Satyam is a Registered Yoga School with Yoga Alliance
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New Teacher Training Programme Coming to Satyam in Spring 2026!
Teaching Yoga & Mindfulness to Children, Teens & Families
With Chiraswa Darking, Hermione Fairbairn & Julie Pons
This 95 hour programme offers a comprehensive, thorough, and experiential training in facilitating yoga and mindfulness to children, young people, and their families. The course is carefully designed to ensure participants can plan, structure and deliver sessions, with skill, integrity and authenticity.
The course covers the physical and philosophical aspects of yoga - including movement, breath, meditation, deep rest, sound, the subtle body, and the ethical framework within the 8 Limbs of Yoga. The course also draws on varied sources from within holistic child development, to psychotherapeutic principles, to create a curriculum that is rich, fun and enlightening.
The programme is open to professionals already working with children, including school teachers and other school roles, social workers, child therapists, etc. It is open to yoga teachers, or experienced yoga practitioners, and we are also opening this programme to parents or grandparents, wishing to share these practices with the children in their lives.
At least 6 months experience of yoga is required before the start of the course (apply now for the Satyam Foundation Programme, for a comprehensive introduction to yoga).
Participants will emerge from this training with the knowledge and the tools to facilitate engaging, fun, uplifting and deep sessions for children, young people and families, whether that be in their communities, within school or other professional environments or in their own homes. Professionals will be able to integrate the tools into existing frameworks when working with children.
The course covers the physical and philosophical aspects of yoga - including movement, breath, meditation, deep rest, sound, the subtle body, and the ethical framework within the 8 Limbs of Yoga. The course also draws on varied sources from within holistic child development, to psychotherapeutic principles, to create a curriculum that is rich, fun and enlightening.
The programme is open to professionals already working with children, including school teachers and other school roles, social workers, child therapists, etc. It is open to yoga teachers, or experienced yoga practitioners, and we are also opening this programme to parents or grandparents, wishing to share these practices with the children in their lives.
At least 6 months experience of yoga is required before the start of the course (apply now for the Satyam Foundation Programme, for a comprehensive introduction to yoga).
Participants will emerge from this training with the knowledge and the tools to facilitate engaging, fun, uplifting and deep sessions for children, young people and families, whether that be in their communities, within school or other professional environments or in their own homes. Professionals will be able to integrate the tools into existing frameworks when working with children.
topics include:
~ Physical Movements & Shapes (Asana)
~ Breath Awareness & Techniques (Pranayama)
~ Creativity, Play, Songs & Storytelling
~ Mudra, Mantra, Mindfulness & Meditation
~ Rest & Relaxation (Yoga Nidra)
~ Subtle Yoga Anatomy
~ Yoga Philosophy & Ethics
~ The Anthropology of Childhood
~ Anatomy & Physiology
~ Emotional Literacy
~ Understanding Needs & Challenging Behaviour
~ Trauma Informed Practice
~ Safeguarding, Radical Care & Decolonisation
~ Working with Additional Needs & The Neurodiversity Paradigm
~ Integrating Yoga & Mindfulness into School Communities
~ Setting up Classes in the Community
~ Observation & Teaching Practice
~ Breath Awareness & Techniques (Pranayama)
~ Creativity, Play, Songs & Storytelling
~ Mudra, Mantra, Mindfulness & Meditation
~ Rest & Relaxation (Yoga Nidra)
~ Subtle Yoga Anatomy
~ Yoga Philosophy & Ethics
~ The Anthropology of Childhood
~ Anatomy & Physiology
~ Emotional Literacy
~ Understanding Needs & Challenging Behaviour
~ Trauma Informed Practice
~ Safeguarding, Radical Care & Decolonisation
~ Working with Additional Needs & The Neurodiversity Paradigm
~ Integrating Yoga & Mindfulness into School Communities
~ Setting up Classes in the Community
~ Observation & Teaching Practice
dates & times
The training is held over 4 weekends (Friday - Sunday), with extra hours to observe sessions:
MARCH 2026
FRIDAY 13TH, SATURDAY 14TH, SUNDAY 15TH MARCH
FRIDAY 20TH, SATURDAY 21ST, SUNDAY 22ND MARCH
APRIL 2026
FRIDAY 11TH, SATURDAY 12TH, SUNDAY 13TH APRIL
FRIDAY 17TH, SATURDAY 18TH, SUNDAY 19TH APRIL
Fridays & Saturday timings are 11am - 7pm & Sundays are 11am - 6pm
Plus attendance at 2 x Family Yoga and 3 x Children's Yoga sessions during the Easter holidays (dates tbc)
MARCH 2026
FRIDAY 13TH, SATURDAY 14TH, SUNDAY 15TH MARCH
FRIDAY 20TH, SATURDAY 21ST, SUNDAY 22ND MARCH
APRIL 2026
FRIDAY 11TH, SATURDAY 12TH, SUNDAY 13TH APRIL
FRIDAY 17TH, SATURDAY 18TH, SUNDAY 19TH APRIL
Fridays & Saturday timings are 11am - 7pm & Sundays are 11am - 6pm
Plus attendance at 2 x Family Yoga and 3 x Children's Yoga sessions during the Easter holidays (dates tbc)
PAYMENT
EARLY BIRD: £1900, or 6 instalments of £316.66 (November, December, January, February, March, April)
*Book by November 30th 2025*
STANDARD PRICE: £2250, or 4 instalments of £562.50 (with payments complete by April 2026)
Concession & Solidarity Spaces are available for this course - please contact [email protected]
*Book by November 30th 2025*
STANDARD PRICE: £2250, or 4 instalments of £562.50 (with payments complete by April 2026)
Concession & Solidarity Spaces are available for this course - please contact [email protected]
The Satyam Yoga Foundation Programme, consisting of 8 sessions, offers a solid foundation for anyone wishing to learn and deepen their understanding and experience of yoga. The programme is open to anyone with an interest in yoga. The focus of the course is well-rounded, and offers something for anyone, no matter their level of prior experience. Daily sessions include physical yoga asana, as well as breathing practices, meditation techniques, deep rest, as well as theory, with detailed handouts which make up the course manual. Over the period of 4 months, you will deepen your knowledge and experience. Weekends also include time for questions, sharing and integration of what has been covered, as well as a shared lunch together. Clear, monthly homework is set, giving practitioners the opportunity to further integrate and deepen their knowledge, whilst developing their own practice at home and individual relationship with yoga.
The type of yoga taught on the course is a meditative style of hatha yoga. Although the practice will generally be slow, you will develop strength, as well as flexibility, mobility and focus. Plus all the other benefits that come with a regular yoga practice.
Each participant will receive a neti pot (for nasal cleansing) that will support the clearing of the nostrils as a preparation for pranayama practice (breathing techniques). This is always a surprisingly fun and uplifting session, despite first time nerves!
The course is supportive, clear, inclusive, deep, and fun! You will be transported through a process of inner growth and transformation, within the framework of the 8 Limbs of Yoga.
The type of yoga taught on the course is a meditative style of hatha yoga. Although the practice will generally be slow, you will develop strength, as well as flexibility, mobility and focus. Plus all the other benefits that come with a regular yoga practice.
Each participant will receive a neti pot (for nasal cleansing) that will support the clearing of the nostrils as a preparation for pranayama practice (breathing techniques). This is always a surprisingly fun and uplifting session, despite first time nerves!
The course is supportive, clear, inclusive, deep, and fun! You will be transported through a process of inner growth and transformation, within the framework of the 8 Limbs of Yoga.
the foundation programme includes:
~ Asana (physical practices & postures)
~ Pranayama (breath control / energy expansion)
~ Mudra & Bandha (energetic seals & locks)
~ Yoga Nidra (conscious meditative deep rest)
~ Meditation
~ Shatkarma (yogic cleansing)
~ Yogic Anatomy & Embodied Philosophy
~ Yogic Text: The Yoga Sutras
~ Sadhana - daily self practice
~ Homework - reading, studying and reflections
Feel free to contact Chiraswa if you have any questions. If you wish to apply, please complete the booking form and email it directly to Chiraswa.
