Ananda Yoga® Teacher Training (In-Person)

A Spiritual Approach to Yoga


200-Hour
Oct 9 – Nov 6, 2022

Ananda Yoga® Teacher Training

Ananda Yoga® Teacher Training

A Spiritual Approach to Yoga:
RYT 200-hr Certification in 1 Month

July 5 – Aug 4, 2024

RYT 200 Logo

July 5 – Aug 4, 2024

Experience and Teach Yoga as a Tool for Transformation

Have you experienced the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual benefits of yoga? Do you feel inspired to immerse in a yogic way of life and share yoga with others?

Ananda Yoga® Teacher Training is a dynamic blend of professional training and spiritual growth based on the yoga teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. 

Located in the beautiful foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains at Ananda Village, our month long teacher training program offers you an opportunity to live in spiritual community, dive deep into Ananda Yoga®, and develop a deep connection with your Higher Self.

Join us for a transformative journey to discover your gifts that will support you in your process of becoming an inspiring and magnetic yoga teacher.

RYT 200-hr Certification Training

Cost: tuition $2,000 + accommodations
All Inclusive Prices

Location: The Expanding Light Retreat, Ananda Village, CA

Cost: tuition $2,072 + accommodations
All Inclusive Prices

Location: The Expanding Light Retreat, Ananda Village, CA

Free Zoom Info Session

Recorded May 6, 2023

Join this introductory session to meet the instructors and learn more about Ananda Yoga Teacher Training.

“Yoga means ‘union.’ On a physical level of application, this signifies the complete harmony of all parts of the body – a balanced support of all the members for one another in such a way that disease, or disharmony, is faced with a united defense and can hardly make any inroad into the body.”

“Yoga means ‘union.’ On a physical level of application, this signifies the complete harmony of all parts of the body – a balanced support of all the members for one another in such a way that disease, or disharmony, is faced with a united defense and can hardly make any inroad into the body.”

— Swami Kriyananda (founder of Ananda), The Art and Science of Raja Yoga 

Swami Seated Pronam

— Swami Kriyananda (founder of Ananda), The Art and Science of Raja Yoga 

Why Take Ananda Yoga Teacher Training?

Immerse Yourself in Yoga as a Way of Life

There’s nothing like spending one month completely engrossed in practicing and teaching Ananda Yoga® while absorbing the powerful vibrations of Ananda Village, a yoga ashram community of approximately 250 residents.  

You will be completely immersed in the yogic lifestyle. Throughout the program, you will participate in daily sadhana (spiritual practice), eat delicious, prana-infused vegetarian meals, connect with fellow truth-seekers and be uplifted by the magnetism of long-time yogis. 

As you live your yoga, you become a greater channel for higher consciousness. 

Immerse in Yoga

Learn with Dedicated Yoga Instructors

Ananda’s teaching approach will support you to deepen your own intuitive understanding of your inner life – your challenges, your gifts – as a path to becoming an inspiring yoga teacher.

We will share with you ways to ignite and heighten your teaching ability to utilize yoga science and your intuition to best serve your students and yourself as a whole person— body, mind and spirit.

All our instructors are daily meditators and disciples of Paramhansa Yogananda who make it a priority to live the teachings.

AYTT Adjusting Child Pose

Participate in a Spiritual and Professional Certificate Training

For more than 40 years, Ananda School of Yoga & Meditation® has been training teachers in the full range of the yoga tradition as taught by Paramhansa Yogananda—from asana, pranayama, and meditation, to health and yoga philosophy. 

Graduates of this yoga teacher training in California can become Registered Yoga Teachers (RYTs) with Yoga Alliance, the national yoga teacher certification standard in the United States.

Maitri Adjusting

Become a Magnetic Yoga Teacher

Ananda Yoga Teacher Training sets you up for teaching yoga successfully to anyone. 

We will pace you throughout the program to obtain a comprehensive understanding of asana mechanics/safety cautions, yoga source teachings and techniques.

From day one, you will begin practice teaching asanas to your peers and receive guidance on how to refine your teaching. We also offer specialty classes to help you find your presence as a teacher, such as voice projection and increasing your energy & magnetism.  

