LONDON

EMBRACING THE DARK

A Day Retreat Honouring the Descent into Winter

with Sivani Mata Francis

MUSIC AS MEDICINE (Kirtan & Prayersong)
MYTHICAL STORIES of the GODDESS
YOGA NIDRA
MYSTIC POETRY
Delicious vegetarian LUNCH & CHAI

Welcome dear one. This retreat-day is a chance to slow down and nourish yourselves through these darkening days. In our modern culture the summer season and the outward expression of productivity are held in a place of reverence, however, that solar mode can only be sustainable when we tend to the more lunar mode that gives space for rest and receptivity.

This retreat will focus on that dark side of the cycle, honouring rest as our queen, we will experience yoga nidra, the lying down meditation on non-doing. We will also weave song and story throughout the day. We will sing a combination of kirtan (devotional Sanskrit song) with prayersongs in other languages that inspire a deepening into our hearts as a tool to connect us with a more intuitive state a being. Stories will focus on the mythical tales of the dark Goddess, the faces of the Sacred Feminine that rebel against the status quo, She of magic, mystery and wisdom.

Your guide in this day is Sivani Mata, a bridge-walker, London born with roots in Celtic lands and infused with African spirit filtered through Trinidad. She is an artist moved by a sensory and elemental exploration of life through practice that evokes the liminal experience of trance-like states of consciousness, as well as the centring of the awareness in heart. A core avenue on her journey is the path of bhakti yoga from the Shaivaite linage of Haiḍakhan Babaji; woven with devotion to the Sacred Feminine inspired by Shakta Tantra and the Shamanism of the Mother Goddess (as shared by XamAM Alba Maria). She believes in this deep inner work as a way to cultivate healing for ourselves and the Earth, and is grateful for the continuous opportunities for learning.

The Heart Space will be serving up a delicious vegetarian lunch, chai and treats.
No experience necessary, all are welcome.
All ages, all genders, all ethnicities are welcome, and all are encouraged to treat each other with respect and compassion in our shared space.


The Heart Space is sacred and collaborative space in the heart of Kensal Rise (site of the old Special Yoga Centre) devoted to deep embodiment, community and healing through the true teachings of yoga, holistic therapies and earth based wisdom.

Photo thanks to Murray Ballard