Located just a short drive from Marrakech airport is a hidden gem of Morocco, which provides an ideal environment for rejuvenation, insight, and healing. This Sanctuary is a wonderful, sacred space where guests and students alike can come and discover nature’s gentle, yet powerful, assistance in personal transformation.
Join this beautiful retreat to heal and reconnect with nature and to rejuvenate your body and mind. It will leave you feeling inspired, strengthened, and peaceful, with tools and techniques you can use long after this trip. Our primary focus will be to rediscover and cultivate inner peace through gentle movement, sound baths, self-care techniques and meditations. We will start with foundation practices so no previous experience is required. Just bring along sincere willingness to stretch your body and mind, while exploring the interplay of discipline and joyful spontaneity.
Peace is preinstalled in our original nature and can be recovered anywhere and anytime.
Still, being in beautiful, tranquil surroundings can calm and ground our overactive mind, which is especially helpful at the beginning of our self-healing journey. In the Sanctuary we get in tune with nature as we rise and sleep with the sun. It's a wonderful opportunity to get back into a natural rhythm and restore the nervous system. Our self-healing practice will be assisted by exquisite, nourishing food, which is an important part of this experience.
A city break like this provides a precious opportunity for us to step back from the busy lives we lead and to get perspective on the bigger picture of our journey through life. A retreat such as this allows us to be free from the responsibilities, commitments and day-to-day structures that reinforce our acquired mind, making space for the experience of quiet being rather than restless doing.
This is when the shift happens...
Sanctuary Slimane is a safe haven for plants, animals & humans, dedicated to sustainable living. This is a private initiative promoting ecology, healthy living, non-violence, lifelong learning and hospitality.
Beautifully situated against the backdrop of the mighty peaks of Morocco's High Atlas Mountains and just ten kilometres south east of the vibrant and bustling souks of Marrakesh, you will find Sanctuary Slimane, safely tucked away off the route to Ouarzazate.
Daily flow includes sunrise exercises, self-massage, dynamic and passive meditative practices, sound baths and fire ceremonies at the sunset. You can also jump into a pottery or permaculture class. If you wish, you can take an afternoon off and enjoy the pool or a traditional in-house hammam.
Gentle movements combine meditative and physically active elements and are a basic exercise system within Chinese medicine. Qigong, sometimes called Daoist Yoga, can be described as a mind-body-spirit practice that improves one's mental and physical health by integrating posture, movement, breathing technique, self-massage, sound, and focused intent.
Anyone of any age or physical condition can do Qigong!
Our primary focus is on cultivating stability, flexibility and coordination.
The meditative practices we will use are mainly associated with the Chinese philosophy of Daoism (Taoism), including concentration, contemplation and visualisations, but also self-inquiry.
Their purpose is to get in touch with the internal landscape of emotions, thoughts and limiting beliefs. Reconnecting with intimate parts of ourselves, within a non-judgmental space of loving awareness, restores a profound sense of wholeness and radiates innocence.
Agnihotra is a healing fire ritual derived from the Vedas, an ancient body of knowledge recorded in Sanskrit. It is from this body of knowledge that the ancient science of fire purification originates. In those almost completely forgotten times, special fire ceremonies were performed by many ancient cultures across the planet, including the Hopi Native Americans, Mayans and Shamans of Siberia.
It is a process of purifying ourselves and the atmosphere through a specially prepared fire, which is performed at the sunset.
The beneficial effects of Agnihotra help to reduce stress, improve overall health and give one increased energy. This simple, yet powerful, tool is used across the planet by people from all walks of life, with amazing results that help to transform their lives and heal the planet.
During this sound experience, therapeutic instruments are played in a manner designed to relax, rejuvenate, and take the listener on a journey of self-discovery and inner exploration. The sounds promote deep relaxation, peace and an expansion of consciousness, as well as opening the body’s entire energetic system. While there are periodic loud or intense swells of sound, the tones are generally in the medium range of volume and intensity to offer the greatest amount of harmonics and variances in the sounds.
Know your tribe. We are all here equally, in need of healing and are equally innocent.
The group circle provides a safe, non-judgmental space for sharing your heartaches and stories in the spirit of total acceptance and unconditional forgiveness. Communicating with words, songs, touch, or in any way you feel comfortable, allows you to connect in the truth of our essence.
Being in nature. Walking slowly. Breathing deeply, while consciously opening all your senses.
This is the healing way of Shinrin-yoku Eco Therapy, developed in Japan, that became the cornerstone of preventive health care. The medicine of meditative being in nature.
Let’s connect with Mother Earth and play in mud!
If man was made of clay, what made clay of man? The clay has a way of teaching you about life. It is pernickety and changeable.
Take a masterclass in shaping a piece of your soul to enter this three dimensional world. Under the watchful eye and guidance from a pottery master you can make anything from a musical instrument, like ocarina, to a tea cup for your next tea ceremony.
Whatever masterpiece you make, it stays with you!
The majestic Sanctuary that will host our healing journey is based around the principle of permaculture: working in conjunction with nature, not against it.
Permaculture is the ethical, scientific and synchronistic design of natural systems to ensure a sustainable philosophy of living. It also aims to facilitate abundance for the future of humanity by producing all the food and materials it needs on a local scale. At its core, permaculture is simply the collaboration of humans and nature in action.
During a short, interactive workshop, lead by our wonderful host, you can learn directly from the land what it’s all about. To leave your own mark in this “Garden of Eden”, you will receive a pot (named after you) and a wide selection of seeds to start a new cycle of life.
Our wellness program focuses on cleansing both the mind and body through a vegan, Ayurveda and Five Elements inspired menu. The majority of the ingredients come from our vast gardens and are grown here organically with respect to nature; prepared and served with love. A delightful, vegan/vegetarian menu is put together to treat us to three amazing meals a day, as well as superfood smoothies, black, green and herbal teas, and juices.
We cater for any food allergies, nut allergies, gluten intolerance, or any specific additions to your meals.
All meals are vegetarian, but not gluten free; however we are more than happy to provide gluten free and vegan options.
The menu is protein rich, very well balanced and super healthyStart: March 14, 2020 at 12pm
End: March 18, 2020 at 4pm
£ 250 off shared accommodation in a massive and very comfortable tent that has 4 double bedrooms.
The bathroom and shower is shared. Total: £750
Apart of your 5 nights accommodation priced per person inclusive of tax, bed linen, bath towels, hand soap & housekeeping service the cost also includes:
The car transfer from and to the airport in Marrakech
Three delicious meals a day
Herbal local teas, coffee, and filtered water throughout the day
Qigong lessons
Meditation classes
Ceramic & permaculture workshops
Sound baths
Fire ceremonies
All the tribal gatherings
Wifi in the communal area
Full use of the swimming pool, tennis court and in-house, traditional hammam
March is an excellent time to be planning a retreat to Morocco since this month marks the beginning of springtime here. Spring is a beautiful time of year, and many argue the best time to visit Marakesh. Temperatures grow warmer during the day, but are generally tolerable in most places.
The temperature in March grow warmer during the day, with average daytime temperatures of 25°C, depending on the area of the country you visit. Nights are still chilly, though, with nighttime temperatures dropping to 15°C degrees so you will still want to be prepared with long sleeve shirts, light sweaters, and light jackets when we will be out after the sun goes down.
Based on previous experience, most people who come to this magical space wish to extend their stayafter seeing the rapid healing changes in their body and mind.
There is so much to see and taste in Marrakech’s old town and the Sahara is just around the corner, as are the magnificent Atlas Mountains. If you would like to stay longer with us and maybe explore the neighbourhood, please let us know.