the whole truth retreat
At the Whole Truth Retreat, each day is built around bringing us into presence with a particular aspect of the self. Yoga sessions and herbal medicinal treatments support specific systems within our physical and energetic anatomy while creative processes, contemplation and meditation practice build awareness of emotions, mind and spirit.
The focus, or Daily Drishti, is introduced at a morning meeting where the shape of the day is laid out, and activities are explained and discussed. You will be given specific writing and contemplation exercises, and/or instructions for the making/self-administration of a herbal treatment supportive of the day’s focus, to be undertaken during your free time.
Plenty of free time has been deliberately included to also allow for relaxation, therapies and time spent in solitude, to make space for a retuning to your natural rhythms. Our busy lives are subject to many responsibilities, pressures and distractions that can keep us in a state of continual striving. The Whole Truth Retreat is your opportunity to come home to your true nature through simply being.
At least 3 days of your retreat will be conducted in silence, to deepen your experience. Each evening closes with a Talking Circle at which you are able to share the experiences and wisdoms of the day and benefit from the insights of others in the group.
With a unique holistic programme, all of our retreats have the same strong foundations for the powerful experience of the present moment, and offer the tools and support to bring health and balance back to your life. Within this framework, we offer 7 and 10 day retreats, each with its own specific focus.
THE WHOLE TRUTH RETREAT: SCHEDULE
THE WHOLE TRUTH RETREAT: SAMPLE DAILY SCHEDULE
DAY 4: Open Heart - HEART – CIRCULATORY SYSTEM - INTERACTION – GIVING & RECEIVING -
Day 4 takes us into three days of silence, and an awareness of more subtle forms of exchange. We devote this day to the spaciousness of the heart and letting life in.
06:15- 07:00 Meditation
07:00 Cleansing Herbal Drink
07.30- 09.30 Yoga
09.30 Juice
10:00 DAILY DRISHTI- Open Heart
11:00- 13:00 Therapies and Free Time
12.30 Juice
13:30- 16:30 Therapies and Free Time
15.30 Juice
16:30-18:30 INTUITIVE ART- Collaboration
18:30 Juice
19:00- 20:00 Meditation
20:00-20.30 Circle
WAYS OF WORKING:
CHAKRA: Heart/Anahata Chakra
PHYSICAL BODY: Heart and Circulatory System
PRANIC MOVEMENT- Vyana- Governs circulation on all levels, expansiveness, pervasiveness
TRUE FOOD: Sprouting & Microgreens
MEDITATION- Compassion
INTUITIVE ART- Collaborative creation
YOGA: Backbends and chest opening
SACRED WORLD: Plant Communication
HERBAL HEALING: Rosemary and Hawthorn
CONTEMPLATION: How easy do you find it to give and receive?
Where in your life do you feel communion?
What do you love about yourself?
THE WHOLE TRUTH RETREAT: SAMPLE DAILY DRISHTI
ARRIVAL
TOUCHING DOWN- SETTLING IN
Afternoon arrival at Bodhi Khaya, a delicious raw food supper and a chance to meet the facilitators and other retreatants.
DAY 1 - Being Here
GROUNDING – PRESENCE - STABILITY– SECURITY - ROOTS & FAMILY
Day 1 brings us into our bodies with a yoga practice to build awareness and sensitivity to our physical selves. We use breathwork and meditation to cultivate true presence, look at our family dynamics though Intuitive Art and enjoy a herbal detoxifying foot bath. We use grounding roots and herbs in teas and juices and feel the earth beneath our feet on a guided walk.
DAY 2 - Making Space
IMMUNE SYSTEM–HORMONAL HEALTH- EMOTIONAL SELF – FEAR – REACTIVITY
Day 2 marks the first day of our Juice Cleanse. Our yoga session opens up the large joints in the body, cleansing the lymphatic glands in the shoulders and hips. We take soothing herbal teas for endocrine balance. We challenge our habitual responses to the unknown through movement and dance. Floral waters are provided for a high energy splash bath to release old trauma held in the body.
DAY 3 - Letting Go
DIGESTIVE SYSTEM- ELIMINATION - MENTAL SELF- HABITS AND BELIEFS
Day 3 brings us liver cleansing herbs and yogic practices to release toxins from the organs, stoke the digestive fire and assist with elimination. Through contemplation, we identify and transform limiting beliefs, and practice mindfulness meditation for freedom inside.
DAY 4 - Open Heart
HEART - CIRCULATORY SYSTEM - GIVING & RECEIVING - BRAVERY & VULNERABILITY
Day 4 invites us to peel away our habitual defensiveness and let life in. We move into three days of silence. Herbal medicine works on the circulatory system and thymus gland. Writing tasks, deep meditation and time in nature connect us with the heart’s wisdom and bring us beyond judgment and into forgiveness of self and others.
DAY 5 – Speaking Truth
THROAT – SPEAKING & LISTENING - SELF EXPRESSION – CREATIVITY
This day is devoted to sound and vibration, and our ability to create and make things manifest in the world. We begin our first day of noble silence, and in the quiet that opens up, consider the inner critic and the ways in which we use language in our lives. We work with yogic chanting practices and other traditional forms of song.
DAY 6 - Inner Vision
SPINE & NERVOUS SYSTEM– BALANCE – FOCUS – CLARITY - INTUITION
Day 6 uses yogic balances and drishti to hone the concentration. We cleanse the upper respiratory system and stimulate the pituitary and pineal glands with a herbal steam inhalation. Intuitive Art engages our sub-conscious, conscious and super-conscious minds in order to access our intuition and higher understanding.
DAY 7 - Sacred World
BIO-ENERGY FIELD- - CONNECTION- ONENESS- INTEGRATION
Day 7 takes our experience of ourselves beyond the borders of the body. We use vibrational medicine to energise and purify the energetic field, and practice meditation techniques that wake us up to oneness. We create through a collaborative Intuitive Art process.
DAY 8 - Grounded In Spirit
COMMUNITY- SERVICE- HIGHER PURPOSE
On Day 8 we practice extending the sensitivity we have developed towards ourselves to others, working with partner poses in our final yoga session. During the day, embark on a Vision Quest, spending time alone in the beautiful wild spaces of Bodhi Khaya, or enjoy the company of others as we collectively prepare simple raw food meals and smoothies.
DAY 9 – Visioning a Path
On our final day, Day 9, we reflect on the learning and letting go and prepare to move back into our lives. Strategies for carrying your Whole Truth back into your life are given, as well as a system for the reintroduction of foods and daily activities with awareness. We share a raw food feast and depart. A packed raw food meal will be provided for your journey home.
It exceeded all my expectations. Unbelievably beautiful and expertly facilitated. My favorite aspect of the retreat: How all the different elements came together. Masterful, gentle orchestration. I use the words
“life-changing “ very sparingly, but there is no way that this experience can’t affect my journey from here.
FRANCOIS, CAPE TOWN
The care and planning down to the finest detail was evident in everything. I enjoyed the diversity of the programme- the holistic quality of integrating different systems and modalities in a seamless way really worked for me. This was the most wonderful, beautiful and rewarding experience. Exceptional!