Retreat Day: Light Your Inner Fire – A celebration of the Summer Solstice

The summer solstice is the longest day of the year. It contains more hours between sunrise and sunset than any other day, presenting us with ample opportunities for warm-weather activities and summer fun in the days and weeks ahead.

The solstice is an auspicious time to honour the sun and allow the welcoming arms of nature to embrace you.

It also signifies new beginnings, prosperity, good spirits, and personal awakening. All of these things are amazing, transformational, and offer us opportunities to connect more with ourselves.

At the height of summer, we are in the most yang time of the year. Yang is associated with high energy and activity.

This Yoga Day will use this warm energy to recharge and cleanse your Manipura Chakra ( element Fire), the seat of your personal power and confidence leaving you feeling empowered and ready for the activity of the summertime ahead.

Its important though to recognise that amongst all of this energy and busy times, its also important to have tools that help us take some time to slow down and take stock offering a better balance in our lives.

With yoga, meditation, sound bath, a session on empowerment and a mini craft workshop. This is sure to leave you feeling physically tired but reconnected with your personal power and confidence.

There will also be a free mini chair massage provided by the amazing Linzi McDonald of LM Fitness & Wellbeing ( Chair Massage with Linzi)

This type of massage allows you to unwind on the chair where you’ll feel the tension in both your body and mind released.

Chair massage is especially helpful for back, neck and shoulder tightness.

For this taster session, you will remain clothed throughout.

Add to all of that, a graze table full of delicious, nutritious finger foods and salads (Vg and GF options available). The day ends post sound bath with a selection of cakes and a gift bag.

“Within you is a key, the master key, to the master suite. All you need to do is to open up from within. Find the opening, the spark that is within you- it is always there.”  Ulonda Faye, Sutras of the Heart: Spiritual Poetry to Nourish the Soul

This is how the day looks : 

10-10.30am       Welcome cold/hot drink & nibbles

                               Healthy juices, energy balls, few other sweet nibbles and hot/cold drinks to welcome

10.30-11.15am  Self Empowerment Session

                               Starting our active sessions with this one designed to make you  feel more empowered.

                               Personal empowerment is comprised of many things such as self esteem, self confidence , self love to name but a few but ultimately, it’s about

                               taking  control of your own life, and making positive decisions based on what you want.                                                   

                               This worksheet and discussion based session will help you on the journey to a greater sense of self empowerment whenever you need it.

11.15-12.15pm   Yoga Class ( outside weather permitting) with meditation

                               Radiate : The sun is a star at the centre of the solar system and  the planets revolve around it. At the Summer Solstice the sun is reaching the

                               height of its powers, before the energy shifts and the days begin to gradually shorten again.          

                               This yoga practice using expansive poses such as Trikonasana (triangle) and Virabhadrasana (warrior) will energise you to the point where you    

                               radiate energy from within like a sun at the centre of your being. As part of this practice, you will also energise and cleanse your Manipura 

                              ( solar plexus) chakra, the seat of your personal power 

                               We’ll recharge and energise by picturing ( and feeling if we end up outside) the sun as we expand, breathe and draw in its power.

                               Including Surya Namaskar, this practice will salute the sun both inside and out.

12.15-1.15pm     Lunch

1.15-2.15pm       Craft workshop – Make your own crystal sun catcher

                               A fun session where you'll produce an easy to make crystal sun catcher to take home

2.15-3.15pm      Yoga Class ( outside weather permitting) with meditation

                              Solstice means ‘sun standing still. Throughout this practice we’ll take moments of stillness to slow down, balance energies and to bathe in

                              our magnificence and all that’s light in our lives both inside and out

3.15 - 4.15pm   Sound Bath

4.15 - 5pm        Closing, cake and hot drink