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Ashtanga United Goa 2027

Honouring A Living Tradition: One Month Intensive Part 1

Ashtanga United Goa 2027 is a four-week collaborative gathering dedicated to the depth, intelligence, and evolving understanding of the Ashtanga Yoga tradition as a healing and therapeutic practice. Held in the vibrant yet grounding atmosphere of Goa, the retreat brings together two experienced teachers, Scott Johnson and Petri Räisänen, for a month of sincere practice, thoughtful study, and shared inquiry. They will also collaborate with additional guest teachers, widening the learning experience and offering different perspectives within the tradition.

Teaching is offered in a way that honours the individual. Each practitioner is met where they are, with careful attention to the realities of the body, age, and personal history with the practice. The approach is steady, kind, and deeply respectful of yoga as a lifelong path of learning, healing, and refinement.

Each week explores a different dimension of the tradition. Participants are welcome to join for a single week or immerse themselves in the full four-week journey. Practitioners of all levels are welcome to attend.

Retreat Schedule

***Please note that the timings of classes may be changed and adjusted to best nourish the teaching environment and the student. Additional activities not mentioned on the schedule may be added. 

Saturday 13 March to Saturday 27 March 2027
Arrival Day
14.00:  Students will have access to the rooms
18.00:  Welcoming meeting followed by dinner. All students should try to participate in this first get together.

***The welcome meeting will begin at 6pm on the arrival day (Saturday), the first Yoga class is on the Sunday morning.  The last yoga class is on the final Friday morning of the retreat, and you’re free to leave anytime after that.

Week 1 – Therapy & Healing
The body is not an obstacle to the practice. It is where the practice happens.

This week turns toward the therapeutic and mindful intelligence within the Ashtanga systems and works with:
– How to listen to the body as a language.
– How to understand energy.
– How to adapt postures.
– How to work with injury, age, and the accumulated history each body carries.

The teaching is practical and honest. We look at what helps, what hinders, and how to make the practice sustainable over a lifetime.

Sunday 14 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
16.00 – 16.50:  Meditation & Pranayama
17.00 – 18.30:  Workshop: Understanding the Mindful, Therapeutic and Energetic Dimensions of Ashtanga
18.30:  Dinner

Monday 15 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
16.00 – 16.50:  Meditation & Pranayama
17.00 – 18.30:  Workshop: Working with Injury & Limitation
18.30:  Dinner

Tuesday 16 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
Afternoon off
18.30:  Dinner

Wednesday 17 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
16.00 – 16.50:  Meditation & Pranayama
17.00 – 18.30:  Workshop: Adapting Practice for Age & Longevity
18.30:  Dinner

Thursday 18 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
16.00 – 16.50:  Meditation & Pranayama
17.00 – 18.30:  Workshop: Recovery, Rest & the Intelligent Body
18.30:  Dinner

Friday 19 March
07.00 – 09.00:  Led Class
09.00 – 10.00:  Pranayama then Open Discussion
10.00:  Breakfast
Afternoon off
18.30:  Dinner

Saturday 20 March
09.00:  Breakfast
Rest Day
18.30:  Dinner

Week 2 – History & Philosophy
To practice well, it helps to know where the practice comes from.

This first week traces the roots of the Ashtanga lineage: its texts, its teachers, and the questions that have shaped it over time. We look at the Yoga Sutras and other spiritual texts not as doctrine but as living companions. We ask what the tradition of yoga was always trying to offer, and importantly what that means for us now.

Sunday 21 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
16.00 – 16.50:  Meditation & Pranayama
17.00 – 18.30:  Workshop: Introduction to the Living tradition
18.30:  Dinner

Monday 22 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
16.00 – 16.50:  Meditation & Pranayama
17.00 – 18.30:  Workshop: The Yoga Sutras as a Living breathing text
18.30:  Dinner

Tuesday 23 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
Afternoon off
18.30:  Dinner

Wednesday 24 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
16.00 – 16.50:  Meditation & Pranayama
17.00 – 18.30:  Workshop: Philosophy in Practice – How Ashtanga and Philosophy Live Together
18.30:  Dinner

Thursday 25 March
07.00 – 09.30:  Mysore Practice
10.00:  Breakfast
16.00 – 16.50:  Meditation & Pranayama
17.00 – 18.30:  Workshop: Philosophy in Practice: An Open Discussion

Friday 26 March
07.00 – 09.00:  Led Class
9.00 – 10.00: Pranayama then Open Discussion
10.00:  Breakfast
Afternoon off
18.30:  Dinner

Saturday 27 March
9.00:  Breakfast
Check Out

***Whether you come for one week or four, you are welcome here. The community that forms around sincere practice is its own kind of teaching.

