Kundalini retreats in Canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden

Kundalini yoga combines breathing techniques, repetitive movements, held postures, chanting and meditation into set sequences called kriyas. It looks and feels quite different from most yoga classes, with more breath and sound and fewer classic poses.

You get an intense, unusual kind of practice: rapid breathing that leaves your hands tingling, arm holds that test your patience, and chanting you feel humming in your chest. Many people leave feeling buzzing and clear, or deeply relaxed, sometimes both. Because most of it happens seated or lying down, you do not need to be flexible or strong to join in. It suits you if you want your practice to feel like an experience rather than a stretch.

Classes typically run 60 to 90 minutes and follow a set shape: an opening chant, warm-ups, a kriya (a fixed sequence of breath, movement and postures), a relaxation, often to a gong, and a meditation with mantra, sometimes 11 minutes or longer. Expect repetitive movements held for one to three minutes at a time, fast breathing such as breath of fire, eyes closed much of the time, and chanting in Gurmukhi, the script used for Punjabi. Facilitators often wear white and sometimes a head covering; you do not have to. You may get warm, but the sweat is usually modest.