NEWS

At Himalaya Yoga Valley, we have embraced the philosophical and ethical yogic concept of “Seva” – service through yoga, as a driving force behind our why as an organisation. Our charity events, fundraisers, outreach work, and programs are not an add-on to our culture – but a foundation stone that sees our clients, teachers, and wider team reach for new heights of impact every year. As this comes to a close, we are delighted to reflect how we as a community of practitioners have had a global impact, beyond the mat, with our seva initiatives in Ireland and India.

Here is a round-up of how you, our clients, and our team have created lasting change through yoga in 2025.

Community as a Practice of Responsibility

When community is treated as practice, it moves beyond symbolic gestures. It asks for continuity, attentiveness, and patience. It asks us to return, even when there is little visibility, even when attention shifts elsewhere.

Rather than approaching social responsibility as a transaction, giving in order to be seen giving, we have practised it as an ethical orientation. We respond where relationships already exist, we return to the same places, and we stay in conversation. In this way, we ensure that we don’t measure responsibility by novelty, but by duration.

Yoga in the Park: Serving our Homeless Community

For over ten years, as a collaboration with Cork City Council, we have gathered each summer in Cork, Ireland, for Yoga in the Park, an event that signals summer has arrived and we get ready to stretch it out for Simon Community! . These classes are held outdoors and offered on a donation basis, open to anyone who wishes to join. The structure is intentionally simple, creating space for people to arrive as they are, to practise together, and to feel part of something shared. This event sees people of all backgrounds, ages, shapes and abilities come together to support our homeless population. 

Every contribution from these gatherings is directed entirely to Cork Simon Community, supporting people experiencing homelessness and those living in Direct Provision. Over time, this collective effort has raised nearly €100,000.

Yet the meaning of this practice extends beyond the total raised. It lives in the rhythm of return, in meeting on familiar ground, in mats being rolled out on grass that has held many summers before, in breath settling, bodies moving, and people recognising one another again. Coming together in Fitzgerald Park every Saturday has helped Simon Community to provide support to people in our communities experiencing homelessness. As well as fundraising for Cork Simon Community, we also support their key workers and volunteers with ongoing free yoga classes at our centres.

Responding Beyond Borders with Care

There are moments when responsibility extends beyond the local community. When global crises arise, we respond where help is urgently needed.

This has included fundraising during the COVID-19 crisis in India, supporting access to oxygen cylinders and essential medical supplies at a time when breath itself had become uncertain. We have also supported Médecins Sans Frontières, whose teams deliver medical care in regions shaped by conflict, displacement, and systemic instability.

We have approached these responses not as solutions, but as gestures of solidarity, grounded in the understanding that ethical action centres the need, not the institution.

Standing with Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Ireland

We continue to support MASI (Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland) through community fundraising and contributions from studio hires.

MASI advocates for the rights and dignity of people seeking asylum, many of whom live in Direct Provision under restrictive conditions. Our support reflects a belief we hold deeply: wellbeing cannot be separated from social and political realities. Yoga, when practised responsibly, cannot ignore the structures that shape safety, agency, and belonging.

Expanding Access to Education for Women in India

We have seen firsthand that there are barriers to accessing formal education for many women in lower-income communities in India. We believe that more women, and more indigenous practitioners of yoga, should be supported in reaching their goal of becoming yoga teachers- this is why we launched our scholarship program for women in India. We are proud to facilitate this through our 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training Program in Goa and through our Online Academy. We are proud to bridge this gap for aspiring teachers from diverse backgrounds.

Caring for Those Who Care for Others

We are proud to provide free weekly yoga classes for staff and volunteers at Good Shepherd Services, as well as for frontline workers and volunteers at Cork Simon Community.

This work begins with recognition. Care work accumulates in the body. Emotional labour, exposure to trauma, and sustained responsibility leave traces. Yoga, in this context, becomes less about optimisation and more about maintenance, a way to support those who carry the weight of care every day.

Our Annual Christmas Toy Drive

Alongside these ongoing commitments, our community comes together each year for a Christmas gift drive for children living in Direct Provision. Wish lists are shared. Individuals choose a child, purchase a gift, and ensure it reaches its intended recipient.

Throughout the year, we also donate yoga class vouchers, memberships, retreat places, and teacher training discounts to schools and charitable organisations. These gestures are small, relational, and repeated. Their strength lies not in scale, but in continuity.

Responsibility as an Ongoing Collective Practice

As this year comes to a close, we recognise that responsibility is not something we complete or resolve. It is something we return to, shaped by attention, relationship, and care.

Looking ahead to the coming year, our intention remains simple. To keep showing up where connection already exists. To continue listening, responding, and practising in ways that are steady rather than loud. In this way, community care remains not an ambition, but a practice, carried forward quietly, one day at a time.

We would like to close with a thank you to our community – we put the call out, and you show up, every time, with open hearts, embodying the true spirit of yoga! Let’s make 2026 our biggest year of giving yet.