I’m writing this on my balcony in the holy town of Rishikesh — nicknamed the birthplace of yoga — and feeling excited to start my 500 hour yoga teacher training in a few days at Rishikesh Yog Peeth. Here are some photos of my first full day in Rishikesh.
I walked into the heart of Rishikesh with some of the people from my course and drank Chai tea at the end of this bridge overlooking the river.
I bought some handmade chakra prayer flags for my wall and bought a book on the Ajna (third eye) chakra.
And added a mandala throw to my room which is starting to look a bit like a Wes Anderson filmset. Bring on clashing bright colours.
Following the flow of the holy River Ganges — which in Hinduism personifies the Goddess Gaṅgā.
People bathe in the River Ganges to wash away any sins from the body and mind — bringing them closer to the divine, and helping them to facilitate Moksha (liberation from the cycle of life and death).
I bought this hand painted postcard from an art shop. I’d been having a lot of elephant synchronicities in the run up to arriving in India so was instantly drawn to this. Elephants are said to symbolise patience, strength and stamina and the Hindu God Ganesh is the God of overcoming all obstacles.
And inside the art shop, I met a cute dog called Jack Sparrow. The owner rescued him from the streets of Delhi as a puppy and brought him back to Rishikesh where he’s melting the hearts of people like me.