Maitri Chair Yoga

What You'll Learn

feeling-sleepy-during-meditation

“At my first class after the yoga teacher training retreat, one of my students said, ‘You are different. I want what you have.’ To me that is the best testimonial of my Ananda experience.”

“At my first class after the yoga teacher training retreat, one of my students said, ‘You are different. I want what you have.’ To me that is the best testimonial of my Ananda experience.”

— C. S., Fresno, California

— C. S., Fresno, California

Meet Your Instructors

ASYM_teacher_Melody

Melody, E-RYT 500, directs the Ananda Yoga Teacher Training and Restorative Yoga Teacher Training online programs.

She is a Certified Ananda Yoga Therapist, C-IAYT and a trained Prenatal Yoga Instructor. Melody has been practicing the teachings of yoga since the age of 14, and began teaching at age 17. She loves to help her students experience the depth of Ananda Yoga and Meditation.

She will be the main asana instructor for this course and will support you every step of the way in becoming a confident yoga teacher. It is her joy to serve you!

Darshana Moore

Darshana, E-RYT 200, became interested in meditation and found the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda and Swami Kriyananda in 2009. Since then, she has been applying them in her own life and sharing them with others.

Darshana moved to Ananda Village in 2011 and graduated from Ananda Yoga Teacher Training and Ananda Meditation Teacher Training in 2012. She is currently studying to become a certified yoga therapist.

Darshana teaches meditation and yoga philosophy.

Arya Bio Photo

Arya Cheng, RYT-200, is a gifted yoga and meditation teacher, and wonderful kirtan (spiritual chanting) leader. She is passionate about sharing yoga as a tool for managing stress, transformation and healing in body, mind and soul. 

Her journey as a yogi started at age 14, when she attended Ananda’s Living With Spirit Program and experienced first hand the transformative effects of yoga and meditation. 

Arya currently lives at Ananda Village and serves as an Ananda Yoga Instructor for the Ananda School of Yoga and Meditation and support staff for the Karma Yoga Program.  

In this training, she will be a lead asana instructor and here to encourage you to shine your light!

ASYM_teacher_Gyandev

Nayaswami Gyandev McCrod, E-RYT 500, is the Director of the Ananda School of Yoga & Meditation. Gyandev has an advanced certificate in online teaching methodology, is the Director of Ananda Yoga worldwide, and is a co-founder of Yoga Alliance.

A member of the teaching staff at the Expanding Light Retreat for more than 30 years he is well known internationally for his profound ability to share the teachings of yoga asana, meditation, yoga philosophy, and the joy that comes from living a yogic lifestyle.

Spiritual-Counseling-teacher_Mangala

Mangala, E-RYT 500 and C-IAYT has a background in a variety of healing modalities including Nursing, Ayurveda, Yoga teaching and Yoga Therapy practice and teaching. She currently serves as the Director of the Ananda Yoga Therapy Training program. She has been a RN, Nurse Practitioner for many decades and has been involved in assisting residents of Ananda Village for over 30 years with health and illness-related situations, and also with the process of dying. She also serves as a teacher, spiritual counselor and minister. She enjoys helping people to find positive ways to cope with and even thrive with challenges presented by illness and dying. Mangala is an Ananda minister.

Nicole DeAvila Staff

Nicole DeAvilla, E-RYT 500 and C-IAYT has taught yoga teachers for over 20 years, and has taught regular Ananda Yoga classes since 1984. She has a background in sports medicine and chiropractic physiotherapy. Currently she teaches private classes as well as a Master Yoga Class for Yoga Teachers.  Nicole is an active member of the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) and is a contributor to their journal and several other publications.  She has taught Master Classes for the International Yoga Therapy Conferences.

Online-YTT_teacher_Tracy-1

Tracy, E-RYT 500 and C-IAYT, received her yoga and meditation training certifications from Ananda beginning in 1993, and soon after completed massage therapy (LMT, BCTMB), personal training, and Pilates certifications.

She enjoys teaching and sharing therapy at YMCAs, schools, hospitals, and a home studio. She helps lead an Ananda Midwest Meditation Group and yearly retreats and is an Ananda minister. It was her blessing to help teach the first AYTT in India, and now assist with AYTTO. She looks forward to infusing your study of anatomy with energy and joy, experiential learning, and its many practical applications!

