Darkness Retreats, also referred to as Dark Retreats, Darkness Therapy, Darkness Yoga or Darkness Meditation, serve as an effective method for self-discovery and having highly energetic spiritual experiences.
Deprived of external stimuli, your inner voice – which is closely connected to the soul – emerges. As a result, wisdom and unique truths enter your awareness during flashes of epiphany. All of a sudden, your inner knowledge becomes tangible. Decisions become easier to make as you clearly see the path laid out in front of you, and questions about life literally answer themselves.
All of us have experienced a long and intense Darkness Retreat at least once – while being nurtured in our mother’s warm and comforting womb. During this experience, we were in absolute union with our mother for 9 months, peacefully merged with the universe. A Darkness Retreat often serves as a conscious reliving of this intense experience. Here, new insights arise and deep tranquility enables us to establish a connection with the soul, which speaks to us and connects to ever higher spiritual vibrations.
Each participant has his or her own individual way of experiencing the darkness. Many spiritual experiences are possible during a Darkness Retreat. It is often accompanied by a deeper sense of self, introspection, observation of mental processes, experiencing the primal sound or primal light, visitations by spirit entities, the deceased, light beings or forces of nature. Other common experiences of a Dark Retreat include sensing the void, death experiences, reincarnation experiences, sensing a second body and many more.
As we manage to let go of our surroundings, we stop projecting ourselves onto the outside world and literally begin to look within. This way, it is possible to transform the Ego-Experience into simply ‘being’, which brings with it a wonderful sense of unity and ‘having arrived’.
Darkness Retreat – The golden path to enlightenment
In my opinion, Darkness Retreats are the primordial way to enlightenment. After being in the dark for some time, the inner light may become physically visible, which gives a whole new meaning to the term ‘enlightenment’.
The darkness is a primal force aiding us in our personal and spiritual development. If we embrace it for a longer period of time, we experience an ever deeper healing, a reconnection with ourselves, the universe and higher powers. Retreating into darkness, be it in caves, kivas or closed chambers, is a custom found in all traditional cultures, particularly in Japan, India and Tibet. Pythagoras even built an underground chamber beneath his house in Italy, where he spent a lot of time in the dark. According to the pre-buddhist Bön religion in Tibet, Darkness Retreats represent the “golden road to meditation”. Using the night as a tool for sensory deprivation and de-conditioning is a self-discovery procedure known across all cultures and religions.
As soon as a few days have been spent in the dark, intense spiritual experiences start coming naturally, which would otherwise require many years of meditation. While everyday life has us firmly attached to the ground, in the darkness our vibrations may rise to ever higher frequencies. Darkness Retreats are an ideal solution for seekers who want to make their own spiritual experiences, as the necessary energy accumulates a lot faster in the dark.
Darkness Retreat – Discover your inner tranquility
Every day we are being governed by various stimuli flooding our senses. In the age of smart phones, the internet and television, our visual senses receive an exaggerated focus. Aside from that, our eyes are the main sources of information about the outside world.
Even if we do not consciously attend to each and every sensory experience, these impressions still reach our unconscious mind and may lead to the manifestation of dogmas which govern our thoughts and actions, eventually. It can also be highly overwhelming to our system, whether we realise it or not.
Of course, our vision is an important tool for navigating our complex surroundings and managing everyday life. What we tend to forget, however, is that an exaggerated focus of the mind on the things we see keeps us from communicating with ourselves and the world in an unbiased manner.
Many people who meditate regularly try to attain a state of continual balance, free from the distractions and confusions created by the outside world. Switching off our sense of vision is a big help towards this goal and happens naturally in the Darkness Retreat. The procedure involves retreating to a safe and completely darkened place in order to re-establish contact with the deepest self.
The darkness is a primal force aiding us in our personal and spiritual development. If we embrace it for a longer period of time, we experience an ever deeper healing, a reconnection to ourselves, the universe and higher powers.
Being in darkness – A time of spiritual rest
The act of shutting out all light may seem quite unusual for people in western cultures. However, spending a certain amount of time in complete darkness helps to shut off the mind’s biggest distraction – our sense of vision. Since we aren’t used to living in the darkness, our range of possible activities and preoccupations also decreases. As a natural consequence, expanded states of consciousness occur.
After a few days in the dark, our physiology goes into night mode. Many of our guests report never having felt such deep relaxation before. When it comes to finding deep rest and thanks to the sensory deprivation, Darkness Retreats represent an efficient alternative to your average vacation.
Of course, our other senses are sharpened as we spend more time in the dark. But more importantly – aside from a heightened sense of touch and hearing – we naturally engage in an internal dialogue with our subconscious mind. For once, we finally have the time to deal with ourselves and attain a state of tranquility, far removed from the distractions of everyday life.
Darkness Retreat – Lighting the path to your soul
When a deep connection with the soul has been established, we often gain astounding insights about ourselves. Sometimes, old and seemingly discarded blockages reappear. In every instance, however, these experiences are deeply healing. They are a way of the soul to communicate with your ordinary consciousness, to facilitate healing and to prepare you for your dharma, your personal life task.
During your Darkness Retreat, I will be close by to support you at all times, whether you need a mantra, someone to talk to, or simply some company. Such personal encounters between two souls in the darkness are really my life’s vocation. Therefore, I am very pleased and honored to accompany you during this extraordinary experience.
Yours truly,
Bharati Corinna Glanert