Plan your stay
Visiting Shankar Prasad
We are in Bankikodla village, about 5 km from Gokarna. All are welcome to visit, experience, rest, participate and stay; please give us a quick call before you come.
How to reach
Getting to the ashram
Shankar Prasad Ashram is in Bankikodla village, about 5 km from Gokarna on the Karnataka coast, set just behind Anand Ashram High School, on the same roadside.
Goa, Mumbai, Mangalore or Bengaluru
Dabolim (Goa) is about 3 hours by taxi, Manohar (Mopa, Goa) about 5. We can arrange a trusted village taxi: send us your flight details.
Gokarna Road, Kumta or Ankola
Any train on the Konkan line. Gokarna Road is 20 minutes away by auto-rickshaw; Kumta and Ankola then bus or taxi.
Gokarna Cross
Overnight sleeper buses run often from Mumbai and Bengaluru to Gokarna Cross, then an auto or our driver to Bankikodla.
All are welcome to visit, stay, or come for lunch. For a meal, or to meet someone in particular, please call ahead on +91 80953 29129. To stay, email swamiyogaratna@gmail.com or WhatsApp the same number. Send us your flight or train details and we will have a taxi waiting.
Ashram lifestyle
Simple living, high thinking
To find your Higher Self, lose yourself in the service of others.
The ashram is a place to work on yourself, inwardly and outwardly. It runs as an open spiritual family, we eat, chant, meditate, sing, work and play together, and every guest is asked to take part in the life of the house.
Come with a genuine interest in spiritual life. You do not need any prior yoga or meditation experience, only a receptive attitude. If you are after a beach holiday, Gokarna is fifteen minutes away and a better base for that.
We live simply on an organic, eco-friendly farm, and we are working towards 100% self-generated power: solar, wind, gobar and a Bengal boiler.
- An open spiritual family: we eat, chant, meditate, work and play together
- No prior yoga or meditation experience is needed; come with an open mind
- Dress modestly: loose, comfortable clothes covering chest, shoulders and knees; men wear a shirt at all times
- A kurta with pyjama pants suits ashram life; please avoid tight or revealing clothing
Accommodation
Where you'll stay
Four kinds of room, across the heritage building and the farm, from a simple mat-and-fan stay to a private sadhana kutir. Every stay includes three vegetarian meals and beverages, chanting, Yoga and Yoga Nidra sessions, the weekly havan, seva, local excursions, and use of the library and Wi-Fi.
Simple ashram stay
Manasa
₹1,000 / night · guest
- For committed long-term volunteers, or simple budget-friendly stays
- 5 private rooms + 1 dorm (Kailash), inside the heritage building
- Mat & bedding, pedestal fan, shared bathrooms downstairs, natural light
- Part-time volunteer ₹600 · Full-time volunteer ₹300
Rooms & dorm
Ganesh Prasad
₹1,500 / night · guest
- For short-term visitors, elderly guests, or those wanting peace and privacy
- 2 private rooms + 1 dorm, near the heritage building
- Comfortable bed, ceiling fan, attached bathroom, veranda; Wi-Fi on request
- Part-time volunteer ₹1,000 · Full-time volunteer ₹800
Newly built
Green House
₹3,000 / night · guest
- 4 new rooms, 2 upstairs with kitchenettes & balconies, 2 downstairs with verandas
- Bed, ceiling fan, attached bathroom with hot water, study table, Wi-Fi
- Rooms with hot water and Wi-Fi
- Part-time volunteer ₹2,500 · Full-time volunteer ₹1,500
Private sadhana retreat
Kutir
₹2,500 / night · guest
- A heritage earthen-style room, about 80 m from the main building, near the farm
- Quality mattress, ceiling fan, attached bathroom, study table
- Kitchen space and a veranda, quiet and private for sadhana (spiritual practice)
- Part-time volunteer ₹2,000 · Full-time volunteer ₹1,500
Rates are per person, per night, and may vary slightly with season, occupancy and availability.
