Anand Prakash Yoga Ashram is the Rishikesh home of the Akhanda Yoga tradition, founded in 2007 by Yogrishi Vishvketu and his wife Chetana Panwar. The ashram sits in the Tapovan area of Rishikesh, on the road that climbs above the Ganga toward the foothills, in a quieter pocket of the city than the busy Lakshman Jhula corridor. Yogrishi Vishvketu was raised at his family ashram in the Punjab and trained for years in the Kayavarohan and Akhanda traditions before establishing Anand Prakash with the goal of teaching a complete classical yoga method, the eight limbs intact, to international students. The Akhanda Yoga method, which means whole or unbroken yoga, is a structured sequence developed by Yogrishi Vishvketu that integrates asana, pranayama, mudra, mantra, relaxation, and meditation into a single practice rather than treating asana as the main event with the others as add-ons. The ashram teaches the method through residential retreats, regular yoga classes for short-stay guests, and a well-known 200-hour and 300-hour Akhanda Yoga Teacher Training that draws students from around the world. The campus is a multi-story building with rooftop terraces overlooking the foothills, a yoga hall, dining room, residence floors, and a small temple. The atmosphere is more contained than the larger Rishikesh ashrams. Capacity is in the range of fifty to seventy guests at a time rather than hundreds, and the resident community includes Yogrishi Vishvketu and Chetana when they are in residence, longtime acharyas, and karma yogis. Programming includes daily classes open to drop-ins, weekend silent meditation retreats, multi-week teacher trainings, themed retreats on chakra, mantra, and Ayurveda, and a steady annual rhythm built around the seasons and Hindu festivals. For international students who want classical Indian yoga in Rishikesh with a clear curriculum, real teachers from the lineage on site, and a smaller, more contained setting than the largest ashrams, Anand Prakash is one of the more reliable choices. The Akhanda method itself is one of the better-organized syntheses of the eight limbs available in modern Indian yoga, and the teacher trainings are widely respected. Many graduates go on to teach Akhanda Yoga at studios in North America and Europe, which has built a small global network that returns to the ashram for advanced study.
The day opens with a morning sadhana from six to eight that combines mantra, meditation, pranayama, and asana, followed by breakfast in silence. Mid-morning is reserved for karma yoga, study, or a second class. Lunch in silence, afternoon yoga or pranayama class, evening Ganga aarti at sunset on the ghats, dinner, and evening satsang or meditation. The schedule is fuller during teacher trainings, which add classroom teaching, anatomy, and philosophy modules across the day. The Akhanda Yoga method runs through everything. Each asana session integrates pranayama, mantra, and short meditation rather than presenting asana as a separate practice. Pranayama instruction covers the foundational practices of nadi shodhana, kapalabhati, bhramari, and bhastrika, with more advanced practices introduced in the longer trainings. Meditation is taught with mantra, breath, and chakra visualization. Silent retreats hold full noble silence between sessions. Karma yoga is part of every multi-day stay, light service in the kitchen, the dining room, or the grounds. Posture options are wide and accessible to first-time students.
The line runs through Yogrishi Vishvketu's training in the Akhanda Yoga and Kayavarohan traditions, with deep roots in his family's Punjabi yogic heritage. Akhanda Yoga as a method is his synthesis of the classical eight-limbed practice into a sequenced form intended to keep all the limbs in working contact rather than letting asana dominate. The ashram's dharma draws on Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, the Bhagavad Gita, and Tantric ritual practice, and chanting and mantra are central to the daily form. Senior acharyas trained in the lineage carry teaching when Yogrishi Vishvketu is traveling, and many graduates of the teacher trainings have become teachers in the line themselves.
Students seeking a 200-hour or 300-hour teacher training in a structured classical method, taught by teachers from the lineage in its original Indian setting.
Yogis who want classical yoga's full structure, with mantra, pranayama, and meditation given the same weight as asana, rather than a modern asana-led program.
International travelers who want Rishikesh ashram life without the scale of the largest institutions, with fifty to seventy guests in residence at most.
Guests arrive at the ashram gate and check in to one of the residence floors. The campus is compact, so orientation is quick. The daily schedule begins early, and the morning sadhana from six to eight is the central practice of the day. Phones are asked off in the yoga hall and during aarti, and quiet hours are held overnight. Dress is modest, with shoulders and knees covered. Many guests join the wider Rishikesh community for shopping, river bathing, and visits to nearby temples in their free time, which the ashram supports rather than discourages.
Accommodations include shared rooms and a smaller number of private rooms with attached bathroom across the residence floors. Hot water is available, and the rooms are clean and modest in the standard Indian ashram style. All meals are pure vegetarian, sattvic, prepared without onion or garlic, served three times a day in the dining room. Dietary needs accommodated when noted at registration. The campus includes a yoga hall, rooftop terraces with views toward the foothills, and a small temple.
Programs are priced per night for short stays and per program for retreats and teacher trainings, with rates set to be reachable for international students while supporting the ashram's running costs. Karma yoga work-exchange is available for students who want extended stays and are able to commit to daily seva. Scholarships are considered case by case, particularly for students from countries where the standard rates are out of reach. Teacher dana is invited at the close of programs separately from the program fee.
A contained Rishikesh ashram where the full eight-limbed practice runs through every class, taught by teachers from the lineage that developed it.
Yes. Akhanda Yoga is the method developed by Yogrishi Vishvketu that integrates asana, pranayama, mudra, mantra, and meditation into a single sequenced practice. It draws on the classical eight-limbed framework of Patanjali and the Tantric ritual tradition. The ashram is the original residential center for the method and the source of its teacher training.
He teaches at the ashram for a portion of each year and travels internationally for the rest. The ashram website publishes his teaching calendar in advance, so students who want to study with him directly can plan their visit accordingly. Senior acharyas in the lineage teach when he is away, and the daily schedule continues unchanged.
No. The daily classes are taught at a level accessible to first-time students, with modifications offered in every session. The teacher trainings assume some prior asana practice but no prior teaching experience. The ashram has hosted thousands of international students across all experience levels.
Anand Prakash sits in the Tapovan area, a quieter neighborhood above the Lakshman Jhula bridge, walking distance from the river ghats and the broader Rishikesh sadhu and yoga community. Guests are welcome to walk the wider area in their free time, attend other ashrams' aartis, and visit the temples without pressure to stay on campus.
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