Discover Your Inner Nature on a Yoga Retreat

While we all have to find a balance between our feminine and masculine sides, we women may have additional work in uncovering our feminine gifts that have been buried through growing up socialized to a masculine favored culture.

This is one of the reasons I believe that women are so drawn to yoga. Yoga and meditation show us our true selves. A regular yoga practice allows us the space to uncover what was once clouded by illusion – our true nature. In a traditional yogic sense, this means our godlike nature, the Atman, or highest self. But dear reader, there are layers upon layers that must be unveiled before we realize this truth, and this involves shedding our false identities. This shedding of layers comes through the stillness and concentration of yoga, pranayama, and meditation, done consistently and without distraction.

But here is the problem for most busy women: fitting in regular yoga practices throughout the week can be difficult and may not be on the top of the priority list. I know how it is. Even when you are able to practice regularly, you are also doing countless other things that day that suck up your mental capacity and your physical and subtle energy. So while the yoga class certainly benefits you, you are likely faced with the same stresses and demands that you entered with once you leave the studio.

From my own experiences leading and attending yoga retreats, there is an undeniable positive effect that washes over someone who spends a few days, a week, or longer practicing yoga in the company of soulful community, away from distractions and immersed in nature. For a woman, this opportunity for stillness and space allows her to reestablish the roots that connect her so intimately with Mother Nature and with her own inner nature, which very likely has been clouded. With this gift of clarity, she is better able to stand in her truth and claim her innate womanly gifts.

While recently leading a 5-day intensive women’s retreat in Costa Rica, I witnessed incredible personal transformations, in both the participants and in myself.

I watched beautiful women find their inner nature through connection to outer nature. I witnessed them share their stories, laugh, play, cry, and feel deeply. We practiced yoga openly and presently while shedding layers of false identities, all with great love and respect for ourselves and each other. It was magic, pure and simple.

We courageously put fire to what no longer served us, sang our songs of hope and intention to the new moon, and cleansed our naked bodies in the healing waters of the river. We danced under waterfalls, slept to the sounds of the jungle and nourished our bodies with foods from the Earth. It was such a profound experience that words simply cannot do it justice, and it occurred becuase a group of women was called together to make it happen. I’ve had the immense privilege of sharing these types of experiences not only on this retreat but on all of the retreats I have lead.

Have you ever experienced a moment in nature that shifted something deep inside you? We would love to hear about your magical moments in the comments!

The power that awakens when one gives herself the gift of stillness, yoga, nature, and community is simply undeniable.

In addition to the benefits stated above, listen to me closely: you deserve to give yourself the gift of a yoga retreat. Maybe no one has told you that before, but you deserve self-care, deep love, connection, stillness and space to be your true self. You deserve the adventure, the relaxation, the stillness, the play, and the breath of fresh air.

It’s easy to think of reasons why you can’t go on a yoga retreat, or why you think you shouldn’t. However, if you find yourself called to one, try challenging yourself to think of all the reasons you should attend. Why deny yourself that joy?

Even if you aren’t sure how to make it happen right now, don’t lose sight of your desire. Barriers can be shifted or eliminated, and an entire world of possibility will open up when you allow yourself to answer that call. For each of us the call looks different and for each of us, we will discover something unique. We are wise, creative and powerful women, and we all deserve the opportunity to dive into our own greatness on a yoga retreat.

Join the Conversation
What’s holding you back from booking that retreat, you? Is it time, money, or guilt? Let’s talk about it in the comments and help each other find a way to say “yes” to ourselves.