~ Pranayama (breath control / energy expansion)
~ Mudra & Bandha (energetic seals & locks)
~ Yoga Nidra (conscious meditative deep rest)
~ Meditation
~ Shatkarma (yogic cleansing)
~ Yogic Anatomy & Embodied Philosophy
~ Yogic Text: The Yoga Sutras
~ Sadhana - daily self practice
~ Homework - reading, studying and reflections
Feel free to contact Chiraswa if you have any questions. If you wish to apply, please complete the booking form and email it directly to Chiraswa.
payment
£1,000, payable in one go or in instalments (4 x £250). Concession = £800 (4 x £200).
One Solidarity space of £200 is available per course - please email [email protected].
One Solidarity space of £200 is available per course - please email [email protected].
Testimonials from previous participant of the Foundation Programmes
What did you value about the course?
"As the course has unfolded, it has become clearer to me with every month how very carefully thought through the overall structure is. We have been guided gently and with a clear purpose. Having monthly teaching weekends is perfect for allowing me to absorb the material and the practices and really feel and live the connections between theory and practice."
"The program is very well organised for each weekend and was always followed according to schedule. From the daily schedule outline to the homework to do for the following month, the hand-outs were very clear and detailed."
"Chiraswa lives what she teaches. She shows up as her genuine authentic self, not as some aloof all-knowing Teacher with a capital T. On the one hand, this makes her an inspiration. On the other hand, because she isn’t afraid to be human and fallible, it makes the teachings feel attainable, not some remote ideal."
In which way did the course meet your expectations?
"This course is exactly about what the title promises. It provides a comprehensive guidance on what Yoga is about, a solid foundation to get a grasp on the very wide range of topics that the study of Yoga entails. Chiraswa’s knowledge is an amazing guidance to help you find your way in the jungle of intertwining yogic concepts, which can feel really intimidating at first. It still feels very complex, but I definitely feel more confident that I now have the tools to guide me in my studies."
"I expected there to be a group of interesting and interested women taking part and I was not wrong! As I had done a couple of courses with Chiraswa before I knew what to expect from her teaching style. I felt well informed about the content of the course as I had had plenty of opportunity to find out about this and the pre-course information was good. The complexity and the breadth of what I need to learn in the training is huge and I feel like I am only just beginning to scratch the surface of this."
What would you recommend about the course to others?
"The group, the content, the YOGA breadth! The philosophy, the methodology to spiritual practice, the lovely centre at Satyam, and the breadth and depth of Chiraswa’s knowledge, delivered with enthusiasm and humour! Awesome!"
"As the course has unfolded, it has become clearer to me with every month how very carefully thought through the overall structure is. We have been guided gently and with a clear purpose. Having monthly teaching weekends is perfect for allowing me to absorb the material and the practices and really feel and live the connections between theory and practice."
"The program is very well organised for each weekend and was always followed according to schedule. From the daily schedule outline to the homework to do for the following month, the hand-outs were very clear and detailed."
"Chiraswa lives what she teaches. She shows up as her genuine authentic self, not as some aloof all-knowing Teacher with a capital T. On the one hand, this makes her an inspiration. On the other hand, because she isn’t afraid to be human and fallible, it makes the teachings feel attainable, not some remote ideal."
In which way did the course meet your expectations?
"This course is exactly about what the title promises. It provides a comprehensive guidance on what Yoga is about, a solid foundation to get a grasp on the very wide range of topics that the study of Yoga entails. Chiraswa’s knowledge is an amazing guidance to help you find your way in the jungle of intertwining yogic concepts, which can feel really intimidating at first. It still feels very complex, but I definitely feel more confident that I now have the tools to guide me in my studies."
