A Letter From A Yoga School in Rishikesh Graduate

Dear Future Student,

Right now, in your state of confusion, you are probably doing what we all do to find the right yoga school.

Searching for the right yoga school and narrowing it down to the top 10 lists.

Opening multiple tabs, convinced that you will find a better option!

Looking at every detail of the course and viewing the accommodation pictures.

I totally get it because I have done it all too.

But what I want to tell you today is that nothing that I searched for, prepared me for what I experienced and what I came to love after graduation.

So, to save you from searching in all the wrong places as I did, let me tell you about why you should attend yoga school in Rishikesh.

Let me tell you what I think someone should have written in a letter for me when I was in your position.

Can I Tell You A Secret?

I always assumed all the other students were advanced.

When I walked into the hall on that first day and saw all the other students with their mats, I was SURE they had at least 5 years of yoga practice under their belts.

In reality, we all were just as lost.

As the days went by, I learned what to do by watching everyone else in the class.

I sat wherever everyone else sat.

I even made my move after looking to see if anyone else was going to ask the question that I was totally sure was going to be the dumbest question of the day.

Three days later, I was surprised to learn we all were beginners and had no clue what we were doing.

If you’re joining a yoga school in India, remember this.

Confidence usually arrives after you join, not before.

Something I Was Wrong About

I thought I had packed everything for this trip.

Packing tons of comfortable clothes? Check.

Packing my camera for this once in a lifetime opportunity? Check.

Packing tons of healthy snacks to stay energised? Check.

I even packed everything I thought I’d need… except patience.

I assumed that each class would provide me with many valuable lessons.

Some classes provided me with tons of value.

Some classes added confusion.

Then there were the ordinary classes.

However, what I started to realized most was that the ordinary classes were the classes I grew to appreciate most in the end.

Because learning is a patient game.

Sometimes you just need to know when it’s time to pay attention to it.

See also: The Value of Well-Designed Furniture in Senior Living Communities

Nobody Talks About This Part

Around the 4th day or 5th day at yoga school in Rishikesh, something pretty spectacular began to happen.

Friendship.

No one came up to me and said, “Hey, want to be friends?”

It just happened.

One person saved my seat.

One person remembered I do not like spicy food.

One person handed me a pen before philosophy class, and that was so nice because I must have left mine at the last class.

They all happened without planning.

They all made each day amazing.

You all became great friends who are kind of meant to be.

Here’s What Actually Happens

Around week one, you stop counting days until you can leave. 

There is no more need or desire to count days until this all ends (for you) because this all becomes your comfort.

Wake up, meditate, stretch and go to the ghat with the others, nurture your new friends, eat healthy, sleep. 

It might just be a new routine to you, but I can guarantee it is beyond mundane to outsiders. It is something great to finally live what you once considered ordinary.

The Unexpected Connections

I got a good laugh a few months back, simply because I can’t remember most of my classmates’ professions. 

Unfortunately, I can’t tell you who was an engineer or who was a marketer, or who was a business owner. 

What I don’t seem to be able to forget is who had a weird laugh, who blessed us with their homemade chocolate from their home country, who was always encouraging people to remember to bring a water bottle, and who stayed behind to help their friend practice. 

Perhaps that is what is special about a great yoga school in India: people start to identify themselves as their true selves again instead of always being judged through their professions.

The Surprises I Did Not Expect

One evening I called home. My family always asks the same questions:

• How are your classes
• How is the food?
• Are you learning a lot? Halfway through answering, I realised something. 

I had lost focus on my time speaking of yoga classes and was instead talking about people, conversations and the calmness I feel after practice and how excited I am because every day I am learning something new. I think the definition of yoga has changed for me.

You’ll Notice It One Morning

Not during you meditate.

Not upon receiving your certificate.

Not when you take your picture.

It will happen when something absolutely regular happens.

Maybe when you tie your shoes.

Maybe when you are having your meal.

You realise that your mind isn’t playing Temple Run anymore.

If you go to a yoga school in Rishikesh, don’t spend your days searching for big changes.

The most special changes are usually the smallest and the most basic.

Leaving is the Hardest Lesson

No one prepares you for your last day.

Packing is easy;

closing your suitcase will take only about 5 minutes.

Saying goodbye will take a very long time.

You say:

“We will keep in touch.”

“Until we meet again.”

“Keep well.”

Then you go to your room for the final time.

Nothing in the room has changed.

You feel different.

Because you aren’t the same person who unpacked your suitcase on the first day.

It is weird going to a yoga school in Rishikesh.

You come with your luggage.

You leave with all your memories, which are more than your luggage.

One Last Thing Before You Go

If you’re still stuck comparing schools, let me leave you with one final thought.

Don’t choose a place because its website looks amazing.

Choose the place where you feel like you will genuinely belong.

At Nirvana Yoga School, I found a home where learning feels fun, conversations turn into connection, and an environment where growth never comes with comparison. If you’re searching for a yoga school in India that values quality learning as much as personal connection, I truly hope you give yourself the chance to experience it.

And if you do,

maybe one day you’ll find yourself writing a letter like this to someone who’s sitting exactly where you are today.

With warm wishes,

A Student Who Once Couldn’t Decide Either.