It is believed that after Bollywood, India’s greatest export to the rest of the world is Ayurveda and Yoga. I certainly cannot contend that claim, especially after visiting Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh during the week-long International Yoga Festival. Believe it or not, during the festival I found myself surrounded by so many tourists from around the world of so many varying colours and races I felt as if Indians had become a minority in the bounds of the Ashram.

1. Celebrate India - International Yoga Festival with Yatra.com
It is believed that after Bollywood, India’s greatest export to the rest of the world
is Ayurveda and Yoga. I certainly cannot contend that claim, especially after visiting Parmarth
Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh during the week-long International Yoga Festival. Believe it or not,
during the festival I found myself surrounded by so many tourists from around the world of so
many varying colours and races I felt as if Indians had become a minority in the bounds of the
Ashram.
However, I relished that opportunity to
interact with so many people from all
sorts of backgrounds with interesting
life stories of their own. Until then I had
pictured foreigners practicing Yoga in
their respective countries as something
exotic that they might have liked to
indulge in. However, after several discussions I grasped from several tourists how deep the
culture of Yoga has penetrated all over the world. Therefore, it was not surprising to find
several foreigners whose knowledge of Yoga far exceeded that of most Indians present. All in
all I can say that the experience of this festival far exceeded my expectations and I came back
home with a lot more than just an improved knowledge of this Yoga culture.
Rishikesh hardly needs an introduction for it is one of the most popular Indian tourist
destinations and attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists annually from around the world. It’s
famous for rafting, camping, water sports, temples,ashram, meditation and last but not the
least, Yoga. It has become extremely crowded over the years due to the ever increasing influx
of tourists but one can still find plenty of spots around the river Ganges which can provide a
measure of peace and space for contemplation and meditation that the tourists come looking
for.
However, if it’s absolute peace that you seek then this festival might not be for you. It does
tend to get crowded but it has its own advantages to balance the scales. To begin with, the
location of the ashram is right on the banks on Ganges and on top of that the ashram is
beautiful and huge because of which even with the huge crowd it doesn’t feel suffocating.
Then there is the exceptional Yoga program that includes over 70 hours ofYoga sessions in all
the eight limbs of Yoga, delivered by the most experienced Yoga gurus from around the world.
As expected Yoga sessions are accompanied by spiritual discourses by eminent spiritual leaders

2. of the country. But don’t worry because this is not all that’s offered, every evening there
is aarti on the banks of the Ganges followed by a true Rishikesh experience. In the true spirit of
Rishikesh there are campfires accompanied by song and dance. This was the time I used to
interact with all those amazing people.
Having individuals from so many cultures gather in the same place results in a mixed cultural
outpouring. I heard and saw and learnt so much that the stories I gathered there could go on
and on for weeks but since I have neither the time nor the energy to narrate the entire
experience I would like to end by mentioning just one thing.
As mentioned earlier you might not find that absolute sense of peace while you are there but
being exposed to so many myriad perspectives over such a short period of time will definitely
transform you as a person. And, that I think is an experience as valuable as any other.
This is Joy signing off,
You lot take care,
As always, Travel Safe and Travel Happy,
Until next time
Ciao