THIS TRIP IS SOLD OUT, Please consider joining Hareesh in Karnataka Dec 11-22: www.hareesh.org/karnataka
Join us for a 10-day pilgrimage of the inner and outer landscapes of India!
with Hareesh Wallis and Hannah Muse
Back by popular demand, the Sacred India Tour is a journey unlike any you've experienced. We will visit incredible temples and sacred sites of Yoga and of Shaivism while engaging in deep practice and contemplation of spiritual teachings.
This time we travel to Tamil Nādu, the spiritual heartland of yoga. Sanskrit scholar Hareesh (Christopher Wallis), who first visited India more than 20 years ago, will be your guide to these sacred sites and their teachings, while yogini master teacher Hannah Muse will enliven your body and senses with a daily yoga and meditation practice.
You can relax into your experience knowing everything is all taken care of. The price is all-inclusive (except flight and tips), and every detail is attended to with loving care. We stay in luxurious hotels with a traditional flair, because why skimp on what might be the greatest pilgrimage of your life?!
Join us as we visit some of the most powerful sacred sites of South India and explore Tantrik philosophy right where it flourished over a thousand years ago.
Woven together with daily āsana practice and guided meditation, this journey will nourish your body, mind, and senses.
Who are our guides?
Hannah will be offering daily āsana practice and guided meditation. She is known for her profound devotion to waking up to the sacred that permeates everything and her nurturing way of weaving ancient wisdom + transformational ritual into everyday living.
Her classes skillfully weave mantra, pranayama, meditation, mudra, and philosophy throughout intelligently-sequenced, alignment-based flows – and her studies span traditions of raja, tantra, hatha yoga, as well as anatomy, ayurveda, the neuroscience of mindfulness, and much more, including various mystical traditions.
Hareesh (Christopher Wallis) will offer yoga philosophy discourse and accompany you on the entire pilgrimage. In addition to the experienced guidance of Hareesh we also have a local tour guide we’ve worked with for all our retreats who speaks fluent English and will be devoted to us for the entire trip.
Brief Itinerary:
Dec 27: Arrive in Chennai
Dec 28-29: Mamallapuram/Mahabalipuram
Dec 31-29: Tiruvannamalai
Jan 1-2: Chidambaram
Jan 3-4: Thanjavur
Jan 5-6: Madurai
Jan 7-9: Rameshwaram Extension
And there is an optional Rameshwaram Extension Jan 7-9th, where we will participate in am powerful water purification ceremony.
All historical and spiritual talks and guided meditations with Hareesh
All yoga and meditation with Hannah
All hotel rooms stays at heritage hotels and eco-resorts
All meals at the hotels and en route
Admissions to the monuments
Transportation in a comfortable air-conditioned tour bus
Local tour guide
Tips for hotel staff and waiters
Bottled water
All taxes
Flights
Still camera/video camera use fees in the temples (a few dollars at most)
Tips outside of our hotel- it is traditional to tip guides and drivers
Transport to and from the airport
You are held
India can be a wild ride. This retreat offers an opportunity to be held and guided in a way that allows you to put all of your energy into opening your heart to the teachings, sacred sites, and practices.
You will be in the best of hands: Hareesh, Hannah, trip coordinator Melissa Pontius, and local experts Southern Trails Ltd. have all worked together before on prior India trips with great success.
Melissa, our tour manager, will be sending emails with all of the important information, including flight and visa information, to ensure you are completely taken care of and prepared
When traveling to India do I need a visa?
You do need a visa; The process is becoming easier every year. There are two options- a regular multiple entry Visa, suggested for people who plan to be in India for over three months, or an E-Visa upon arrival, suggested for everyone else. If you choose the E-Visa option, we will receive an email with more information and specific info about when to submit your application.
Are there required or recommended vaccines?
Vaccines are not required but if you want to find out about recommendations then you're welcome to visit your Doctor or a travel clinic. We won't be in a malaria affected area on this tour but you may want to bring malaria pills with you just in case.
How much money should I bring with me?
Since your basic costs are already covered consider what you want to bring for tipping, any extra excursions you plan to go on, airport transfers, and shopping.
This option is for people who would like to share a room. You do not need to be traveling with someone to choose this option. If you are traveling with someone and you would like to share a room with them, you can specify that on the Registration Form at checkout.
This option is for people who would like to share a room. You do not need to be traveling with someone to choose this option. If you are traveling with someone and you would like to share a room with them, you can specify that on the Registration Form at checkout.
Upon arrival in India, you will be met by a friendly driver and taken to the beautiful hotel in the city of Chennai where the group will meet and prepare for our adventure together!