Yoga Retreats

The conscious journey from Karma to Dharma

Yoga philosophy says that by fulfilling your Swadharma, your unique path, or calling in this life you earn good karma (merit ) and at the same time attain spiritual growth, progress, and fulfillment. Through our work we can fulfill our karma by performing our duty.

Uplifting topics during the retreat:

• What is your unique path?
• The Inner motivation, Purushartha
• Turning Karma into Dharma
• The right action

Join us for a celebration of Adi Shankaracharya, the great philosopher of Advaita Vedanta and creator of our lineage. Devotional ceremony (Puja) with meditation, mantra chanting, Arati (ritual with light) and Prasad (Sacred offering).

Free and open to all.

Prana is the vital force within all living beings. Controlling this powerful energy through the practice of Pranayama will energize the body and at soothe, calm and elevate the mind. Would you like to learn more about these important yogic concepts and better understand the theory behind the breathing exercises in our yoga classes? Join us for this workshop, learn how we experience and increase prana, and discover the tremendous benefits of Pranayama and receive helpful instructions for your own practice!

Some of the topics include:

• Prana: the universal life force
• How prana is experienced and expanded
• Prana: the link between the physical and astral bodies
• Benefits of the Pranayama practice
• The healing power of prana
• Useful instructions for the practice of pranayama

Gaining mastery over your thoughts is essential for mental, emotional and spiritual health. Explore the mysteries of the mind and learn to apply the practices of self- reflection, observation of the mind, concentration and meditation in your daily life.

Join us in this inspiring retreat and discover the power of thoughts and the laws of positive thinking.

Applying the principle of positive thinking into all of our activities can significantly improve our relationships and increase the quality of our life. Join us for this uplifting retreat and discover the power of thoughts; learn the basic tenets of Vedanta, the philosophy of Oneness, and explore practices that will help you to improve the quality of your mind, leading you to more calmness, greater wellbeing and further self-development.

Topics covered will include:

• The nature of thought and its inherent power
• Developing a healthy body-mind connection
• Samskaras: how habits are formed and how to transform them into positive forces
• How to create powerful positive affirmations
• Aims of life (purushartha): self-effort and karma
• Thought creates destiny: the self-transformative power of the mind

You wish to make positive changes in your life but you are facing seemingly insuperable resistance from your mind or your surroundings? This retreat has been designed especially for you. Through the systematic practice of yoga postures, breathing and relaxation, combined with mantra chanting and meditation, you will build up the inner strength necessary to transform your life. You will also study and practice the powerful science of positive affirmations, which you will be able to use at home to create a better life for yourself and your loved ones.

Challenges are an integral part of our lives. Would you like to learn how to face them with more confidence, strength, and grace? Over the course of this retreat, we will examine yogic tools that will help you tremendously in building inner strength, and learn to apply them in your everyday life for more positivity, peace of mind, and growth. The workshops will cover the following topics:

• Drawing strength from within
• Develop will power and determination
• Going beyond circumstances and despair
• As you think, so you become
• Experience the power of Love

Fasting is recognized as a powerful purification technique for the body but also as a deep spiritual practice. Come and join us for this retreat designed to cleanse the body and purify the mind. The supportive group setting as well as the ashram practices of yoga and meditation in a beautiful natural setting will create for you an enjoyable, renewing, and rejuvenating experience.

All the juices and vegetable broths will be freshly prepared from organic produce

Join us for a free yoga and nature day – a day to recharge and relax in the beautiful Laurentians mountains. Draw new energy through the yoga practice.  In this special celebration of the International Yoga Day join us at the Sivananda Yoga Camp in the pristine natural environment of the Laurentian mountains. Come and experience the power of yoga to bestow physical and mental health, elevate our mind and uplift our spirit, allowing us to to commune with humanity in the name of World Peace. You can choose from the following two options:

Program 1 (morning)

• 10.00 AM: Yoga Class
• 12.00 AM: Vegetarian Lunch
• 2.00 PM: Lecture on Yoga

Program 2 (afternoon)

• 2.00 PM: Lecture on Yoga: Yoga for inner Peace
• 4.00 PM: Yoga Class
• 6.00 PM: Vegetarian Dinner
• 7.30 PM: Meditation, Mantra chanting and talk on Yoga:
• Mantra Concert: Chant for world peace.

Asanas or yoga postures can bring countless benefits to the body and mind. They don’t only stretch the muscles and reduce stress levels, but also improve bodily functions, energize the body and mind and increase physical and mental strength. Join this unique retreat and deepen your yoga practice thanks to special yoga classes with specific themes and variations. In addition, there will be 30- minute Asana workshops each day for in-depth training in specific postures, and sessions during which we will learn different yogic techniques to develop will power and mental flexibility to better face the changing circumstances of our lives.

Topics covered will also include:

• Benefits of asanas on the various body systems
• Asana variations to increase the flexibility of hips and shoulder girdle
• Challenge yourself – try out some new variations
• How to balance muscle length and muscle strength
• Evacuate stress and tensions away through asanas

Go deep in the quest of spirituality to discover what is real happiness and how to truly overcome suffering. Learn through Jnana Yoga (the yogic path of knowledge): the power of Self-inquiry, the inquiry into the nature of reality. Learn methods to remove ignorance of who we really are and to free ourselves from limiting thoughts patterns.

