Studies demonstrate the undeniable healing properties of nature. Just being in the natural environment regulates one's emotions, slows down the breath and mind, harmonizes and energizes the nervous system of a person and so much more.
Spending time in nature is the single most important asset we have here. The Yucatán jungle vibrates with life, and the more time we spend here, the more we feel the benefits of living this close to the land.
We invite your group to come and ground, bathe in the silence, and recenter yourself with a variety of services provided. For your group, you can choose your own Holistic Healing options, and combine them with those from our Cultural Immersion program. Together we will customize your own specialized retreat, which will give you the opportunity to choose activities based on the needs of your specific group.
Ayahuasca (la medicina) has been used for millennia in the Amazon basin as a panacea, a medicine that holistically heals the human: psychologically, emotionally, physically, and energetically. La Medicina was and still is used for its teaching and divinatory properties. Ayahuasca ceremonies require participants to prepare themselves physically and mentally in advance, for it is a strong purgative that requires the body to be relatively clean prior to the drinking of the brew. A rigorous medical and psychological screening is required in advance; participants must qualify to participate in the ceremonies.
Marriage is a sacred ritual of unity, for it is a paramount initiatic event that transforms the individual into completeness. A true marriage transcends the self, the ego, to accomplish wholeness and unity here on earth. True weddings are elaborate, celebratory rituals that place the couple on the path of harmony and a higher form of oneness. At Kumankaya, spiritual marriages are celebrated during an Ayahuasca ceremony.
Rapé (pronounced ha-PAY) is a native tradition of South America. Rapé is traditionally a combination of powdered tobacco and other medicinal herbs. When used intentionally and ceremonially, rapé has the ability to clean negative energies, recenter the mind, give insights, and an overall calming sensation to the self. In a ceremony, the practitioner administers the rapé through a double-nostril pipe, and participants will be led through a prayer / intention ritual and a meditation ceremony.
Cacao has been used in Central American ceremonies for at least 5,000 years. It is used as sacred medicine that connects participants to their heart space. Physiologically, Cacao contains anandamide (Ananda is Sanskrit means “bliss”), which binds to THC receptors to give an overall feeling of wellness. Cacao also facilitates energetic healings by clearing and centering the mind and emotions enabling greater insights and love to resonate. Cacao ceremonies will be a communal experience with prayer, music, meditation and sharing.
Flower baths are given to clean one's body and energetic field, and depending on the purpose of the bath, many different plants and flowers can be used. In the beautiful jungle, participants will be given a bath composed of natural flowers and herbs, all of which are specifically chosen for their cleaning and medicinal properties. Once the bath is prepared, it will receive the warmth of the sun throughout the day. Toward the end of the day, participants will be given their medicinal bath, asked to cleanse in nature, and air dry by the heat of the sun. Flower baths rehydrate the skin, calm the mind, relieve stress, remove unwanted negative energies and restore balance and positive energies.
Because the human body is made up of 70 percent water, it is particularly susceptible to vibrational healing. In addition, our organs and our cells all have a particular frequency by which they correspond. All this makes sound healing a powerful tool to release blocked energy, clear negative thoughts and emotions, rebalance, harmonize and calm the mind, body and spirit. Our talented sound healer, Christopher Salvatierra, utilizes vocal healing as well as instruments from all over the world. For nearly a decade, he has been working with sound as a healing modality. He will be leading the healing experience for participants. You can click on his facebook page to learn more.
Our bodies store the stress and negative energies of our daily lives. In fact, our bodies absorb all our negative thoughts and emotions in the soma. As a result, we can suffer from chronic pains and fatigue due solely to these unreleased energies. Regular massages can help the body break up and release stored emotions. Regular massages can reduce stress and muscle tension, improve circulation, stimulate the lymphatic system, increase flexibility and mobility.
A fun and profound method of release and liberation, this ecstatic dance uses movement to release tension in the body and balance the chakras. In a guided format, participants will listen to songs that vibrationally correspond with each chakra, and they will be invited to listen and connect with their bodies, while moving to the rhythm of the music. Our specific dance will focus on balancing the 7 major chakras and creating a deeper connection with our bodies as sacred forms. Join us in the maloka, under the stars where we honor our own healing potential. Dances will be guided as celebrations of healing and liberation.
