BareFoot Yoga Studio owner Robert Boswell was born in Southern California and introduced to Integral Yoga by Swami Satchinanda during his undergraduate work at Pfizer College as a means of facilitating artwork. His interest in Eastern cultures drew him to travel throughout India and Nepal on a fellowship before earning his M.F.A. in Fine Arts from Claremont Graduate School. While in the East, Robert studied Mahayana Buddhism and the teachings of Lama Yeshe. There he took refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.

After graduate school Robert worked for a contemporary artist in Venice, California and worked in Hollywood as a set designer and builder for both feature films and commercials. Robert also trained with LifeSprings during this time—a personal growth program. He later moved to Northern California and opened his own design firm, which he ran for over twenty years in the Sacramento area. During this period Robert raised a son and became involved in the Unity movement in Sacramento (a metaphysical church that embraces “many paths to God”).

In 1999 Robert was reintroduced to yoga and began studying Hot Yoga at Yoga Loka with Bill and Sandy McCauley, who studied under Bikram. He also studied Ashtanga Yoga with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, and Barron Baptiste Power Yoga. Robert’s return to yoga was initially the result of a running-related injury, but as he found himself drawn deeply into the practice of yoga, he decided to commit his life more fully to his practice and opened BareFoot Yoga Studio in Davis in late 2005.

Robert was on the board of trustees for the development of the SLC (Spiritual Life Center) “oneness symbol” (a symbol which works toward unity by incorporating all major religions) since its inception and is currently a member of the steering committee for the Unity Church of Davis.

Robert’s experiences have led him to embrace many spiritual paths, but he sees his devotion through yoga as the pinnacle of his spiritual journey. He has found that the harmony that one experiences through the integration of body and spirit in yoga offers a deep and life changing spiritual practice like no other.

Robert’s goal for BareFoot Yoga Studio is to create an environment in which people feel comfortable to practice in community with others and he sees his teaching role as one of being in service to others as a “ferryman across the river” toward enlightenment. As a teacher, Robert sees yoga as not only a vehicle to introduce as many people as possible to the practice of yoga, but as a means to deepen his own practice through an understanding of, and commitment to, his students’ practice. Through yoga, he seeks to offer others that which he has found to be invaluable: peace in mind, body, and spirit, as well as a connection to a greater consciousness and the opportunity to lead a more balanced life.