March 26th – April 3rd 2010

Casale Santa Brigida is pleased to present London’s Raphan Laye Kebe teaching an inspirational and challenging week of yoga!

Fee: 650 euros per person (shared accomodation) for a 7 day retreat. Arrive on Friday afternoon and depart the following Saturday morning.

Price includes 3 local vegetarian meals, bed, and all yoga. Flight & Insurance not included. Pickups from Civita Castellana and Orte train stations or Rome’s Ciampino or Fiumicino airports available at an additional charge. Excursions in the Umbrian countryside and other activities available for an additional charge. The Art Monastery is pleased to present this early season workshop at a fraction of regular prices!

About the Retreat

Invigorating and challenging, this retreat offers a complete journey for the body and mind. Designed for beginners* through to advanced practitioners, classes will consist of Vinyasa (flowing asana sequences), hands-on adjustments, Sanskrit chanting, philosophical discussions, uplifting & soothing music, meditation and deep relaxation.

Both classical and creatively-adapted sun salutations will be practised as well as standing & seated postures, balance-poses, backbends, and inversions alongside meditation, yogic breathing, kriyas & more.

Classes will introduce beginners to the basics of vinyasa flow yoga by gently awakening and warming the body which will lead to flowing sequences investigating the connection between breath, movement and the mind.

*Beginners to Vinyasa Flow should have at least 6 months experience of ‘general Hatha Yoga’.

The goal of this retreat is to help you with:

- building a foundation for your yoga practice.

- strengthening your yoga practise & instill a certain discipline required for a relaxed yet focused yogic way of life.

- flexibility, strength, balance & concentration.

- understanding & applying the basics of Universal Principles of Alignment while creating stability and ease within each posture.

- realizing the wisdom, strength and grace of your body through creative sequencing.

- honoring the body that is yours.

- the releasing of three kinds of tension – muscular , emotional and mental; which leads to reduced stress, enhanced memory and learning capacity; awakened creativity; releasing repressed matter and increasing of willpower.

- & Much Much More………

THE DAILY CLASSES:

Morning Dynamic Flow Yoga

Move with the rhythm of the breath through intelligent and dynamic sequences of flowing yoga postures designed to build strength, focus and flexibility. Set in an noncompetitive environment, this class integrates music and detailed alignment instructions and is designed for those who seek a mind / body / spirit experience that is deep, invigorating and life affirming. Meditation, breathing exercises, chanting & philosophical commentary will be intertwined within the practise of Asanas.

Evening Visual Flow Yoga

Drishti, when translated from Sanskrit, can mean “view”, “opinion”, and “gaze.” The internal focus that manifests through the use of the eyes depends on the direction and quality of the practitioner’s gaze specifically. The eyes offer an invitation to engage more deeply with the environment, with those people near you, and to wake up from the hazy blank stare we often settle into without knowing it.

As such, Raphan will visually, with minimum verbal instructions, guide students through series of Sun & Moon salutations which will reinforce, through attention, the connection between breathing, alignment and mindfulness. This Asana practise will be preceded by Sanskrit Chanting.

FINAL WORDS FROM RAPHAN

I am totally devoted to creating an atmosphere that encourages Respect and Freedom – in movement & expression – in order to cultivate passion and creativity within ourselves for the benefit of each & everyone regardless of race (2 or 4 legged!), colour, creed or hairstyle. By giving everyone individualized attention, hands-on encouragement and assisting, my offering is that of a hopefully deep & meaningful experience through the means of Yoga. As such the goal of this retreat is to help you feeling refreshed & renewed and to leave you with a sense of direction & purpose, not only for the practise of Asanas but also for your day to day living!

Deadline to Sign up: March 7th

30% deposit reserves your place and the balance must be paid prior to arrival.

Pay by Paypal:

or bank transfer:

Art Monastery Project, subject Yoga Retreat

IBAN: IT 29 L 03002 73670 000400694964

SWIFT: BROMITR1424

CONTACT: julia@artmonastery.org, +39 333 153 7353, or write to casalesantabrigida@artmonastery.org for reservations and inquiries.

Testimonials:

I was lucky enough to go on a week’s retreat with Raphan and fellow students to Turkey this summer (2008) and can truthfully say I came back with a renewed passion for yoga! It was a real treat to be in such a wonderful centre, supported by an innovative and inspiring teacher.

The sessions were always challenging, but thanks to Raphan’s supportive and engaging manner, we all felt we could approach new challenges with confidence. His use of music in class, from soothing meditative chants to more upbeat tunes, provided the extra encouragement we needed and made his morning sessions a real treat.

He also introduced us to ‘visual flow’, using minimal instruction and simple breathing to encourage us to build and share our practise. These were really eye-opening sessions, which helped me strengthen my own practise in a totally new way, and I’m really looking forward to building on this in next year’s retreat. Not to be missed!                             Denise Roach, London. Yoga teacher