Being able to recognize which of your desires are vital to pursue and which ones are not is often less than easy. This is precisely why the ancient sages counseled that we practice yoga. Their point was a very practical one: You are best able to discern which of your many desires should (and should not) be responded to when your mind is calm and tranquil.

Being able to recognize which of your desires are vital to pursue and which ones are not is often less than easy. This is precisely why the ancient sages counseled that we practice yoga. Their point was a very practical one: You are best able to discern which of your many desires should (and should not) be responded to when your mind is calm and tranquil.

Of course, not all desires lead to happiness. Desires can and do lead to pain and frustration.

Few things are more powerful than learning to trust that your path to a fulfilled life - and the glorious destiny that you are meant to share with the world - is part of your soul's blueprint.

Yoga's ultimate intent is to achieve something far deeper and more meaningful than just a better body or less stress and tension. Its ultimate aim is to help you hear your soul's call so that you can be consistently guided to make the best decisions - the ones that serve your highest state of wellbeing. In the process of doing so, you will necessarily be made more whole and act in such a way as to support the larger world of which you are a part.

Your soul is boundlessly impassioned and always prepared to impart to you whatever you need to thrive.

When yoga is understood in its totality, it is neither a form of exercise, nor is it an esoteric philosophy or religion; it is a practical and comprehensive science for realizing life's ultimate aims.