Options for staying
Ways to stay
Volunteer, part-time volunteer, guest, working stay, homestay, retreat or long-term. Each is described below.
Karma yoga
Volunteer
Minimum one month, preferably three. About 6 hours of karma yoga (selfless work) a day: the farm, animal care, maintenance, office work, marketing and fundraising.
Karma yoga
Part-time volunteer
About 4 hours of karma yoga a day, across the same kinds of work. More time is left for your own practice.
Guest
Guest in the ashram
One hour of karma yoga (selfless work) a day, with time for your own sadhana.
Remote work
Working stay
Keep your remote job while you are here, contributing as a guest or a part-time volunteer.
Homestay
Guest in the homestay
A separate guesthouse residence. Help with light daily cleaning (about half an hour) and meal clean-up; room and board are all-inclusive.
Groups
Retreats
Custom short- and long-term packages for groups, focused on yoga and meditation.
First visit
Soft Landing in India
An introductory program for first-time visitors to India, covering safety, local culture and travel recommendations.
Community
Long-term stay
Minimum three months, for those seeking a lasting role in the community, operations, farming or project management.
Rates for each type of stay are on request. Please write to us.
Happy house rules
House rules
We ask you to read, understand and agree to these Happy House Rules before staying, simple guidelines for smooth community living that support everyone's spiritual practice.
- Treat all other residents and staff with compassion and respect.
- Take part fully in the daily schedule.
- Know your karma jobs for the day and do them.
- Don't take anything that isn't yours without asking first.
- Put things back in their proper place.
- Keep your room and the house clean and tidy, pick up and wash after yourself.
- Care for things gently, and report any breakages.
- Look after any books you borrow and return them to the library.
- Help each other get chores done, including clearing up after every meal.
- Remove your shoes before entering, or wash your feet if you go barefoot; clean feet only indoors.
- Ask before taking food from the kitchen; store your own supplies, named, in the dining room.
- If something's running low, tell us as soon as you can so it goes on the shopping list.
- Conserve water. If it runs out, tell us; please do not switch on the pump yourself.
- Keep the outside doors closed to keep mosquitoes, bugs and dogs out.
- Don't learn or teach other practices without Swamiji's permission.
- Enjoy your food fully, in silence; try your karma yoga in silence too.
- Keep silence after evening chanting until after breakfast; it is a good time for your own meditation.
- Turn off all lights and fans if you're the last person leaving a room.
- Absolutely no smoking, alcohol or intoxicants inside or near the campus.
- Follow the dress code: loose, modest clothes covering chest, shoulders and knees.
- The ashram is for getting to know yourself, not for starting relationships with other residents.
- Tell the office when you leave campus and when you will return. Please be back by 7:00 pm for dinner, 7:45 pm if you are not eating.
- For supplies from town, please give your shopping list and money to Shyam.
- Want to do something differently from usual? Please ask Swamiji first.
- If you are unsure of anything, please ask.
* Visiting from outside India? Please bring your passport and visa. Indian law requires us to report every foreign guest to the authorities on Form C within 24 hours of arrival, so the office will ask for these when you get here.
Gokarna & surrounding
The temple town, five kilometres away
Bankikodla sits just five kilometres from Gokarna, an ancient temple town on the coast. There are scores of temples to explore, gorgeous beaches to laze on, markets to prowl and weekly festivities to enjoy.
Gokarna & Kudle
Gokarna Beach, with Rama Thirtha Mandira at the cliff end, and the quieter sweep of Kudle Beach.
In and around town
Mahabaleshwara, Maha Ganapathi, Koti Thirtha, Venkataramana and Bhadrakali among them, and Ammanavara Temple right here in Bankikodla, near the ashram.
The weekly Sante
The weekly market (Sante) at Melinakeri, near the Check Post. A good morning for fruit and vegetables.
Closest to us: Ammanavara Temple in Bankikodla, the Alladi Mosque opposite the ashram, and the hilltop church at Hannehalli–Gattige with Masti Temple just below. Ask us for directions.