"I expected there to be a group of interesting and interested women taking part and I was not wrong! As I had done a couple of courses with Chiraswa before I knew what to expect from her teaching style. I felt well informed about the content of the course as I had had plenty of opportunity to find out about this and the pre-course information was good. The complexity and the breadth of what I need to learn in the training is huge and I feel like I am only just beginning to scratch the surface of this."
What would you recommend about the course to others?
"The group, the content, the YOGA breadth! The philosophy, the methodology to spiritual practice, the lovely centre at Satyam, and the breadth and depth of Chiraswa’s knowledge, delivered with enthusiasm and humour! Awesome!"
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the Satyam yoga Teacher Training Programme |
satyam is a registered yoga school and this 500 hour training is accredited by yoga alliance
This course builds on the Foundation Programme, forming a two year process, preparing students to take on the role of the teacher. The aim is for participants to undergo a process of initiation and transformation, through the yogic tools, leading them to a place where they are ready and confident to teach and share the yogic practices with knowledge and integrity. Participants will emerge from the training with self-awareness and knowledge, and the highest skill in designing and leading their own yoga classes, courses and workshops.
Self practice (sadhana) forms a fundamental part of this course. You will be expected to be committed to a daily practice throughout the course, which includes a practice of self-enquiry, reflection and learning. You will also need time for reading and studying. In the second year you will set up your own weekly yoga class in the community (as well as have the opportunity to teach one session at Satyam), which will be assessed.
Rooted in traditional yoga, this course pays homage to the Indian Spiritual traditions from which yoga comes. With this clear foundation, as the course continues, students will be empowered to discover their own style and ways of holding space, according to their own life experience and areas of specialism. Each student will be encouraged to discover the aspects of yoga that really speaks to them and to use the teachings to serve their community in a meaningful way. An Independent Project will be designed in the second year where students choose a particular topic to learn more about. This will then be shared and presented to the rest of the group during the 4 day residential at the end of the course.
The course will cover some of the complex issues being explored within current yoga communities today, ensuring that practitioners are equipped to critically reflect on and analyse their role as a yoga teacher in the world today, and on the yoga industry in general. The course is led by Chiraswa Darking, Satyam's co-founder and director, and she will be joined by a team of truly inspirational international teachers. Held in the beautiful space of Satyam Yoga Centre in the heart of Cambridge (with two of the modules taking place online), this course offers a unique and comprehensive initiation into the many aspects of the profoundly powerful and transformative practices of yoga, and how to safely guide others with integrity.
Self practice (sadhana) forms a fundamental part of this course. You will be expected to be committed to a daily practice throughout the course, which includes a practice of self-enquiry, reflection and learning. You will also need time for reading and studying. In the second year you will set up your own weekly yoga class in the community (as well as have the opportunity to teach one session at Satyam), which will be assessed.
Rooted in traditional yoga, this course pays homage to the Indian Spiritual traditions from which yoga comes. With this clear foundation, as the course continues, students will be empowered to discover their own style and ways of holding space, according to their own life experience and areas of specialism. Each student will be encouraged to discover the aspects of yoga that really speaks to them and to use the teachings to serve their community in a meaningful way. An Independent Project will be designed in the second year where students choose a particular topic to learn more about. This will then be shared and presented to the rest of the group during the 4 day residential at the end of the course.
The course will cover some of the complex issues being explored within current yoga communities today, ensuring that practitioners are equipped to critically reflect on and analyse their role as a yoga teacher in the world today, and on the yoga industry in general. The course is led by Chiraswa Darking, Satyam's co-founder and director, and she will be joined by a team of truly inspirational international teachers. Held in the beautiful space of Satyam Yoga Centre in the heart of Cambridge (with two of the modules taking place online), this course offers a unique and comprehensive initiation into the many aspects of the profoundly powerful and transformative practices of yoga, and how to safely guide others with integrity.
