Yoga Nidra Teacher Training

This Yoga Nidra Teacher Training is a 41-hour yoga teacher training in Miramar, Florida, held at Yogi Hari's Ashram over a long weekend. It is led by Chitra Sukhu, a Yoga Alliance E-RYT 500 teacher and expert on Yoga Nidra, Ayurveda and yoga philosophy. It is written for yoga teachers who want to learn the fundamentals of Yoga Nidra, the practice often called "yogic sleep," and how to share it with students and the wider community.

The course draws on classic Yogic, Ayurvedic and Tantric texts, the teachings of Swami Satyananda and Swami Rama, and Chitra Sukhu's own discoveries. Graduates are prepared to offer Yoga Nidra to people dealing with stress, addiction, trauma, depression and insomnia. After completing the course, you may apply for 41 Continuing Education Credits from Yoga Alliance.

What to Expect

The training runs four days, from Friday afternoon to Monday evening, and the days settle into a steady ashram rhythm. Mornings begin at 6:00 with satsang, followed by Hatha yoga or Yoga Nidra practice, then breakfast at 10:00. A one-hour karma yoga session comes at 11:00, and a long lecture block runs from noon to 3:30. Late afternoons are given to Yoga Nidra practice with student teaching and feedback. Dinner is at 6:00, and the day closes with an evening satsang of meditation, chanting and teaching.

Friday opens with arrival and registration at 2:00, an introductory lecture, a first Yoga Nidra practice, dinner, and an evening satsang with Shri Yogi Hari. Saturday and Sunday build on daily practice and peer teaching, and on Monday a closing circle with final instructions follows the last teaching session at 5:00. Students may leave after that, or stay for dinner and satsang.

The hours are divided as follows:

- 18 hours of techniques, training and practice
- 8 hours of teaching methodology
- 4 hours of anatomy and physiology
- 11 hours of yoga philosophy, lifestyle and ethics

Lectures aim at a clear understanding of the Yoga Nidra process, and the practice itself works with emotional and psychic blocks and with the deep impressions known as samskaras. Each student gets ample time to practice teaching in a supportive setting.

About Chitra Sukhu

Chitra Sukhu is a daughter of Shri Yogi Hari and Leela Mata. She is registered with Yoga Alliance at the E-RYT 500 level and holds a Diploma in Ayurvedic Sciences from Kerala Ayurveda. She is also an accomplished Indian classical dancer. She leads retreats for adults and children around the world and founded New Age Kids Inc. Her work includes 10 guided meditation CDs and 6 mantra CDs, the children's book "Elven Rhyme - Journey Through Time," a handbook for parents and teachers called "The Way of the Child," and the play "To My Amazement." Former students describe her as a teacher who makes complex yogic ideas easy to grasp and who builds the confidence to start teaching right away.

About Yogi Hari

Baba Hari Dass (1923 to 2018), known here as Yogi Hari, was an Indian yoga master, silent monk and temple builder. He was trained in Patanjali's Ashtanga, Kriya yoga, Ayurveda, Samkhya, Sri Vidya, Tantra, Vedanta and Sanskrit. He took a vow of silence in 1952 and kept it all his life, communicating by writing. He wrote commentaries on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali and the Bhagavad Gita, along with essays, plays and children's stories.

The Setting

The training takes place at Yogi Hari's Ashram in Miramar, Florida. Breakfast and dinner are served daily. On-site accommodation is available, and those leaving after Monday's closing circle can arrange an overnight stay if their flight is the next day. Breakfast is served the following morning at 10:00.

Before You Go

The course is taught in English and is at an intermediate level. To receive certification, you need to have completed a Yoga Alliance certified 200-hour yoga teacher training. Anyone may take the course for personal learning without prior training, but a certificate is given only to those who teach a Yoga Nidra class to the group with proficiency.

Included are all teaching, daily satsang, Hatha yoga, karma yoga, and breakfast and dinner. Accommodation, travel and transportation to and from the ashram are not included.