From November 9th to 17th 2013, Hawaii’s exuberant and sunny Yoga Coast, one of the most powerful and sacred places on the planet, is home to the first annual Hawaiʻi Yoga Festival.
The district of Puna is preparing to host the first annual Hawaii Yoga Festival, in partnership with the County of Hawaii, the Hawaii Tourism Authority, and Kalani.
Yoga teachers from across the Hawaiian Islands and beyond will be congregating along Hawaii’s Yoga Coat, the stretch of coastline from Kalapana to Kapoho in the district of Puna. They will be joined by international visitors and local residents in enjoying the celebrations, concerts, and more than 100 classes throughout the week at participating studios throughout the area.
The festival has garnered much attention from the mainland and throughout Hawaii due to its strong partnerships with Yoga Journal, Spirituality & Health Magazine, and Yoganonymous. Media outlets will be tweeting and blogging live from Puna throughout the festival period.
The festival is designed to be intimate, and empowering. In contrast to the blockbuster festivals on the yoga circuit, the Hawaii Yoga Festival puts the emphasis on yoga and wellness, along with Native Hawaiian wisdom and culture.
The festival has a strong emphasis on accessibility, and will be featuring nearly 30 teachers from across the Hawaiian Islands.
“Some of my most powerful and amazing experiences practicing yoga have happened here, on Hawaii Island,” shared jaRed Sam, a well-known and respected yoga teacher from Kalapana. “This land is very fertile, and energetically nourishing.”
The festival opens on Sunday, November 11th with Bhakti/Hawaii at Green Lake (Ka Wai a Pele), a full day celebration of yoga, wellness, and Hawaiian wisdom, featuring Kahuna Harry Uhane Jim and inspirational musician Mary Isis.
Yoga classes will be held by teachers from each of the main four Hawaiian Islands, and Ecstatic Dance will be held outdoors under a magnificent monkey pod tree, and local organic food vendors will supplement food from a community collaborative soup, which will be attended to by respected local chef Kenny Drotar using local produce donated by participants.
Classes through the week take place at Kalani, Hawaii’s largest retreat center, as well as Ramashala and Hawaiian Sanctuary, which will be the featured location for Friday’s event, Thrive in Pahoa.
Thrive will feature Dub Sutra, a talented pair of musicians who are the number one artists on YogiTunes, and West Hawaii’s very own Anela Strings, winners of the 2013 Big Island Music Award for New Age Music, who will provide music during a sumptuous cacao ceremony.
Saturday’s closing concert features Waimea-born Hawane Rios, a beautiful up-and-coming Hawaiian artist whose music is both heartfelt and inspiring. Held on the night of the full moon, the concert will finish with a bonfire and fire-spinning on the Yoga Coast’s coastline, as the moon rises over the Pacific Ocean.
Rios shared, “I feel so incredibly humbled to be playing at an event which is so rooted in the healing of our land and people.”
On the final Sunday morning of the festival, Ecstatic Dance, a revered institution in Puna held weekly at Kalani’s EMAX, will feature Craig Kohland and Shaman’s Dream. Also a resident of Puna, Shaman’s Dream has played at several festivals throughout the US, including Wanderlust and the Beloved festival.
The closing circle following the dance will close the festival in ceremonial and sacred fashion.
Kalani has been a soulful place of refuge and renewal for kamaaina and international guests for more than thirty-five years. A501(c)(3) educational nonprofit organization, Kalani presents nature, culture and wellness in sustainable, educational programs that honor Hawaii’s native and diverse heritage.
Kalani provides classes and workshops, healthy cuisine, comfortable accommodations for every budget, rejuvenating bodywork treatments, recreational facilities, and educational adventures. Visit kalani.com to discover all that Kalani has to offer.
Kalani educational programs and facilities are supported by member donations, volunteer staff, plus contributions from local residents, student participants and organizations including the county Department of Research and Development and the Hawaii Tourism Authority.
For more information, to lend support to programs, or to request an auxiliary aid or modification, please call 965-7828 or email events@kalani.com.
For the full schedule of more than 100 events and classes held during the festival, or to purchase festival passes, visit: www.hawaiiyogafestival.com