It’s 8:30 on a Sunday morning and one hundred and fifty people slowly approach and reverently remove their shoes before entering the gymnasium at Martin Luther King, Jr. elementary school in Sausalito. They have come to pray, but this isn’t church. Instead, for the next two hours, they will move their bodies to music. Call it moving meditation. Some call it transcendental dance or ecstatic dance. Either way, Sweat Your Prayers is a way to get out of your head and into your body in order to connect with the soul. To better understand the scenario, think of a nightclub, then make it day, take away the shoes and the alcohol, and you’ve got the picture.

For many local dance enthusiasts, the nightclub scene, with its alcoholic excess, gritty, sticky floors, and never-ending pickup vibe is not an attractive alternative. Sweat Your Prayers, an offshoot of Gabrielle Roth’s 5 Rhythms dance philosophy, is just one of the many freestyle dance experiences that have cropped up all over the country. The demand for a more meaningful experience using dance has prompted a plethora of barefoot, alcohol-free dance events where you can dance your heart out with a group of like-minded movers and shakers.

The bottom line is that it feels good to move. Moving with purpose and an eye toward higher consciousness feels even better. For many, Sunday mornings are a sacred time to connect with the Higher Power of choice. Sweat Your Prayers offers another road to arrive at the same destination.

For more information about Gabrielle Roth’s 5 Rhythms and Sweat Your Prayers, visit: http://www.gabrielleroth.com/

To purchase Gabrielle Roth’s books:

Sweat Your Prayers: Sweat Your Prayers

Maps to Ecstasy: Maps to Ecstasy: The Healing Power of Movement

A 10-Minute taste of the 5 Rhythms: