Reflection Laguna Beach, Calif.

Class began at dusk in a dimly lit studio facing Pacific Coast Highway as the yoga teacher appeared, adjusting the shawl draped around his shoulders, and took his seat on a quilted meditation pillow.

Because the sun was setting behind him, the teacher appeared in silhouette. I could only hear his voice as he guided us through the 90-minute Kundalini yoga class -- a series of meditations, chanting, vigorous breathing exercises and asanas (or postures).

"I want you to know that this is a safe place," the teacher, Cole "Raahi" Jacobs, told us midway through class. "You can feel whatever you need to feel. You are safe here."

I did. I was.

At the beginning of the year, I embarked on a two-month sabbatical to recover from a rough 2012. I needed to recharge and resolved to rest, spend time with the people I love most, and find some kind of physical practice that would be restorative.

Working out is not something that comes naturally to me -- in fact, I hate it -- but I have practiced yoga sporadically since college and thought yoga might be my wheelhouse.

I had not-so-great experiences in the crowded commercial studios where the main goal of the ancient Indian practice seemed to be attaining the perfect "yoga butt" rather than anything approximating enlightenment.

So I prayed, asking God to send me a teacher and a place to practice that would be right for me.

I had heard a new yoga studio had opened in town called Ritual Yoga Arts, where a more traditional style of yoga is taught and practiced with an eye toward spiritual, holistic health rather than tight buns.

Read more from the original source:
California yoga prodigy finds joy in service