Jitendra crop

Jitendra Guidon, Director of Online with Ananda’s Online Outreach ministry and a certified Ananda Meditation instructor and Ananda Yoga Teacher registered with Yoga Alliance (E-RYT 200).

Jitendra is originally from Rhode Island, where he helped lead the Ananda Yoga and Meditation Center and aided in spreading the path of Self-realization in Boston and New York City. He has taught meditation in diverse settings including yoga studios, government agencies, colleges, high schools, rehabilitation centers and more.

FAQs

You need to have an established regular Hatha Yoga asana practice (3 days per week) for 6 months prior to the program. If you have other qualifications which makes this program suitable and would like for us to consider, please explain on the application form. Without an established personal practice, it would be premature to consider teaching. Although the program’s asanas are not overly demanding, you will be doing a lot of them and combined with a full schedule, it’s important to be prepared physically.

 

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  1. Required: develop a regular Hatha Yoga practice.
  2. A month before the program begins, you’ll be given access to the AYTT online course webpage. There you will find additional assignments (video presentations, reading assignments, and self-quizzes), which you’ll have access to throughout your stay with us. Expect to spend 1-2 hours each week during your 4-week stay, completing some online assignments. We encourage you to get started on these assignments early as your schedule will be busy while on campus.

Absolutely! One of the highlights of this professional training program is having instructors spend quality time giving you personalized feedback. We will be closely watching your progress within the course so that you can take the appropriate steps you need—as an individual—to become a confident, knowledgeable, and conscientious yoga instructor.

Our Level 1 and Level 2 programs are registered with Yoga Alliance and 200 and 500 hours. Every Ananda graduate can register with the Alliance as “Registered Yoga Teacher.” We believe that, in time, this Registry will lead to more yoga teaching opportunities for you.

More important, Ananda’s is the only training in the highly regarded yoga tradition of Paramhansa Yogananda. We’ve spent more than 25 years making our YTT into a first-rate expression of that tradition – a dynamic blend of professional training and personal growth.

If the literature and graduates’ testimonials don’t tell you enough, please call to talk with one of our program staff, or talk to a graduate near you.

To receive certification as a Level 1 Ananda Yoga Teacher, students must:

  1. Attend all required classes and activities: morning and afternoon classes 6 days per week, evening classes 3-4 nights per week, 1-2 classes on Sundays, and a number of additional guided practice sessions that are not shown individually on the sample schedule.
  2. Satisfactorily complete all reading assignments, written assignments on each of the first 2 weekends of the program, and a short in-class quiz at the end of the course.
  3. Demonstrate the skills and attitudes of an Ananda Yoga teacher. This includes satisfactory performance in the student teaching sessions.
  4. Agree to follow the Code of Ethics for Ananda Yoga Teachers.
  5. Pay all course fees in full.

Ananda Yoga is about adapting the asana to the person, not forcing the person to do something inappropriate for his or her body. In this spirit, you need to be able to do the asanas covered in this course in ways that are appropriate for your own body and health conditions.

This may mean modifying some of the asanas, perhaps significantly in some cases, but only rarely does it mean not doing any version of the asana at all. However, you will need to know how to teach all the asanas covered in this course.

Not at all. We sincerely respect all spiritual paths, and we welcome anyone who gives that same respect to our tradition, whatever his or her path may be. Of course, you should realize that AYTT takes place in the context of Ananda’s spiritual tradition, which emphasizes the time-honored approach of yoga as a tool for the Divine Quest.

Participation involves practicing a variety of yoga techniques associated with Ananda’s tradition, such as meditation and chanting as well as asana and pranayama.

Yes. This course takes place within the tradition of Paramhansa Yogananda and his direct disciple, Swami Kriyananda. Participants should be open to learning and teaching this  approach to yoga postures and yoga philosophy. Those who come from a different tradition—or no tradition at all—should register as far in advance as possible in order to learn and practice those techniques before the course begins; we will send those links to you before the course web page opens. Then your course experience will unfold much more naturally, and your teaching and personal practice will benefit much more.

Please note: We do not ask that you discontinue your current yoga practices if they are different; we simply ask that you do the practices that are required for this program.