A Yoga Alliance certified yoga instructor teaches classes that emphasize the connection between breath and movement, and the important relationship between posture and the individual body. The types of classes offered: Vinyasa Flow focuses on breath work to deepen the healing potentiality of poses; Alignment Flow focuses on a sequence of postures that release tension through movement; Power Flow combines the flow of yoga with the intensity of pilates; Yin Flow focuses on holding asanas longer to deepen the release; Yin and Restorative is a meditative experience that focuses on deep tension release and relaxation. Each class is offered through the course of a week, and collectively the week course is structured to offer a holistic practice that targets the whole body, mind, and spirit. We also offer Trauma-Sensitive Yoga, which focuses on body and emotion awareness during asana practice.
In this ancient practice, we recognize the breath as the vital force of the universe. By learning various breathing techniques we can release, heal and rebalance ourselves daily. As with yoga, this practice honors the body as its own intelligence. Through breath work, we establish a deeper connection with the body and tune in to listening to its nuances. The types of breath work offered are Ujjayi (Victorious Breathing), Sama Vritti (Square Breathing), Nadi Shodhana (Alternate Nostril Breathing), Kapalabhati (Skull Shining Breathing or Fire Breathing), and Viloma Pranayama (Against the Flow Breathing). Coupled with yoga, daily breath-work practices are guided.
Meditation can instill more peace, joy, and balance into one's life. Through regular meditation we can learn to guide our lives toward a more peaceful, joyful and compassionate existence. It is a beautiful way to connect with the true self and recognize moments when that presence is forgotten. Guided meditations will be offered daily with a variety of different practices: Passageways to Peace Meditation, Self Love Meditation, In My Heart Meditation, Gratitude and Inner Guidance Meditation, Presence and Intention Meditation, Lotus of Compassion Meditation, Cultivate Focus Meditation, Chakra Meditations, Mantra Meditations. These workshops will offer participants a variety of meditative practices.
Additionally, we offer ceremonial Shipibo learning workshops. In these classes, you will learn commonly-used phrases that are utilized in Ayahuasca ceremonies and understand better the Shipbo's perception of the physical, psycho-emotional, spiritual and energetic realms. Classes can be taught in English, French or Spanish covering ceremonial Shipibo. There can also be French and Dutch interpreters present as well.
When we were born, we were all given a voice, a vibration that corresponds exactly with our bodies' own healing potentials. Along the way, somehow, we have lost our connection to our voices, to singing, and as a result, we have lost the connection to our own innate healing capabilities. Through guided exercises, a teacher trained in sacred musicology and Byzantine chanting will help individuals rediscover the vibrational healing of singing.
Malas (which mean garlands) have been used in Eastern traditions for thousands of years as a tool for meditation. Typically, malas contain 108 beads with one bead as the head bead or guru bead that is larger than the others. Malas can help focus the mind during meditation and to keep count during recitation mantras. When we make our own mala, it contains our specialized energy and intentions. You can customize your own mala based on color symbolism and functionality that is important to you. In addition to making your own mala, we will learn various mantras that can be utilized during a mala meditation.
A guided walk through the Mayan jungle, your group will learn about the local healing trees and plants, and ancient Mayan remedies using these local resources. In addition, group members will choose a specific tree or plant at the end of the informative tour and learn how to prepare a medicinal elixir for their own use, for example, oil infusions, tinctures, and honey infusions.
These workshops will focus on how to find one's creativity and medicinal voice. Writing is such an integral part of discovering who we are and freeing the creative mind, for we must be inspired to create, and we must be creative to discover our true self. When we write, we discover our minds and our hearts in a completely different manner. Writing is a meditation, for we learn how to think through thoughts and choose our words carefully. What is slightly different about medicinal writing is that we will focus on how to alter our perception of the world with language, choosing to create a medicinal experience and/ or memory through high vibrational words and healing imagery.