About this Event
You are warmly invited to a weekend of restorative healing and community building with other South Asian women. As we transition with the Autumn Equinox, join us for two days of ceremony, joyful expression, and deep healing.
Our heartfelt intention is that you leave the retreat feeling resourced, renewed, and reminded of your inherent gifts and divine nature. Through ancestral healing practices, embodiment, ritual, nature exploration, creative expression, and guided relaxation – we will weave together our common threads of sacred wisdom.
This weekend retreat will focus on creating a safe, nurturing space to reclaim our voice, explore creative expression and be in nature. Connection to our ancestors and each other will be the heart of our time together – and delicious, nourishing garden-fresh meals will be shared.We welcome you to this beautiful opportunity to connect to a supportive community, activate wellness, and fill your cup – while tapping into our shared ancestral strength and joy.
OUR WEEKEND RETREAT WILL INCLUDE:
- Circles with the opportunity to share from the heart in a safe space
- Ancestral ritual and practices
- Trauma-informed movement including asana
- Creative expression
- Nature reconnection
- Deep relaxation and integration time
- Storytelling and reflective writing
- Four delicious and nutritious vegan meals over two days
- Onsite camping (or you may choose to organize alternate accommodation nearby)
- A beautiful and sacred earthen studio setting
This intentional gathering is a rare opportunity to reflect on your connection to your roots, share challenges and celebrate growth – while exploring the many facets of who we are, and how we want to evolve.
Being a part of the South Asian diaspora comes with unique challenges, and together we can start to unravel our struggles, release what no longer serves, and reclaim the gifts of our heritage – while bringing upliftment and balance to our whole selves.
Dharti Mata Centre is located on 5.5 acres in a natural forest and farmland setting – just 10 – 20 minutes from all three ferry terminals – on the outskirts of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, BC.
*Weekend rate includes two full days of programming with two skilled facilitators, four delicious and nutritious garden-fresh, vegan meals (lunch on Saturday to lunch on Sunday), chai, snacks, dessert, and camping accommodation.
*Single day rate includes one full day of programming with two skilled facilitators, two delicious and nutritious garden-fresh, vegan meals (lunch and dinner on Saturday), chai, snacks, dessert, and camping accommodation.
*A few partial scholarships are available for folks experiencing financial barriers. Please contact at [email protected] to arrange.
*A couple of payment plans spots are available before September 7. Please contact at [email protected] to arrange.
***FOR FULL DETAILS + REGISTRATION PLEASE VISIT:
https://vedicpriestesstemple.com/sept-28-29-reclaiming.../
YOUR RETREAT FACILITATORS
Satya Amrita Kumari Jehman (Vedic Priestess Temple)
Born into the Vedic lineage, Satya has been living the traditional path of yoga all her life – with a more concentrated practice over the last 22 years. Satya carries the gift of fire ceremony and ritual by the grace of her ancestors from North India. She completed a year-long Yoga Apprenticeship in 2015 (Vijnana Yoga RYT200), and a deep dive study into jnana yoga (Vedic scripture study/self inquiry) with her teacher in her ancestral homeland of India amid a trio of winters from 2011-2013. While there in 2016, Satya was initiated into the Sidh Kunjika Stotram – the highest call to Maha Shakti (Divine Mother). She has been furthering her yogic studies in India with regular trips there for the past 15 years.
Satya recently completed a leadership training with a focus on Trauma-informed Leadership, Transformational Leadership, and Coaching. Encouraged by her teachers, Satya is a facilitator of Retreats, Workshops, Ceremony, Ritual, One-on-One Guide on Salt Spring Island and surrounding communities, in India – as well as online. She offers from the deepest place in her with utmost respect and reverence to her ancestors, to You, to the Divine, and to the Self.
Learn more about Satya’s offerings at @vedic_priestess_temple (Instagram) + @vedicpriestesstemple108 (Facebook). Sign up for Satya's newsletter at www.vedicpriestesstemple.com.
Emmy Chahal (Healing with Emmy)
Emmy was introduced to yoga as a child through her grandmother and mother. Her ancestors are from North India, and the practice of yoga continues to connect her deeply to her heritage. With a steady yoga practice for 20 years, she has been teaching yoga internationally for the past 12 years. Emmy is particularly focused on yoga for mental health, trauma-informed approaches, and supporting women and young people through embodiment, decolonization, and embodied pedagogy.Emmy holds a BA in Cultural Studies, minor in Gender and Women’s Studies; and has previously worked in schools as a violence prevention workshop facilitator.
Throughout her studies in yoga and the healing arts, Emmy has extensively trained in hatha, trauma-informed teaching, pre/postnatal yoga – and her yoga journey led her own research at the University of British Columbia on yoga in the university classroom. Emmy also facilitates cultural awareness training for yoga teacher trainings around the world. As a South Asian woman working in the North American yoga industry, her voice is dedicated to sharing the complexities of social inequity and building bridges between people of all backgrounds. Learn more about Emmy and her offerings at www.emmychahal.com.
WHAT PAST SOUTH ASIAN RETREAT PARTICIPANTS ARE SAYING:
"What a beautiful day in an absolutely beautiful place! Thank you so much for a wonderful day with amazing women including you two. I am so glad I met you.The venue, the hospitality, the food - an absolutely perfect place to hold such a retreat like this. I also appreciated that I was in a room with women who understand and get me. I felt like this was the safest space I have been in, in a while. There's something about being around women that are different, but there's still a commonality. I felt understood and like I didn't need to explain myself, or that I was "different" or the "other".Thanks again so much. I look forward to future events.”
~ Sonya B
“It was very meaningful to attend an all South Asian women’s retreat for the first time!”
~ Daisy C
“The South Asian women’s retreat was a very special day. We all had varying origins and of Indian ancestry, and regardless of where and how we were brought up, we often experienced similar challenges. Of course, we had unique experiences too, which we were able to discuss in the safe space provided. For me, I went in feeling “not Indian enough” based on my mixed ancestry and a lack of traditional foundation. But I was not alone. And, in the end, this turned out to be a retreat that I felt most comfortable at. Not to mention the incredible studio we were supported in.”
~ Tamara G
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
2021 Brothers Rd, 2021 Brothers Road, Nanaimo, Canada
CAD 187.71 to CAD 374.08