Coming Home to Ourselves on Retreat
A really beautiful thing happened this weekend in the last golden days of summer. A circle of kind souls decided to show up for themselves and one another on our Hearth & Soul Retreat.
More than ever we are needing real connection -- with ourselves and one another. I doubt that the human race has ever felt less connected in this age of digital hyper-connectivity.
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| Soul Circle - happy shining hearts |
Coming together in community; doing grounding work in Nature -- which is what we ARE after all...so no wonder we suffer disconnect holed away in front of our devices, we're pining for our essence; taking the time to listen to our heart's whisperings; using our hands to create and then feeling safe enough to vulnerably share with others, heart to heart, is what might save our souls.
We met at the beautiful permaculture farm Hearth & Soul in the Overberg area of the Western Cape. Sybille Nagel is a wonder woman who tells The Best stories ranging from adventures in redesigning the Johannesburg Zoo to how she carved out this slice of heaven by the sweat of her brow. It truly is a labour of love. She also whipped up our most outstanding vegetarian fare as if by magic.
I was lucky enough to have a full day extra to land and explore. And what a paradise it is. The fynbos rich mountains and beautiful edible gardens, all the sweet animals -- two friendly donkeys, some vocal pigs, Hopey the sheep, a collection of curious cats and the sweetest old dog.
Immediately I felt embraced by "the family of things."
It was so lovely to welcome everyone and begin with some Qi Gong which is ever so gentle, yet undeniably powerful. We practiced an ancient variation of the Ba Duan Jin, which I learned from my Master Ping at the Yangshuo Traditional Tai Chi School in China, followed by the Inner Smile Meditation as taught by Thai master Mantak Chia and the Liu Zi Jue (Six Healing Breaths). We learned about the Traditional Chinese Medicine elements: Wood for the liver, Fire for the heart, Earth for the digestive system, Metal for the lungs, Water for the kidneys. There are links here to more information about each element and ideas of ways to connect with our beautiful smiling organs both physically through the meridians, with movement, music, meditation and creatively using our imaginations.
After our delicious evening meal we gathered to discuss the power of coming home to our own hearts.
“...we do not lend the hearth quite the
importance that our ancestors did, Greek or otherwise. Yet, even for us, the
word stands for something more than just a fireplace. We speak of 'hearth and
home'. The word 'hearth' shares its ancestry with 'heart', just as the modern
Greek for 'hearth' is kardia, which also means 'heart'. In Ancient Greece the
wider concept of hearth and home was expressed by the oikos, which lives on for
us today in economics and ecology. The Latin for hearth is focus - with speaks
for itself. It is a strange and wonderful thing that out of the words for
fireplace we have spun "cardiologist', 'deep focus' and 'eco-warrior'. The
essential meaning of centrality that connects them also reveals the great
significance of the hearth to the Greeks and Romans, and consequently the
importance of Hestia, its presiding deity.”
― Stephen Fry, Mythos: The Greek Myths
Retold
The mantras we used to allow our hearts to soften and open and anchor us:
My heart is my home.
I reside in my heart.
Come home to yourself.
Warm yourself at
your heart hearth.
We also explored Tara Brach's RAIN:
Recognize what is happening;
Allow the experience to be there, just as it is;
Investigate with interest and care;
Nurture with self-compassion.
“My soul, where are you? Do you hear me? I
speak, I call you - are you there? I have returned, I am here again. I have
shaken the dust of all the lands from my feet, and I have come to you, I am
with you. After long years of long wandering, I have come to you again. Should
I tell you everything I have seen, experienced, and drunk in? Or do you not
want to hear about all the noise of life and the world? But one thing you must
know: the one thing I have learned is that one must live this life. Do you
still know me? How long the separation lasted! Everything has become so
different. And how did I find you? How strange my journey was! What words should
I use to tell you on what twisted paths a good star has guided me to you? Give
me your hand, my almost forgotten soul. How warm the joy at seeing you again,
you long disavowed soul. Life has led me back to you. Let us thank the life I
have lived for all the happy and all the sad hours, for every joy, for every
sadness. My soul, my journey should continue with you. I will wander with you
and ascend to my solitude.”
― C.G. Jung, The Red Book: Liber Novus
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| Thank you Tracey for capturing this magic moment |
“Your soul knows the geography of your
destiny. Your soul alone has the map of your future, therefore you can trust
this indirect, oblique side of yourself. If you do, it will take you where you
need to go, but more important it will teach you a kindness of rhythm in your
journey.”
― John O'Donohue, Anam Cara: A Book of
Celtic Wisdom
Each member of our circle drew from a collection of quotes referencing our theme: Hearth & Soul.
After a free write and a meditation in deep listening and speaking from heart to heart, moment to moment, an Intention emerged.
“Say not, “I have found the truth,” but
rather, “I have found a truth.”
Say not, “I have found the path of the
soul.” Say rather, “I have met the soul walking upon my path.”
