Located upstairs of general surgeon Larry Peebles Kealakekua office is Big Island Yoga Center, a serene, welcoming space for those seeking peace, self-discovery, balance and fitness. For more than two decades, its been a sanctuary for those who share a passion for yoga.

On a recent Monday morning, instructor and former director Julie Benkofsky-Webb led a class. Her calming voice guided students through a series of positions, performed with precision and seeming ease.

Benkofsky-Webb, who has taught yoga for 12 years, has found it enhances her roles as a massage therapist and therapeutic touch teacher. She believes yoga can benefit everyone, helping expand ones body, mind and spirit, while also allowing a fresh sense of self-awareness and discoveries.

The physical practice always leads us inside, she added.

The fun part for Benkofsky-Webb is seeing how students transform, whether its mastering a pose, sleeping better or overcoming an injury. She likes that the center is a volunteer-fueled grassroots organization that is like a second family for many. She said the center would not be able to function without the volunteer efforts not only of its teachers, but also its students.

We have student volunteers in a variety of areas at the studio who make it possible for us to thrive and stay in touch with our community. We so deeply appreciate their service, she said.

For 25 years, Big Island Yoga Center has served the community, offering classes and workshops for the study and practice of yoga. It is believed to be West Hawaiis oldest yoga center.

The center is celebrating this milestone at 6 p.m. Saturday at Christ Church Episcopal on Konawaena School Road in Kealakekua. The evening includes a dinner catered by Lotus Cafe, entertainment and a tribute to those who have made an impact on the center. The dinner cost is $25 per person and reservations should be made by today.

The center is also launching its membership program. Membership starts at $50 and has tax-deductible benefits and other perks. The first 25 people to sign up receive a complimentary 25th anniversary tote bag.

In its database, the center has about 1,000 people who have taken classes, but only a few hundred are regulars, said administrator Karin Shaw.

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Yoga center marking 25th anniversary with special dinner

Austin, Texas (PRWEB) March 10, 2014

The highly regarded 200-Hour Yoga Illumined Teacher Training co-led by Sumukhi, Kristina Lanuza, and Zoe Mantarakis will begin on April 19, 2014 at Castle Hill Yoga in Austin, Texas. Registration is open through Castle Hill, not only for those who wish to teach yoga, but for anyone who wants to live a healthier, happier, more balanced life through the physical and spiritual practices of yoga.

Sumukhi and Zoe began collaborating in yoga over a decade ago and are thrilled to provide its deepest teachings to a dedicated group of students over nine weekends at Castle Hill's state-of-the art Yoga Studio. Registered with Yoga Alliance, the Yoga Illumined curriculum includes refined Hatha Yoga sequences, anatomy, movement, mantra, the business of teaching Yoga, Ayurveda (ancient medicine), Yoga philosophy, Sanskrit and meditation.

"I love Yoga Illumined because, as co-creator of the program, it provides me the opportunity to teach what I believe really matters," said Zoe Mantarakis. "Yoga Illumined has the power to change the world because, at its heart, it is a teaching of compassion, unity, radical acceptance, and the truth that our natural state is love."

Along with Hatha Yoga and physical practices, Yoga Illumined emphasizes the study of texts such as The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali directly in Sanskrit, the original language of Yoga. "Sanskrit is a vibratory language, which means sound and meaning are the same," said Sumukhi, Kristina Lanuza. "Our Guru, Shri Brahmananda Sarasvati, Ramamurti S. Mishra, M.D., underscored 'feeling' the Yogic scriptures through the chanting of Sanskrit, which gives chanters a very practical, innate understanding of Yoga philosophy, beyond intellectual translation."

Students who graduate from Yoga Illumined teach Yoga throughout Austin, Texas and the world, and many of their bios can be found on the Yoga Illumined website. Other graduates utilize the Yoga techniques to complement and enhance their professions as bodyworkers, corporate executives, physical therapists, nurses, medical doctors and home-makers. Yoga Illumined alumni mentor the following year's students and are encouraged to support one another in their paths as Yogis and in their careers as Yoga teachers.

"Sumukhi and Zoe really trust in yoga at its original source, the Sanskrit sutras, and our bodies, and present information about all the different varieties of asana practice available these days," said Susannah Raulino, Create-a-GoGo founder and Yoga Illumined 2013 graduate. "They train their students to find that resonant source of yoga in themselves and encourage each student to teach in ways that ring true and feel right to them. The Sanskrit and Sumukhi's chanting are absolutely transformational. And I feel very prepared by the practice, discussions and readings to teach safe, fun, well balanced classes. I can't imagine a better program. Both teachers' knowledge and experience is extensive."

In 2013, Yoga Illumined expanded to a second location in Austin, Gallery Black Lagoon and will be offering Yoga Illumined - Seva, an entirely new 200-hour program at its third location in The Sanctuary, Amala Foundation's yoga studio, in the Fall of 2014.

About Yoga Illumined (http://www.yogaillumined.com): Co-created by Sumukhi, Kristina Lanuza, and Zoe Mantarakis, Yoga Illumined is a 200-Hour Teacher Training program registered with the Yoga Alliance, and held at Castle Hill Fitness' Yoga studio on 12th and Lamar in downtown Austin. Students are taught how to use Yoga's techniques to reduce stress and live life to the fullest. Yoga Illumined covers many levels of Yoga philosophy including the 8-limb system of Yoga (Ashtanga) as transmitted by Patanjali which has time-tested guidelines for strengthening the spiritual, mental, psychic and physical body through Asana (physical Hatha Yoga postures), Pranayama (breathwork) and Meditation to help each person embody the most expanded state of enlightenment (Samadhi). Students are also encouraged to speak from their true Voice in every aspect of their life and as a Yoga Teacher.

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Yoga Illumined 2014 Teacher Training at Castle Hill Yoga Begins April 19

"When I tell people I'm a yoga instructor, they usually look at me in a funny way, like I'm joking,'' says Sarah Harry, of Ashwood, Melbourne.

The thing is, Harry is a yoga instructor with thighs that touch, all the way down.

She is also a counsellor and heads up Body Positive Australia, a provider of treatment services for people with eating disorders and body image issues.

She took up teaching for the sake of her clients. ''I'd suggest yoga to my clients, as it can really help them connect with their bodies in a positive way,'' says Harry.

''But many were reluctant to even try it. All the yoga journals tend to feature young, thin, white females doing acrobatic poses, which would put them off. And if they did try a class, they struggled to find a teacher who could include them, and make adjustments for their body type.''

''It's actually not that hard to make adjustments for boobs, bellies and bottoms, it just takes time and care,'' says Harry whose clients range from the very thin to the very large, from 18 to 70-year-olds.

Anna Guest-Jelley, founder and CEO (curvy executive officer) at Curvy Yoga in Nashville in the US, trains other yoga teachers in conducting inclusive classes that accommodate full-figured students.

Guest-Jelley, who is ''curvy'' herself, attracts a similar response to Harry when she reveals her trade.

''When I tell people I'm a yoga teacher, I typically get one of three responses: a quizzical look while they figure out if I'm joking or not; over-enthusiasm to show how ''with it'' they are - 'oh, how cooooool!!?', or a guffaw - usually followed by a sheepish grin when they figure out I'm not joking,'' says Guest-Jelley.

''These things do happen to me as a fat yoga teacher, but most of the time people come into class, see me and feel palpable relief.''

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Who said big bodies can't bend it?