Relax and Invigorate

Style of Yoga to be taught

You can expect a slow, gentle style of yoga throughout the whole retreat. Mornings will be dedicated to a gentle Asana practice based on Hatha or Yoga Therapy. In the evenings, you will mainly experience Restorative Yoga (a complete release thanks to props) or pure meditation and relaxation. As for the physical part, the main focus will be on therapeutic movement and poses, using props, developing flexibility or stability where needed and finding deep release of stress and tension from the body. We will also go way beyond the physical. There will be a lot of breathing, awareness and meditation. I will bathe you in the sound of Tibetan singing bowls and mantras, guide you into deep relaxation in Yoga Nidra "yogic sleep“. We will let out some serious sighs and embrace the relief.

Your Rustic Retreats journey

True healing comes from within. Our daily yoga and meditation practice will naturally guide us into a deep sense of release, enabling us to begin the recovery process from the right place. There will be valuable space and time in our daily workshops for self-reflection, self-acceptance and transformation of the energy which is no longer serving us into something we can truly use for our own growth. To understand how yoga can help us both on and off the mat, we will use these workshops to dive into Yamas - 5 basic yogic principles of moral conduct. These 5 principles create the first and most important step in Patanjali’s eightfold path of Yoga, teaching us how to take care of ourselves and how to relate to the world around us. They are very helpful when it comes to healing and recovery, as they bring us closer to our true selves, and eventually to a more balanced, joyful state of well-being. In each of the workshops, we focus on one specific Yama, expanding our awareness, carefully noticing the world outside as well as the inner one. We will use many tools to balance it all out and to embrace change and transformation as a crucial part of the healing process.

Daily timetable for yoga retreat

07.30 Morning meditation

08.00 Morning yoga practice

09.30 - 10.15 Breakfast buffet

11.00 Workshop (practical/theoretical) or free time

13.00 Lunch

15.00 Free time

19.00 Evening yoga practice

20.30 Meditation or Yoga Nidra

21.00 Evening meal

(Please note, this is a sample timetable and may be subject to change.)

There will be one workshop a day, it may be in the morning or afternoon.

Your workshop programme

Becoming aware (Satya)

Now we will actually stop and take time to notice, observe mindfully and listen, being absolutely swallowed by the beauty of all the colours, textures and shapes around you - and within you! The second Yama called Satya (truthfulness) will guide us to honestly observe the true nature of our being and the world around us, lifting any assumptions, illusions and excuses. Satya helps us see who we truly are. Only with that awareness, we can align what we think, say and do, and find clarity in our own truth. What is our truth? And what are just some old patterns we keep holding on to? Which of them are truly helpful and leading to our growth? Which of them are no longer serving us?

Accepting (Ahimsa)

The first step on our healing yogic journey is probably the most important of all. Ahimsa. Non-violence. Kindness. Acceptance - all starting from the core of everything: self-love. What a crucial step on the way to transform and heal! Is there anything holding us back when it comes to self-love? Do we repeatedly try to fulfill other people’s expectations or do we truly follow our own heart-felt path? Using this first Yama, Ahimsa, we will discover the unlimited source of compassionate love and acceptance that we all carry within our hearts and turn it towards our own selves. We will celebrate this energy with a movement and self-massage workshop, to help us accept, love and cherish our body and the freedom of our self-expression. From this space of unconditional love and acceptance, a healthy choice can be made and a true transformation can happen with effortless ease.

Finding oneness (Asteya)

What are your deepest desires? What is it that is truly important? If I said that you can have absolutely anything your heart desires what would you choose? The universe is a unified field of unlimited possibilities. Everything is connected in this oneness. We are all one. The third Yama called Asteya (non-stealing) opens us to this unified reality. There is no me and you, no mine and yours, there is nothing to steal and no desire to steal either. Whether it is material things, time, space or energy, Asteya teaches us to choose uniting and sharing instead of dividing, comparing and usurping. With the help of a communication workshop and mantra chanting, we will dive into this unified oneness. We will share our thoughts, space, time and energy together, as one.

Finding balance (Brahmacharya)

According to both Yoga and Ayurveda, life is a series of constant changes and our physical and mental health both depend on finding our own unique sense of balance in that process. Whenever we get too far off this balance, we experience symptoms of unhealth and unease, and whenever we want to heal and recover, it means getting back to this specific place of balance. Brahmacharya (pure behavior, moderation) is a Yama which speaks directly to this balance. Where are my extremes? Are they helpful or harmful? What would bring me more balance? Which behavior doesn’t serve me well anymore? We will uncover these truths thanks to a practical Ayurvedic lecture. We will learn that health is a very individual thing, given by our constitution (Prakriti). Understanding our Prakriti means knowing our own special place of balance and also knowing what behavior helps us get there.

Letting go (Aparigraha)

The final step on our journey aims to heal, renew and recover through surrender. We will practice this extremely important part of the process through a series of intuitive writing, visualizing and drawing, singing healing mantras and a transformational fire ceremony. Whatever we have become aware of during the week, whatever intentions we have set, we will cast it all into the flames and let the universe work out the details. With the help of Aparigraha (non-attachment), we will let go of the results, of any expectations of the outcome, of all the clinging and holding and grabbing. We will learn how to trust the universe - it knows what it’s doing, even when we don’t. When we do that, we will finally find the true release on all levels of our being. And that’s when the magic happens.