates issued by Saṃskṛti Foundation. Recognised by Yoga Alliance as Continuing Education. ★ If a course fee presents a genuine difficulty, reach out to Andrew Eppler directly — we will find a way.
