Two-week Ashtanga Retreat in Nepal with Joey Miles & Rachel Woolhouse
Join Joey Miles and Rachel Woolhouse as they return to Nepal for an extraordinary retreat into the Ashtanga yoga practice.
Taught by: Joey Miles, assisted by Rachel Woolhouse
Location: Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Pharping, Nepal
Cost: 220,000 Nepali rupees for both weeks, or 120,000 Nepali rupees for one week.
Joey Miles and Rachel Woolhouse return to Nepal with the perfect retreat to immerse deeply into the Ashtanga practice.
Hosted in one of the world’s most unique settings, a beautiful Tibetan Buddhist monastery, this two-week retreat allows you to truly nourish your personal journey whilst surrounded by the incredible energy of the Himalayas and the cultural and spiritual richness of Nepal.
Deepen your relationship to the Ashtanga practice, visit incredible sacred sites and be part of a spectacular and welcoming working monastery.
Daily asana practice will be complemented with in-depth technique discussions, optional morning meditation with the monks, Dharma philosophy, visits/hikes to some of the great pilgrimage sites nearby, and plenty of time for quiet contemplation and joyful connection with like-minded others.
The retreat is an opportunity to adjust your pace and perspective, to slow down, to experience life more fully through mindfulness, and to feel supported in your practice by dedicated teachers, by the sacredness of the place and by teaching in the complementary philosophies of Yoga and Buddhist Dharma.
Our only retreat this year to be offered over two weeks, this is a chance to immerse into your practice with two teachers whose attention to alignment, precision and subtle detail allow for the approach to be tailored to each individual.
The course will combine daily Mysore-style Ashtanga practice with sitting meditation, pranayama, restorative yoga and technique workshops to allow you to gain greater clarity and confidence in your practice.
Those able to join only one week have the option to sign up to either of the weeks: Joey Miles and Rachel Woolhouse will structure the teaching in a way that all are included.
Places will be allocated first-come first-served, and we highly recommend you apply early in order to have your first choice of option.
Who it is aimed at
All levels are welcome but you must have a regular Ashtanga practice and be comfortable in a Mysore class setting.
Retreat overview
Each morning there is the option to join morning prayers with the monks. This is followed by guided meditation and Mysore-style Ashtanga practice with Joey and Rachel.
In the afternoons, workshops will weave together pranayama, restorative yoga, technique, philosophy and theory to give a broader perspective on the yoga practice and shed light on how the practice works and how we can best integrate it into our lives.
Joey and Rachel will teach Mysore-style each morning with one day of rest between the two weeks. There will be three afternoon workshops each week.
There will be optional opportunities to experience the extraordinary location throughout the retreat, with excursions to sacred sites based locally and in Kathmandu, and dharma teachings from the monastery.
Joey Miles
Joey Miles came to yoga after a mis-spent youth pursuing the circus, martial arts and physical theatre, becoming an assistant to Hamish Hendry at Astanga Yoga London. During this time he studied annually with his Guru Sri K. Pattabhi Jois in Mysore and in 2004 was authorised to teach the Primary Series. From 2005-8 he taught the daily Mysore program at Triyoga, Primrose Hill, London.
In 2006 Joey began practicing Iyengar Yoga with Alaric Newcombe. The attention to alignment, precision and subtle detail has greatly influenced his practice, teaching and perception. In 2009 Joey set up and continues to run Yorkshire’s first 5 day a week Mysore program: Ashtanga Yoga Leeds. He has since been given Authorisation level 2 (blessing to teach the intermediate series) by Sharath Jois.
Grounded and approachable, Joey’s ‘common sense’ approach stems from his deep respect for the practice, combined with experimental knowledge of alignment and anatomy. Joey brings fresh eyes to your practice, giving guidance on how to make the sequence work for you. His pragmatism, humour and caring nature will leave you feeling inspired and deeply connected with your practice.
Rachel Woolhouse
In 2010 Rachel began practising Ashtanga yoga with Level 2 Authorised teacher Paul Kleesmaa, and upon her return to Leeds she began daily practice with Joey Miles.
She has since travelled to Mysore, India on four occasions to study with Sharath at the KPJAYI, the source of the Ashtanga method.
Rachel has been certified to teach by the British Wheel of Yoga and Yoga Alliance, having completed a two-year alignment focused Hatha Yoga training at Triyoga London. She trained as an assistant in Joey’s Mysore-style classes from 2013 – 2017 and now teaches weekly Mysore-style classes at their home studio as well as teaching together with Joey in Leeds.
Since her first yoga class, Rachel became aware of the powerful effect of yoga practice on her mental state and feels an immense gratitude for this practice, which has changed her life. It is this feeling of gratitude that motivates Rachel to teach.
The venue
This retreat is hosted in a Tibetan Buddhist monastery in the foothills of Nepal’s Himalaya’s – the gift of a unique collaboration with Mahalaya.
For Tibetan Buddhists, the hills of Pharping where we immerse for our retreat together is considered as sacred as Bodhgaya in India, as it is where the second buddha Guru Padmasambhava (“Guru Rinpoche”) attained the state of enlightenment, before going on to establish Buddhism in Tibet.
The monastery which is our home during the retreat makes important contributions to the preservation and sharing of the Buddhist teachings, and our stay there helps to fund education for the many young monks from remote areas of Nepal. The lovely guest accommodation has spacious and modern rooms, comfortable beds for deep and refreshing sleeps, all with attached bathrooms. The yoga space overlooks the rice paddies of the Kathmandu valley, and – when the weather is clear – gives us stunning views of the sunrise over the Himalayas.
It is the perfect place to go within and practice.
Accommodation is on a twin-share basis, and the retreat fee includes a delicious, vegetarian and substantial brunch and wonderful healthy dinner each day.
Course fee
The fee for the two weeks is 220,000 Nepali Rupees. At the time of writing, this equates to approx GBP £1,570. Payment details will be sent to you on confirmation of your place.
The fee is all-inclusive from when we pick you up centrally to when we return you to our meeting-point at the end. It includes: return transfer from central Kathmandu to the monastery in a comfortable private bus, twin-share accommodation for 13 nights, all your delicious vegetarian meals, world-class teaching from Joey Miles and Rachel Woolhouse, trips during the retreat.
For those joining us just for one week (either week, 7 days/6 nights), the fee is 120,000 – at the time of writing, approx £850. The weeks will run 27 March – 2 April, and 3 – 9 April.
Next steps
Simply complete the Registration Form and we’ll help you from there.
On securing your place with a deposit, we will also send you the retreat welcome pack, full of information to help you plan your visit.