Yoga in India

India is the birthplace of yoga. So it is no surprise that yoga is practiced all over the country. However, yoga in this country had its own inquest details. It is common for individuals or small groups to organize to have a yoga instructor come in to do a private lesson. There are exceptions to that of course, here in Rishikesh the entire city is a mix of ashrams, yoga training and ayurvedic medicine. Here there are early morning sessions where 50 people can easily show up to go through a practice.  Of course it is just as easy to organize a private class in a place where yoga practices and instructors abound. So for the three mornings we were in Rishikesh that is what we did. I must admit it is a great way to start the day off. Paying attention to your body, stretching out, quieting your mind and breathing deeply. Of course it can't be quite that simple. No, you have to focus in on the wafting incense and recorded chants so that you can ignore the trucks rumbling by outside the window, the horns blaring, the people talking and the occasional cow's moo which occurs just in the middle of your meditation. Perhaps there is more than one reason people study yoga in India; if you can focus and meditate here I suspect you could do it just about anywhere.