Karma Yoga Exchange Programme

Live with us. Work with us. Practise with us. Give back.

A meaningful way to live, serve and experience Yoga in India.

There are times in life when we begin to ask different questions. What is the purpose of what I am doing? What can I give rather than take? Can I use my time, energy and skills in a way that is meaningful to others?

At SWAN, we believe that Yoga offers a way to explore these questions through action.

Karma Yoga is the Yoga of selfless action. It is action performed without attachment to personal gain, with awareness, responsibility and a willingness to give oneself to something larger than oneself.

The Karma Yoga Exchange Programme at SWAN gives you the opportunity to live within our residential Yoga and Ayurveda campus in Assagao, Goa, and become part of the community that keeps it running.

You may work in the kitchen, help in the garden, welcome guests at reception, support administration, contribute your professional skills to our digital work, help maintain the spaces, or serve wherever your abilities are most useful.

The work may be simple. It may sometimes be demanding. But when performed with the right attitude, even an ordinary task becomes a practice of Yoga.

More than volunteering

This is not simply a volunteer holiday in India, a free place to stay or a conventional work exchange. You are not coming to SWAN simply to receive accommodation in return for a few hours of work. You are coming to participate, contribute and serve.

Karma Yoga is traditionally understood as action without expectation of personal reward. You give your time, energy, skills and attention without constantly asking, “What do I get in return?”

And yet, something often does come in return. A quieter mind. A sense of belonging. A feeling of usefulness. Greater appreciation for simple things. A deeper connection with other people. And perhaps, most importantly, a renewed sense of peace, purpose and fulfilment.

This is the Yoga of the heart: learning to give without keeping an account of what you will receive.

Become part of the SWAN community

SWAN is a living residential Yoga ashram in Assagao, North Goa, where teachers, students, Ayurvedic practitioners, guests and Karma Yogis share the same campus and participate in the daily rhythm of the centre.

The environment follows the principles of the traditional Gurukula system, where learning is not limited to a classroom or Yoga Shala. Practice, study, work, daily living and interaction with teachers are all part of the experience.

As a Karma Yogi, you become part of this community:

• You eat with everyone else.
• You practise asana when your responsibilities allow.
• You participate in the rhythm of the ashram.
• You share the work that keeps the campus functioning.
• You meet people from different parts of the world who have come to SWAN for different reasons, but who share an interest in Yoga, Ayurveda and a more conscious way of living.

There is something special about working together for a common purpose. The person preparing vegetables in the kitchen, the person tending the garden, the person welcoming a guest at reception and the person maintaining the Yoga Shala are all contributing to the same space. This is Karma Yoga in everyday life.

What does Karma Yoga mean?

Karma Yoga is not about the type of work you perform. It is about how you perform it.

You may be washing dishes, answering an email, preparing a room, planting vegetables, welcoming a guest or working on a professional project. The outer action may be completely different, but the inner principle remains the same:

• Work with awareness.
• Work with responsibility.
• Work without unnecessary expectation.
• Do what needs to be done.
• Do it well.
• And offer the action to something beyond yourself.

At SWAN, this approach is part of the wider understanding of Yoga as a way of life, rather than Yoga being limited to asana.

Where can you contribute?

We welcome people with different backgrounds, practical abilities and professional skills. The most important question is not simply what qualification you have, but what you can genuinely contribute to the community.

Bring the skills you already have

One of the beautiful things about Karma Yoga is that you do not have to become somebody else in order to serve. You can bring what you already know.

• A chef can serve through the kitchen.
• A gardener can serve through the land.
• A designer can serve through creative work.
• A photographer can help tell the story of the centre.
• A good organiser can bring order to daily operations.
• A warm and responsible person can make a guest feel welcome.
• Someone who simply enjoys working with their hands can help care for the campus.

Your professional skills are valuable, but so are patience, reliability, kindness, willingness to learn and the ability to work as part of a community. There is always something that needs doing.

What you receive

Karma Yoga is not performed with the expectation of receiving something in return. Nevertheless, living this way can bring its own rewards. You have the opportunity to experience:

• Life within a traditional Yoga ashram environment
• Daily interaction with Yoga teachers and practitioners
• Traditional Hatha Yoga, meditation and other yogic practices, as your responsibilities allow
• The opportunity to learn about Ayurveda and yogic living
• Time in the natural surroundings of Assagao, North Goa
• A community of like minded people from different parts of the world
• The experience of contributing to something meaningful
• A simpler rhythm of life
• The opportunity to discover how service can become a spiritual practice

For long term Karma Yogis, accommodation and meals are provided as part of the exchange arrangement. The precise arrangements depend on the role, duration and requirements of the programme and will be discussed with selected applicants.

