4920 Inner zen in california
YOGA ONLY
LINK to destinations
California
california/san francisco
californaia/san diego
california/ los angeles
california/big sur
california/mendocino

retreats
detox

Find Your Inner Zen in California

edited by Madelyn Miller the TravelLady

HEAL AND TRANSFORM WITH CALIFORNIA SPIRITUAL VACATIONS

No doubt about it, life is demanding. Whether you're working a 50-hour week or carpooling kids to soccer practice, all of us could use a break from the stress of everyday life. And that includes visitors. Enter spiritual vacations. Unlike traditional day spas, spiritual vacations offer up more than beauty services and relaxing treatments. Spiritual vacations provide an opportunity for enlightenment, peace and a chance to reconnect with oneself. They also fill a growing niche market.

"The emphasis of spiritual vacations is healthy living," said Caroline Beteta, President and Chief Executive Officer of the California Travel and Tourism Commission (CTTC). "And nobody does that better than California. Each year, thousands of travelers come to the Golden State to not only recharge and rejuvenate, but to quiet their minds and unleash their full potential."

ESALEN INSTITUTE IN BIG SUR

The Esalen Institute in Big Sur is renowned for its healing natural springs, and is recognized as a world leader in alternative and experimental education. As a guest at Esalen, located in the Central Coast Region, visitors experience a wide variety of workshops geared toward alternative education and personal transformation, along with hot tubs fed by sulfur-rich natural geothermal springs. Esalen offers professional massage and various forms of bodywork and energy work. Guests can also bask in the beauty of Big Sur on the institute's 27 acres of grounds worthy of self-exploration.

WELLSPRING RENEWAL CENTER

Near the small town of Philo in Mendocino County, the Wellspring Renewal Center provides a sacred wilderness setting for renewal of the human spirit in harmony with the environment. The center is located on 50 acres of redwood forest and meadows bounded by the Navarro River. Programs focus on spiritual renewal, creativity and self-discovery, and include the "Yoga in Balance Retreat," "Hum Drum: Singing and Humming" and "Celebration of Wellspring Salsa Dance." Also part of the North Coast Region, the Heartwood Institute, located near the town of Garberville, is a massage and holistic healing school that offers retreats for visitors seeking a natural experience.

SHASTA ABBEY BUDDHIST MONASTERY

You would never know that nestled in the quiet woods just three miles north of Mt. Shasta is the Shasta Abbey Buddhist Monastery located in the Shasta Cascade Region. Although a home for Buddhist monks, visitors can retreat here by appointment for extended stays, after attending an introductory retreat at the abbey or for those practicing Buddhism at another temple, to learn firsthand about the healing powers of Buddhist meditation and teachings. A retreat day at the abbey may involve rising at 5 a.m. for mediation and morning service, followed by spiritual readings and community work. There is also a "Great Silence" during evening hours and a walking meditation. All meals are vegetarian. Travelers will be interested to note that there is no cost associated with these programs, but donations are encouraged.

VINA DE LESTONNAC RETREAT CENTER

In the Temecula Valley located in the Inland Empire Region, the Sisters of the Company of Mary operate the Vina de Lestonnac Retreat Center, where travelers gather for quiet reflection and spiritual growth. The region, part of the famed Southern California wine country, is reminiscent of Bordeaux, France, where the Order of the Company of Mary originated, and is naturally well suited for tranquility and prayer. Along with sharing the facility, the Sisters share their spirituality, which is the legacy of Saint Jeanne de Lestonnace, Foundress of the Sisters of the Company of Mary.

THE EXPANDING LIGHT AT ANANDA

Northeast of Sacramento in Nevada City and the Gold Country Region foothills, The Expanding Light at Ananda is a yoga and meditation retreat and spiritual community that offers programs based on the teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda. A special first-timers' week or weekend is scheduled for March, May and July, when newcomers are introduced to meditation, yoga and spiritual community. For guests interested in a cleansing diet but who have been unable to fit one into their lives, the retreat offers its "Restorative 9-Day Cleansing Diet," this April as a way to help rid the body of poisons, while experiencing rejuvenation of the mind, body and soul.

SOLAGE RESORT IN CALISTOGA

On the flip side, there's a place where enlightenment meets chic sophistication, and that's at the Solage Resort in Calistoga located in the San Francisco Bay Area Region. There's simply no roughing it at the Spa Solage, with its 20,000 square feet of pure luxury, which has been artfully designed and is environmentally conscious and as refreshing as Calistoga's famous mineral waters. Guests can take part in wellness and alternative health retreats led by industry experts, but also have access to an array of fitness facilities and daily classes, along with hiking and jogging trails. Many travelers transform themselves with a personalized full-body mud "cocktail" at the resort's Mud Bar. The resort offers a variety of accommodations, everything from one-bedroom studios to soothing suites.

