An Exploration of the Koshas: A Retreat to Nourish Every Layer of Your Being

The Koshas in yoga represent the different layers of our being. We can picture the Koshas as Russian nesting dolls, each representing a part of the self that contributes to who we are as humans. The aim is to take care of every layer of who we are in order to release energy blockages and stagnation. When we do so, we can show up as our true authentic selves. Note that the nesting dolls start with the outer layer and move inwards. These layers are:

1. Our physical body,
2. Our energy (including our breath and energetic self),
3. Our thoughts and emotions (otherwise known as our ego),
4. Our wisdom, and
5. Our soul.

This retreat will offer guidance on how to relate to each aspect of our being in a productive and empowering way. It will offer tools to enable us to show up in life with more presence, intention, and direction. 

When we don’t take care of ourselves in the present, it is impossible to be the person we want to be. If we are exhausted, overwhelmed or don’t take time out for ourselves, we are just a shell of who we are and it is challenging to find ways to regulate ourselves and stay calm in triggering moments. The more we push our own needs aside, the harder it is to be in relationships with others without resentment bubbling to the surface from feeling so overloaded and unanchored.

In the process, we may need to release what doesn’t serve us: stress and tension, dysregulation, overwhelm, exhaustion, a sense that we have to do it all, and our conditioning from childhood. In losing some of these “toxic” aspects of life, we can find the space to come back to who we truly are through well-deserved self-care and attention to ourselves. When we offer ourselves permission to find moments for ourselves to re-energize and reconnect with ourselves, we can show up and respond to life and others in our life with more intention, feeling more like ourselves. When we feel more connected to who we are, it is easier to engage our compassionate, patient, and kinder self with our interactions with both ourselves and others.

In this retreat, we will journal, workshop, practice yoga, breathe and meditate, hike, eat nourishing plant-based food, and immerse ourselves in nature. This is an opportunity to reset, find awareness about our needs and how to fulfill them, and to connect more deeply with our true self, so that we can show up in life from a space of more heart-centeredness.

Tentative schedule:

Friday: A Focus on the Physical Body
3pm Check-in
4pm Opening Circle – an overview of the Koshas and how they can help us
6pm Dinner
7.30pm Workshop on the Physical Body – learning to accept and love the vessel that we live in
8.30pm Slow Yoga Flow

Saturday: A Focus on the Energetic Body (Breathing, Thinking, and Emotional Layers)
8am Yoga with a Focus on Our Breath – using out breath to guide our energy
9.15am Breakfast
10.30am Workshop on the Ego – understanding our thinking mind and cultivating a healthy relationship with it
11.30 Hike to the River/Waterfall
1pm Lunch
6pm Dinner
7.30pm Bonfire and Movement – burning away what no longer serves us
8.30pm Breathwork – witness, understand, and experience our emotions

Sunday: A Focus on our Wisdom and Soul
8am Laughter Yoga – finding joy in being in the present and connecting with our silliness
9.15am Breakfast (in silence*)
10.30am Hike (in silence*)
11.30am Free time with ourselves (in silence without cell phones*)
1pm Lunch
2pm Workshop on How to Live from the Heart 
3pm Closing Circle and Meditation
4/5pm Depart
*We will engage in a few hours of silence to practice connecting with ourselves and to get comfortable being with and accepting ourselves as we are.