Karma Yoga, Yoga and the search for purpose

Many people come to Yoga looking for something that goes beyond physical health. They may have achieved many of the things they once wanted, travelled extensively, built careers and created comfortable lives, yet still feel that something is missing.

Yoga asks a different question. Not simply, “What can I achieve?” But also: “What can I give?” Karma Yoga provides an opportunity to explore that question through everyday life.

When we work only for ourselves, the mind can become occupied with achievement, recognition and personal reward. When we learn to work for the benefit of others, something can begin to change. The work becomes an offering.

The kitchen becomes a place of service. The garden becomes a place of service. The reception becomes a place of service. Cleaning becomes a place of service. Professional skills become a place of service.

And gradually, ordinary life itself becomes part of the practice. This is why Karma Yoga is sometimes described as the Yoga of the heart.

This is a working ashram

It is important to understand what you are applying for.

SWAN is a working residential Yoga and Ayurveda centre, not a holiday resort. The centre follows the principles of a traditional residential ashram and Gurukula environment, with teachers, students and guests sharing the daily environment. Karma Yogis are expected to participate responsibly in that environment.

There may be early mornings. There may be work that is repetitive. There may be tasks that are not glamorous. There may be days when you would rather do something else. This is part of the practice.

Karma Yoga is not about choosing only the work we enjoy. It is about learning to approach necessary work with awareness, steadiness and a spirit of service.

If you are looking primarily for cheap accommodation in Goa, a free holiday, a social stay or a flexible travel experience with a few hours of work attached, this programme is probably not what you are looking for.

If, however, you are looking for a Yoga volunteer programme in India where you can live within a genuine Yoga environment, contribute your skills, learn through daily life and explore the meaning of selfless service, we invite you to consider applying.

Long term Karma Yoga positions

We particularly welcome people who can make a meaningful commitment to the centre.

• Current intake: October 2026 to May 2027
• Minimum commitment: 1 month
• Longer commitments: three months or longer preferred, particularly for key roles

Longer stays allow you to become familiar with the rhythm of SWAN, take greater responsibility and experience Karma Yoga as an ongoing practice rather than a short volunteer experience. Applications are reviewed carefully and positions are limited.

The roles open at the moment, what we provide and what to send us are all set out below.

Who should apply?

We are looking for people who are:

• Responsible and dependable
• Mature in their approach to work and community living
• Willing to participate fully in the daily rhythm of SWAN
• Comfortable working as part of a team
• Open to traditional Yoga and yogic discipline
• Willing to perform both simple and skilled tasks
• Able to commit to the agreed period
• Interested in giving rather than simply receiving
• Respectful of the teachers, guests, staff, campus and traditions of SWAN

Previous Yoga or ashram experience is helpful but not essential. What matters most is sincerity, responsibility and the willingness to serve.

Short term creative collaboration

We also welcome experienced travel influencers, bloggers, photographers, videographers and content creators for selected short term creative collaborations.

These are different from the long term Karma Yoga positions and are intended for people with an established professional portfolio and a genuine interest in communicating the experience of traditional Yoga and Ayurveda. Please include:

• Your portfolio
• Relevant previous work
• Audience information and reach
• Your social media channels
• A clear proposal describing what you would create for SWAN

Creative collaborations are selective and considered individually.

How to apply

Please do not send a one line message simply asking whether you can volunteer. We read applications properly, and we would much rather receive a thoughtful application from someone who has understood what Karma Yoga at SWAN means. Please send us:

1. A short introduction. Tell us who you are, where you are from and why you are interested in Karma Yoga.
2. Your skills and experience. Tell us what you can contribute. Include your CV or professional background where relevant.
3. The role or roles you are interested in. Kitchen, garden, reception, housekeeping, administration, digital and creative work, or another area where you believe you can contribute.
4. Your available dates. Tell us when you can arrive and how long you can commit.
5. Your Yoga experience. Tell us about your experience with Yoga, meditation, Ayurveda or ashram life, if any.
6. Your intention. Most importantly, tell us why you want to spend this period of your life practising Karma Yoga at SWAN.

For short term creative collaborations, please also include your portfolio, audience information and proposal.

Email swanyogagoa@gmail.com with the subject “Karma Yoga Application”, or reach us on WhatsApp or by telephone at +91 8007 360 677.

Apply by Email

Applications are reviewed carefully. Please read the programme and roles before contacting us.