A Good Yoga Teacher in Rishikesh? Try Surinder Singh's Class

I gotta be honest, I have a big ego problem. Every time that I go to a yoga class I'm always judging the teacher and his/her class. I find myself with my cup completely full (full of preconceived ideas and judgments). I try to empty it but it is quite hard for me. Luckily from time to time, I meet a good teacher with whom I can naturally become very humble and just break my cup. This was my experience with Surinder Singh. From my point of view a really good Hatha Yoga teacher in Rishikesh.

(update Jan 2019) I met Surinder again in October 2018 and I had an interview with him. To watch the interview please visit: Interview with Surinder Singh, Hatha Yoga Teacher in Rishikesh.

I came back to Rishikesh looking for a good yoga teacher or an intensive yoga course to improve my practice but June and July are not the best months. Most of the good teachers leave Rishikesh and the courses are closed until October when the season starts again. I had a few classes with a couple of teachers but I was not satisfied until I found Surinder Singh thanks to "Whereiscallie's" blog.

About Surinder Singh

Surinder is an Indian Yogi, a Sikh. He has a robust body, long hair and long beard (according to the Sikh tradition), which gives him the ideal look of a yogi but he dresses like any regular guy with jeans and t-shirts. He looks very humble and spiritual. Before starting the class he always takes his time to be still and connect within.

Surinder's yoga class in Rishikesh

His class is excellent and what I like the most is that he does not only have a very good knowledge of asanas but he also knows yoga philosophy and he can give quite deep talks regardless his basic English.

During the class when he shows us a new posture he would ask "Do you know why we perform this posture?" And then he would give an interesting exposition on the deeper meaning of the asana. Each one of his classes is like a workshop or seminar. You get everything, asanas, and philosophy, in one single class.

At the end of the class after the closing prayer, he would ask if we have any questions and he would ask us to sit closer. He would take his time to answer any of our questions and then he would talk about any yoga philosophy subject that he might feel inspired to. It feels like he tries to give the best of himself in each class and share as much knowledge as possible.

He likes to focus a lot on alignment. While we would perform an asana he would walk around the whole hall making adjustments to each one of us to ensure that we are doing the asana correctly, even while performing simple postures like neck rotations! His adjustments are very gently, most of the time he doesn't even touches you, he just make a gesture with his hand to show us what we need to correct.

I normally get annoyed when a teacher comes to make me any adjustment (that's my big ego) but with Surinder I would actually expect him to look at my postures and make as many adjustments as possible. I guess I trust him because I believe that he has a good knowledge and experience on Hatha Yoga.

Surinder's yoga class price

Surinder charges 150 rupees for each class which last about two hours, actually almost two an a half hour because of the small lecture at the end. It is a quite a good price, most teachers charge 200 per class and they can't offer as much as Surinder does.

How to find Surinder Singh's Yoga Class

In the afternoon from 5pm to 7pm (or starting 5.30pm when it gets too hot) he teaches Hatha Yoga at the Raj Palace Hotel and in the mornings from 8.30am till 10.30 he teaches at the Hotel Rajdeep. Both hotels are located in the Ram Jhula area.

If you want to attend to Surinder Singh's Yoga Class and you don't know where to stay in Rishikesh then the Parmarth Niketan Ashram is a good option. The Raj Palace Hotel where he teaches in the afternoon is just behind the Parmarth Niketan Ashram.

For more information about Surinder you can check his website SwastiYoga.com.