During this retreat, we will explore the concepts of prana (vital energy), pranayama (control of the life force), and asanas (postures) to better understand the energetic principles underlying the functioning of our body and mind. Developing this understanding will help us elevate our minds and prevent negative and unhealthy patterns. Ultimately, it will lead to a yoga and meditation practice conducive to a happy and healthy mental life.

Topics covered will include:

• Prana, pranayama, and increased mental well-being
• Nadis (energy channels), chakras, and experiences in the astral body
• Physical, mental, and spiritual relaxation
• Mental flexibility and inner peace
• Cultivating healthy thought patterns

Disengage from the distractions of your busy life and immerse yourself in a 5-day yoga and meditation retreat set in the peaceful Laurentian mountains. Along with daily yoga classes, nutritious meals, and nature walks, you will learn how to establish a solid meditation practice that can help you regulate your emotions and gain greater clarity and balance in your life. You will leave feeling rejuvenated and equipped to continue your inward journey at home. This retreat is suitable for both beginners and experienced practitioners.

Kanti Devi (Yoga Acharya)
A direct disciple of Swami Vishnudevananda since 1969, she is the Yoga Acharya for the centers in South America and Canada. She is known for her charisma and dedication.

Topics Covered:

1. What is self-healing?
2. Healing the three bodies and five layers
3. Resilience in life struggles and stress
4. The yoga and Ayurveda way of life
5. Increasing and balancing prana
6. Learning lessons on karma
7. Going to the root causes of suffering
8. Sadhana: conscious training
9. Overcoming obstacles from the environment
10. Healing emotions and relationships
11. Cultivating selfless love
12. Finding your purpose
13. Pratyahara: sublimating habits and desires
14. Protecting and strengthening the mind (japa yoga)
15. Positive thinking in daily life
16. Meditation: what it is and what it is not
17. Self-inquiry and self-surrender to be free from karma
18. Satsangs and helpful connections

Swami Sitaramananda is an Acharya (spiritual teacher) of the International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centers and has been part of the lineage of Swami Sivananda and Swami Vishnudevananda for over 40 years. She is based at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Farm in Grass Valley, CA, USA, as well as at the Sivananda Yoga Resort and Training Center in Dalat, Vietnam.

Having traveled and taught in many countries, including India, Japan, China, Vietnam, and Russia, she has a deep interest in the teachings of classical yoga and Vedanta, particularly in mental and emotional healing. Swami Sitaramananda is an advocate for the effects of yoga and meditation on health. She created the Sivananda Yoga Health Educator Training Program, an 800-hour intensive program designed to bridge medical sciences and classical yoga. Her background is in social and community work in Canada.

In this Bhakti Yoga retreat, you will study and practice various devotional techniques, including ritualistic worship (Pujas), mantra chanting, and prayer, aimed at transforming negative emotions into unconditional and universal love.

You will also learn about the fundamental symbolic representations of the divine (Devatas) present in Hindu mythology and temple worship.
The retreat will culminate with the renowned annual festival of Kaavadi at the Subramanya Ayyappa Mariamman Temple, celebrating Lord Subramanya.

Most students practice yoga with the common goal of finding ease and grace in their movements, as well as strength and stability in their postures. Aligned postures are fundamental to achieving these goals while increasing health and vitality. Correctly aligning asanas unleashes the wisdom and healing power of yoga. Alignment begins with knowledge and is followed by its application in our postures.
These workshops are dedicated to sharing knowledge of alignment. They are fully experiential, conducted on-the-mat, and presented in a yoga class setting. The specific principles of postural mechanics and alignment are explored using cutting-edge applications of anatomy and exercise physiology, while remaining consistent with classical yogic philosophy.

We will explore the path of Raja Yoga as taught by Patanjali Maharishi in the Raja Yoga Sutras. This retreat will delve into the workings of the mind and the control of our thoughts. The scriptures present the five types of vrittis (thought waves) and the five klesas (sources of suffering), along with methods to harmonize our inner conflicts, resulting in a clearer and more focused mind.
These teachings offer a wonderful message of hope and encouragement, enabling us to rise above the stages of depression, turmoil, and fear, and to find a center of peace within ourselves—untouched by the changes and challenges of life.

Join us for a week of fun for the whole family, featuring adult and kids’ yoga classes, games, arts and crafts, and outdoor activities.
The entire family will have opportunities to enjoy canoeing, bicycling, and outings in the beautiful Laurentians. A dedicated team of ashram staff will run daily children’s yoga classes, provide snacks, and organize activities, allowing you to attend your own yoga class, meditate, or take time for personal reflection.

Important Note: Children aged 5 and under require parental supervision for all activities throughout the program.
Who Should Attend?
All family members are welcome, especially the kids! No prior yoga experience is needed.
Booking: Families with children must contact us directly to book their stay.