Yoga & Meditation with Elena Moreo

‘Be – and yet know the great void where all things begin, the infinite source of your own most intense vibration, so that, this once, you may give it your perfect assent.’ (Rainer Maria Rilke)

Winter is the perfect time to slow down, tend to the inner garden of the soul, set new intentions, and reclaim our capacity for wonder and joy. As the ground rests and the natural world is enveloped in delicious quietness, so the grounds of our being -our body and soul – are given time and space in which to be replenished and continue to grow. This retreat is designed to help us reap winter’s quiet and often overlooked rewards; refill our emotional and physical reservoirs; and connect to the aliveness and radiance within us.

The meditation sessions and walks will be an opportunity to enjoy some quiet time – to pause, honour the silence and beauty of our surroundings, and allow ourselves to just be present. By slowing down, we can begin to come home to the body and connect to the sensory experience of our embodied selves. The yoga sessions will help us explore this sense of somatic awareness even further, through moving at the rhythm of the breath, tuning in with the symphony of sensations, and refining our relationship to the ground, gravity, and the space around us.

While practicing we will focus on finding balance between yielding and engaging, on trusting the inherent intelligence of the body so that we can learn to wait for those opening moments when we can go further, and to pause when we meet resistance. Finding this balance, this natural inner rhythm, happens through a practice that is marked by curiosity, playfulness, and self-care: with this in mind we will approach each pose and each sequence not as a goal but as a way of developing an intimate connection with ourselves, our needs, and the life force that connects us.

Overall this winter retreat will be an invitation to connect with nature and its many wonders; to nurture and fully inhabit our embodies selves; and to bring the qualities of inner stillness, calm attention, and loving kindness we experience on the mat into all spheres of our lives.