You must arrive for the opening session at 7:30 pm on the first day of the program. Plan to depart after lunch (12:30 pm) on the last day. Better still, arrive early for a day or two of Personal Retreat to get rested and completely ready for the experience (this is especially important for those traveling a long distance).

Also, please consider a day or two of Personal Retreat after the program. It’s a perfect way to begin to “digest” the transforming experience of the training, and it will smooth your transition back to your usual lifestyle. Many students have wished they’d planned ahead for this, since airline reservations often cannot be changed without extra cost.

Yes, most graduates do. In AYTT, you’ll learn to teach about 40 asanas and pranayama techniques, as well as how to combine those practices into safe, effective, enjoyable yoga classes for beginning students.

Yes. Ananda’s Level 2 AYTT is registered at 500 hours with Yoga Alliance. It consists of 300 hours of training beyond Level 1, offered in a modular format, with modules lasting from 2 to 12 days. For more details, see the full requirements for Ananda Yoga teachers.

  • If you cancel or reschedule at least 21 days before your scheduled arrival, $200 of your deposit remains as a credit for one year, and $100
    is forfeited. If you cancel or reschedule with shorter notice, the entire deposit is forfeited.
  • If you cancel after arrival, the cost of room and board for 2 nights will be forfeited and you will receive a refund on the remainder of your tuition and room and board, upon return of the program manual. 

More Questions? Please email us.

tingling-after-meditation

AYTT was a course in how to live. It not only taught us how to teach but how to deepen our own practice so that we become what we are teaching.

AYTT was a course in how to live. It not only taught us how to teach but how to deepen our own practice so that we become what we are teaching.

— Trina, North Augusta, SC

Trina, North Augusta, SC

Graduate Testimonials

Michelle
Ashland, OR
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Ananda's YTT is more than learning to teach yoga – it is about learning to live your yoga. The breadth and depth of the program astounded me. I can’t imagine a more complete program. Your program is really the holistic approach for those who want to transform their lives.
Jesse
Tuscon, AZ
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I knew that my time in the Ananda Yoga Teacher Training (AYTT) course would be life-changing...The people in the course were amazing, and all of The Expanding Light facilitators were incredible...My testimonial to this is that I am going to pass it on. I am so inspired to give back, because what I have received here is too much for me to keep locked inside of me. I leave here with open eyes and an open heart, and with overflowing joy.
Dennise
Minden, NV
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I’ve had university courses that were not as comprehensive and well done as this. AYTT was a life changing experience for me. I learned more than merely the correct way of doing yoga postures; I learned the very essence of yoga itself, from every perspective. This 4 weeks was the most enjoyable and magical 4 weeks I have spent in my life.
Katherine C
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I was deeply impressed with how the teachers really help each student overcome their obstacles (spiritual, mental, physical) to achieve certification.
Anaya
Stratford, Ontario
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All the teachers are fine and gifted people, who live their lives with great integrity and with a spirit of dynamism and generosity I’ve rarely witnessed within a training environment.
Kelly Whitcombe
England
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This is an extremely inspirational insightful course for any yoga student whether for teaching or self-nurturing, deeply spiritual all would benefit greatly from participating in Ananda Yoga.
Ginger
Houston, TX
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My experience at Ananda has given me back my life. I remember now the dynamic person I was born to be. “I leave here full of faith in myself and God; with God in myself and with the tools to create a life of harmony and joy. Yoga is a way of life – not just an exercise class. If done the Ananda way, everyday, it will change who you thought you were.”
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Program Details

Ananda Yoga® Teacher Training

Online Pre-Course, 1 Month Intensive In-Person

Dates: July 5 – Aug 4, 2024

Location: The Expanding Light Retreat, Ananda Village, CA

All-Inclusive Cost (tuition+accomodations/meals):

Tent/RVStandard SharedStandard PrivateDeluxe SharedDeluxe Private
$3,980$5,270$7,280$6,740$9,500

Mandatory online component: A month before the program begins, you’ll be given access to the AYTT online pre-course webpage. There you will find additional assignments (video presentations, reading assignments, and self-quizzes), which you’ll have access to throughout your stay with us. Expect to spend 1-2 hours each week during your 4-week stay, completing some online assignments. We encourage you to get started on these assignments early as your schedule will be busy while on campus.