For the soul walks upon all paths.
The soul walks not upon a line, neither
does it grow like a reed.
The soul unfolds itself, like a lotus of
countless petals.”
― Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet
We spoke our name and a word into the circle. Planting a seed of Intention.
Yoga Nidra took us through a progressive relaxation of the body and manifestation visualization.
Then we maintained a Noble Silence into our dream life until the end of our yin yoga session the next morning.
When you give yourself permission to
communicate what matters to you in every situation you will have peace despite
rejection or disapproval. Putting a voice to your soul helps you to let go of
the negative energy of fear and regret.
― Shannon L. Alder
We used Nadi Shodhana, the alternate nostril breath, to still the mind and then explored some gentle holding asana to open up in the hips and anahata chakra, to encourage greater flexibility of body, mind and spirit. To nurture more compassion for self.
After a breakfast of delicious treats we gathered under the shady trees to write and make art. Trusting a process of giving and receiving, a story emerged from images, then a poem and eventually an artwork that many found profoundly revealing of our soul's journey.
“Words are truly the image of the soul.” ― St. Basil the Great
“Color directly influences the soul. Color
is the keyboard, the eyes are the hammers, the soul is the piano with many
strings. The artist is the hand that plays, touching one key or another
purposively, to cause vibrations in the soul.”
― Wassily Kandinsky, Concerning the Spiritual
in Art
In our sharing circle some very tender moments revealed the unfolding of understanding. It's one of the most beautiful things to allow Creativity to flow through us and see how it helps make sense of the mystery.
“Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all…”
~ Emily Dickinson
After a lovely lunch and an afternoon of deep conversations, naps, hikes and rest we met for some Qi Gong and Japa Meditation.
We worked with mantra Om Gam Ganapataye Namaha to ground through our Root Chakra -- offering salutations to Ganesha, the clearer of obstacles. We used mala beads the traditional 108 repetitions.
We discussed the necessity of grounding in order to realise our spiritual potential:
“To lose our connection with the body is to become spiritually homeless. Without an anchor we float aimlessly, battered by the winds and waves of life.” —Anodea Judith
Muladhara is associated with the Earth element, the colour red and the essential oil Cedar Wood. We took a whiff and came back home to our bodies again. Honouring and connecting with our best Guru. We meditated on what it is we need to feel most stable.
Many found the mantra most helpful in staying present and focussed during the meditation. It is a helpful tool and just one of many we can use on our meditation journey.
After another scrumptious meal shared with many delightful conversations we gathered around the firepit outside for more sharing as the almost full moon rose.
Then we DANCED! I've found free, intuitive dance to be most liberating and healing. Moving exactly as you need to from moment to moment.
“Now I am going to reveal
to you something which is very pure, a totally white thought. It is always in
my heart; it blooms at each of my steps... The Dance is love, it is only love,
it alone, and that is enough... I, then, it is amorously that I dance: to
poems, to music but now I would like to no longer dance to anything but the
rhythm of my soul.”
― Isadora Duncan
Our sharing was most beautiful. People spoke of euphoria, release, a renewed sense of youth and vigour, powerful emotional release and creative surge.
Such a splendid way to share the energy that we are!
On Sunday morning we shared in a long sit. An hour of silent meditation book ended by Tibetan bells and Gyuto monk chants.
For some it was their first long sit and they found it a challenge to stay present in the mind or be at peace in the body, but a worthwhile one. They employed the various techniques we'd employed over the weekend. From pranayama (breath control), mantra, vipassana (body scan), trataka (candle tip gazing), to RAIN....
Sending metta for the journey dear ones.
After breakfast we met in the fairy circle to prepare for our Walking Meditation.
“Man has no Body distinct from his soul;
for that called Body is a portion of a Soul discerned by the five senses, the
chief inlets of Soul in this age.”
― William Blake
We walked in silence and with our breath focussed on mantra "be here now" before opening up to our senses to receive the Truth of the wonder that we are.
This is what I offer through AirBnB Experience and we decided to have a Retreat Reunion on the mountain or in the forest.
Our Closing Circle included a written reflection on the gift Nature offered during our walk, a sharing and a return to our Intention.
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| The Gifts that are Given |
We reflected on what made us feel most alive, joyful & connected over the weekend and made plans to incorporate more of that into our daily lives.
We then wrote ourselves a postcard from Retreat to remind us and hold ourselves accountable.
After our Farewell Brunch we parted ways as friends.
Most transformative and delicious time together.
Thank you dear hearts.
Till we meet again.
“To remember love after long sleep; to turn
again to poetry after a year in the market place, or to youth after resignation
to drowsy and stiffening age; to remember what once you thought life could
hold, after telling over with muddied and calculating fingers what it has
offered; this is music, made after long silence. The soul flexes its wings,
and, clumsy as any fledgling, tries the air again”
― Mary Stewart, The Hollow Hills
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