FREE COMMUNITY DRUM CIRCLES IN LAGUNA

For a unique spiritual experience, visitors head to Laguna for free community drum circles, every full moon, at Aliso State Beach in the Orange County Region, complete with bonfire. Professionals drum facilitators lead the group, anywhere from 10 people to 500. If you have a drum, bring it. If not, there are always extra. The next drum circles are scheduled for March 21, April 20, May 20 and June 18.

THE LAUGHTER CLUB

Also in Laguna is a Laughter Club that meets seven days a week. If laughter is truly the best medicine than this club will have you healed in no time. The Laguna Laughter Club gathers on the sand at the northernmost end of "Main Beach." If the tide is low enough, they go as far north as the sand opposite Bird Rock. After 15 minutes of socializing, the groups does easy stretching, breathing exercises and laughter practices, ending with a healthy guided relaxation. All meetings are free.

THE CHOPRA CENTER

Travelers can step out of their busy world of deadlines and challenges at The Chopra Center, a Carlsbad-based center located in the San Diego County Region, where guests can indulge and pamper themselves while learning the keys to preventative wellness in a setting steeped in Spanish Colonial charm. For visitors who can't squeeze a multi-day retreat into their trip, Kabbalah might be the answer to their spiritual quest as the San Diego Kabbalah Center offers free introductory classes every Wednesday night with an emphasis on clarity, understanding and freedom as a way of life. In Escondido, the extraordinary Golden Door's weeklong program, designed to connect mind, body and spirit, is described as "life changing." Mornings are spent hiking through gardens and orchards, followed by a massage or beauty treatment. Afternoons offer meditative and inner-focus sessions, such as yoga, and evenings are devoted to simple pleasures, including lectures and workshops. The resort's rooms are more than 400 square feet with a private bath, private gardens and moon-viewing deck.

THE FOOTHILLS OF PAM SPRINGS

But who says you have to stay indoors to get spiritual? Within the foothills of Palm Springs are the Tahquitz and Indian Canyon hiking trails located in the Desert Region. More than just a lush oasis of palm trees and natural spring waters, these canyons are where the ancestors of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians once lived, more than 2,000 years ago. Visitors find serenity hiking the Palm, Andreas and Murray Canyons, each with an abundance of plant life that stands in stark contract to the surrounding desert mountainsides. Tahquitz Canyon, just a short distance away, is one of the most significant in terms of Cahuilla history and folklore. It is known as the "home of Tahquitz, guardian spirit of all shamans" and offers waterfalls and deep pools. After a long outing, spiritual travelers can soak their weary muscles in the natural hot springs Grotto at the relaxing Two Bunch Palms Resort & Spa in Desert Hot Springs, where cell phones are restricted and a no-voice-above-a-whisper policy is enforced.

MEDITATION ROCK

Geologists suggest that the magnetic fields emitted from the golden-colored granite cliffs behind the Meadowcliff Resort on U.S. 395 near Coleville, Mono County, located in the High Sierra Region are the source of the cliff's meditative powers. Travelers seeking relief from the anxiety in their lives stay at the Meadowcliff and walk the trails leading to the cliffs. Meditation Rock is a favorite place to sit quietly and listen as the cliffs apply their magical psychic balm. According to the proprietor, the spirit-cleansing phenomenon was first discovered by settlers in 1876, though it's likely local Toiyabe Indians, part of the Northern Paiute, sensed the same spirituality far into the past.

LOOK TO THE SKY FOR ENLIGHTENMENT

Visitors can reconnect with themselves while biking, walking or jogging the Lewis S. Eaton Trail System on the San Joaquin River Parkway in Fresno located in the Central Valley Region. Some look to the skies for enlightenment, and they won't be disappointed on the parkway's bald eagle canoe tours that are held every winter, when a population of bald eagles escape the cold of Northern Canada for the winter paradise of the region's Millerton Lake. There are also several places to drop a line for fishing.

SPIRITUAL HEALING AND YOGA

Spiritual enlightenment can also be found outdoors in the Los Angeles Country Region. In Pacific Palisades, the Lake Shrine Temple offers a perfect opportunity to reflect, with its gardens and natural spring-fed lake. The 10-acre site is home to a variety of flora and fauna, including swans, ducks, koi and lotus flowers. The grounds include a Court of Religions honoring the five principal religions of the world; the Mahatma Gandhi World Peace Memorial, where a portion of Gandhi's ashes is enshrined; and a small museum with exhibits on Paramhansa Yogananda's work. Spiritual healing can also be found in Santa Monica with its rich and various supplies of yoga studios, meditation and mind-body establishments, including Yoga Works, Santa Monica Power Yoga, Santa Monica Yoga, Exhale Sacred Movement and the Prajnaparamita Buddhist Center.

For more information and a free California vacation packet, go to www.visitcalifornia.com.

Madelyn Miller is a travel and food writer whose fantasy vacation involves visiting all these spiritual places in California. Read her stories on www.travellady.com,  www.yogayaya.com,  www.carladynews.com,  www.chocolateatlas.com,  www.cocktailatlas.com,  www.coffeeatlas.com,  www.teaAtlas.com