Course Modules
hatha yoga &meditation~ Asana (physical practices & postures)
~ Pranayama (breath control / energy expansion) ~ Mudra & Bandha (energetic seals & locks) ~ Yoga Nidra (conscious deep sleep meditation & deep relaxation) ~ Meditation ~ Shatkarma (yogic cleansing) ~ Working with the subtle body |
trauma informed practice~ Neuroscience of Trauma
~ Trauma Theory ~ Systems of Oppression ~ Attachment Theory ~ Power Dynamics & Practice yogic anatomy & embodied philosophy |
culture & philosophy~ Vedas and Upanishads; Buddhism and Jainism; Bhagavad Gita and Epics
~ Patanjali's Yoga Sutras ~ Sankhya and Vedanta Philosophy ~ Hinduism: What is Religion, What is Spirituality? ~ Sadhus/Yogis: Indian Practitioners ~ Tantra; Mysticism, Consciousness, Altered States ~ Medieval Yoga ~ The Development of Modern Yoga ~ Introduction to Sanskrit ~ Ayurveda sadhana / self enquiry~ Self Practice
~ Cyclical Wisdom ~ Personal Transformation anatomy & physiology |
~ The Chakra system
~ The Koshas ~ The Prana Vayu ~ The Nadis ~ Kundalini ethics, inclusion & accessibility~ Decolonization Toolkit
~ Accessible Yoga teaching methods, skills & practice~ Teaching & Learning Styles
~ Class Planning, Sequencing & Creativity ~ Instructions, Demonstrations & Adjustments ~ Teaching Practice, Support ~ Teaching Assessments - Audio Recordings, Session Leading & Written Work |
~ Introduction to the Physiology & Anatomy of Yoga
~ Spine / Foot & Knee / Pelvis & Hips / Shoulder Girdle & Arm Lines / Breath & Pranayama / Fascia
~ Spine / Foot & Knee / Pelvis & Hips / Shoulder Girdle & Arm Lines / Breath & Pranayama / Fascia
Dates for the next Teacher Training Programme will be decided soon. Application is open to those who have previously studied the Foundation Programme.
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Payment includes:
~ All weekend sessions ~ Lunch at all weekend sessions ~ A mala (meditation beads) ~ Neti pot (nasal irrigation pot) ~ Course manual ~ Assessments ~ Residential Retreat - accommodation and food |
Not included in payment:
~ Travel & accommodation for weekend sessions ~ Books ~ Insurance ~ First Aid Course ~ Any extra teaching assessments that are required |
Teaching Training Faculty
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Chiraswa Darking - Course Director / Hatha Yoga & MeditationChiraswa has been a dedicated yogini for almost 30 years, and has been teaching adults, teens, children and families for 15 years. She is an Experienced Registered Yoga teacher (E-RYT500) with Yoga Alliance. Her focus is on the meditative aspects of yoga and her classes blend traditional yoga asana, creative and somatic movement, yin yoga, pranayama, meditation and yoga nidra, woven together in a way that facilitates the experience of connected, embodied presence. Chiraswa completed her teacher training from 2009 - 2011 with her late teacher Swami Pragyamurti Saraswati, in the tradition of the Bihar School of Yoga (Satyananda Yoga), receiving initiation (diksha), including mantra diksha and a spiritual name (Satya Roopini) from Swami Satyasangananda Saraswati, in 2009.
