The Kripalu Center
The Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health is a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to promoting the art and science of yoga to produce thriving and health in individuals and society.
For more than 30 years, Kripalu (kri-PAH-loo) has been teaching skills for optimal living through experiential education for the whole person: body, mind, and spirit. It is the largest and most established retreat center for yoga, health, and holistic living in North America.
Programs at Kripalu are led by many of the world’s most accomplished teachers in yoga, self-discovery, and holistic health and are designed to provide people with tools they can apply in their daily lives. Program topics include wellness, Ayurveda, nutrition, fitness, personal growth, relationships, meditation, spiritual practice, professional training, and much more. Yoga programs are offered for people at all levels, feature all yoga traditions and styles, and include therapeutic yoga, yogic anatomy, and trainings for teachers. Many Kripalu programs offer continuing education credits for professionals in fields such as social work, counseling, nursing, and massage and bodywork.
Kripalu is located in the town of Lenox near Tanglewood (the summer home of the Boston Symphony) in the Berkshire hills of Western Massachusetts. It is an hour's drive from the Albany, NY airport.
Kripalu offers one of the most comprehensive, inspired, and transformational yoga teacher trainings in the country. The 200-hour certification program is offered in a one-month intensive format or in two 12-day sessions.
The 500-hour Yoga Teacher Training is comprised of four 9-day modules. Modeled on the 200-hour program, the intensive modules include morning yoga sessions, practicum sessions, and mini-retreats, providing teachers with the opportunity to explore their own practice of yoga. Teachers who have studied 200 hours or more in another tradition and whose training meets recommended minimum standards of the Yoga Alliance, may be eligible for transfer credit toward the 500-hour Professional-level Certification.
The Kripalu Yoga Teacher Trainingis a Yoga Alliance registered school and its 200-hour Basic Certification and its 500-hour Professional-level Certification meet the Yoga Alliance's recommended national standards. The Yoga Alliance is an organization representing the major schools of yoga in America.
For a list of Kripalu Yoga teachers and studios in other cities, see Other Cities.