About The Teachers

Petri Räisänen is an internationally renowned and respected Ashtanga yoga teacher. Petri started practicing Ashtanga yoga in 1989 and teaching in 1991. He is the co-owner and director of Astanga Yoga Helsinki, Finland (established in 1997). Petri lives in Helsinki, Finland with his wife Wambui Njuguna-Räisänen and their two sons Sesam and Sumu. He has been a regular practitioner in Mysore India since 1996 and has received a teacher authorisation from K. Pattabhi Jois and Sharath Rangaswamy (Jois) in 2001.

Throughout his yogic path Petri has studied with many Ashtanga yoga instructors such as Derek Ireland, Radha Warrell, Lino Miele, Gwendoline Hunt, Eddie Stern, R. Sharath Jois and K. Pattabhi Jois. Petri focuses on integrating healing and therapy with yoga, meeting the student’s individual needs and guiding them throughout  their progress.His friendly, relaxed behaviour and intuitive perception gives an open, energetic and meditative atmosphere to his classes. Petri’s teaching gives you an opportunity to experience the wholeness of the practice, and his teachings aims to lead to an experience of deep concentration (pratyahara) and meditation (dhyana).

Petri has been written two books on the subjects of Ashtanga Yoga. First one “Ashtanga Yoga- In the tradition of Sri K. Pattabhi Jois” was first published in Swedish in 2005 and in English in 2013. The intermediate series book “Nadi Shodhana” was released in Finnish in 2008 and English in 2017. Both books are written from the interviews with K. Pattabhi Jois and R.Sharath Jois. They illustrate uniquely the Primary and Intermediate series practice, benefits and tradition as it is taught in Mysore, India.

Petri started studying the Finnish Folk-healing tradition called Jäsenkorjaus (Bone-setting), with the Finnish healing masters in 1990. In addition, he learned energy healing and cupping. He also studied Swedish massage, Naturopathy, Natural Cosmetics, Reiki, Reflexology and Hawaiian (Kahuna) Shamanism. His broad knowledge in various bodywork systems and healing is deeply integrated in his teaching of ashtanga yoga.

Scott Johnson has been practicing yoga since 1999. He is the co-founder and director at Stillpoint Yoga London which he established in 2009. Stillpoint is one of only two dedicated Ashtanga Yoga self practice spaces in London. Scott has taught Mysore Style Ashtanga Yoga since 2004 and at Stillpoint since it opened. He was introduced to the practice of Ashtanga yoga by John Scott in 2002 and studied with him for over fifteen years.

Scott is authorised to teach the primary and intermediate series of ashtanga yoga by Manju Jois and has a deep connection to the ancient practices of pranayama and vedic chanting that Manju shares. Scott has also undergone extensive Mindfulness training under the tutelage of Cathy Mae Keralse at Clear Mind International, gaining their level 3 certificate in Mindfulness and Compassion in 2015.

Scott teaches with encouragement, insight and integrity to the teachings of Ashtanga yoga and mindfulness that he has had access to. His deep love of the contemplative side of these practice creates a rich, nurturing environment and he is deeply dedicated to the healing power of yoga and mindfulness in the people that he is fortunate to meet.

Scott sees movement and mindfulness as the same, a deeply holistic approach to discovering our own unique patterns. He brings these insights into every class he teaches. His devotion and dedication to these practices assists practitioners in discovering how contemplative practice can unfold not only personally on the mat, but also to find deeper meaning in their daily lives.

Scott is a poet and creator of Stillpoints: A podcast with Scott Johnson and the People Of Yoga YouTube films where he engages in inspiring conversations with those whose lives have been changed by yoga and contemplative practices.

Booking Information

Please read the Terms & Conditions before booking a retreat.

Accommodation Options

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