Chiraswa has qualified in Children & Teen Yoga & Mindfulness and Yin Yoga. She has a degree in Social Anthropology and The Study of Religions from SOAS (2002), and training in Counselling Skills & Therapeutic Approaches to Psychotherapy, Group Facilitation with the Gestalt Centre and numerous other trainings connected to her role within the Cambridgeshire Local Authority, where she worked in supportive and therapeutic roles with children, young people and their families for many years. Chiraswa has always been interested in critically understanding the world in which we live and is passionate about radical transformation on a personal and collective level. She is the Director and Founder of the Satyam Yoga Centre, alongside her husband Paul. In 2022 Chiraswa created the Satyam Yoga Teacher Training course, which brings together all of her passions in a comprehensive and enlightening two year programme. |
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Yoli Maya Yeh - Ethics, Inclusion & AccessibilityYoli Maya Yeh is a Yoga & Shiatsu Therapist (AOBTA, VYASA, Yoga for the Special Child) and an Educator in Comparative Religions and Global Studies (MA Comparative Religious Ethics). Raised in her family’s Native American spiritual teachings, Yoli spent twelve years of her young adulthood studying language, yoga, tantra, healing arts and meditation in India. A native of Chicago, she blends her understandings of Indigenous wisdom teachings, mind-body science, yogic discipline, and play into innovative learning programs for all ages and abilities. www.yogawithyoli.com @yoliyogini
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Anna Kharaz - Trauma Informed PracticeAnna is a licensed therapist and certified trauma sensitive yoga facilitator. In addition to seeing clients for therapy and yoga, she serves as an adjunct faculty member and supervisor for the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at the Justice Resource Institute in Massachusetts, USA. Anna has experience working with a culturally and clinically diverse population of children, adolescents, adults and families in domestic and international settings and has worked for research institutions such as Harvard Medical School, Boston Medical Center, The Trauma Center, National Institutes of Health, and the Veterans Administrations Hospital. Her approach to therapy, yoga and education draws from a background in neuroscience, continued education in mental health and psychology, and a lifelong commitment to better understanding human suffering, health and healing.
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Dr Matthew Clarke - Culture & PhilosophyDr Matthew Clark (MA, PhD) has been a Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies (University of London) since 2004. Prior to that he taught Hinduism there between 1999 and 2003. Since 2002 he has been lecturing on yoga at yoga centres in the UK, Europe, Israel, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and the USA. To date, he has presented lectures at yoga retreats, workshops and teacher-training courses for twenty-five different yoga teachers and organisations.
Matthew has published articles and books on yoga, soma and sādhus (yogis). His PhD, on a sect of sādhus (saṃnyāsīs), was published in 2006. His recent book, entitled The Tawny One: Soma. Haoma and Ayahuasca, was published in July 2017. Matthew has been visiting India since 1977, visiting around 1,000 pilgrimage sites and trekking about 2,000 miles in the Himalayas. He first engaged with yoga in the mid-1970s, and since 1990 has been regularly practising a form of Ashtanga Yoga. Matthew also writes songs, plays guitar, and makes records as Mahabongo. |
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Julie Pons Wood- Anatomy & PhysiologyJulie PONS WOODS is a Yoga Therapist, Anatomy Teacher and a Meditation Facilitator. She offers yoga therapy and anatomy workshops throughout England and Europe, teaches 2 online anatomy courses per year and welcomes private clients to her clinic online and in person.
As a Yoga Elder, she has been teaching yoga for over a decade. When she was 13, she was diagnosed with Scoliosis and had to go regularly to the physiotherapist to improve her posture and reduce her back pain. Life brought her to India for work from 2008 till 2010 where she discovered Yoga. Thanks to her teacher, she no longer needed to go to the physio, she had found her practice to manage her pain. So, as for many of us, she can say “Yoga changed how I look at my own life”. Her anatomy studies journey has been with Blandine Calais Germain (France), Thomas Myers and Leslie Kaminoff (US) in 2013 and over the last 7 years, she has deepened her empirical knowledge of the body with personalities like Gil Hedley (Dissection and Fascia - US), Todd Garcia (Dissection-US), Robert Schleip (Fascia research in Germany), Julian Baker (Functional Fascia- UK) and Jaap Van Der Wall (Embryologist - NL). |
plus extra teaching support from Satyam faculty & friends
For any questions and to return the form, please email Chiraswa at [email protected]
Satyam Yoga Reach Ltd. Registered Company Number: 14267988