Sacred Journey of the Soul Retreat

Note: This is a retreat starting Sept. 13 and ending Sept. 20, 2024

Embark on a transformative journey into the heart of ancient wisdom and rituals at our Sufi and Mystic Dance & Music Retreat. Nestled in the serene surroundings of rural southern Vermont, this retreat offers a sanctuary for seekers of spiritual depth and cultural enrichment.

This is more than a retreat; it’s a homecoming for your soul, an opportunity to awaken and expand your consciousness alongside like-minded beings… A Journey of Spiritual Wisdom, Mystic Dance and Whirling, Music, and Meditation, where every step becomes a prayer and every dance is a transcendental journey.

Within the Sacred Circle, we unite hearts and delve into the roots of Sufism and mysticism. Discover the sacred arts of poetry, music, and maqams, engage in devotional dances, partake in healing rituals, and experience the mystical tradition of whirling. Our journey encompasses the rich tapestry of Iranian/Persian mysticism and Sufism, including Greater Khorasan, Yarsan, Qaderi, Mitratic, and Zoroastrian rituals, as well as Central Asian and Turkish Sufi practices.

The retreat will include:

• Persian mystical and devotional dance and rituals
• Study of mystical Persian poetry (Farsi and English) and the power of poetry in movement prayers.
• Turns, circles, spirals: Ancient mystical and Sufi whirling practices.
• Exploring Sufi and mystical music lessons and music therapy (daf, drum circles, and tanbur).
• Prayers, Zikr, ancient Iranian medicine movement
• • Morning and Dawn Prayers, meditation, visualization, and Farima’s unique breathing technique.
  • Nature Immersion: Nature awareness, healing rituals, and observation.
• Sacred Steps: Integration healing walks and silent meditation
• Chanting, sacred circles, and zikr

Space is limited, ensuring an intimate and deeply personal experience. Join us as we Release, Receive, and Awaken the Soul on this sacred pilgrimage of the spirit.

Schedule

Please plan to arrive before 4:00 pm, September 13th. On this day we will begin our opening ceremony ritual at 4:00 pm and continue teaching/dancing until 9 pm with breaks and dinner in between sessions. Read more about daily schedule details.

Registration and Payment

$1000 early bird payment until June 15, $1250 thereafter.

To hold your space pay a $250 non-refundable deposit to register. Balance is due by June 15th for early bird. You can pay by cash, check, or online.

Retreat includes 7 day immersion (6+ hours a day teaching and evening events) and 3 delicious healthy meals by our amazing Persian/Lebanese chef! Available all day are water/juice, tea, and snacks. Accommodations are shared lodging in beautiful rooms surrounded in nature. Bedding/sheets are available for $30 or bring your own.

We will not provide to or from-airport pick up. However, we can pick you up at a designated meeting area.

Retreat Guidelines and Rules

• All programs begins promptly at start time. Please be respectful of time and arrive on time.
• We kindly ask for no talking on the teaching or whirling space and to keep the areas sacred and quiet at all times. Respect yourself as well as those around you.
• For this retreat please wear proper and respectful clothing, whirling skirt (optional), socks or soft-soled shoes. White or light colored clothing is preferred for evening gathering. Please also make sure to bring some warm clothing.
• Absolutely no recreational drugs or smoking is allowed for this retreat. Using any illegal substance will be severely enforced. Organizers have the right to block entry to any participants who do not respect these rules.
• No video is allowed during teaching hours. Anyone wanting to take pictures or videos must ask Farima for permission.
• Please keep the retreat and teaching space clean. Clean after yourself and help others to keep the area clean.
• We cannot accommodate every individual special food or diet needs. If you have a special diet or do not like the food, please bring your own food. A kitchen is available in the common area for your use.
• Please understand we cannot control weather, mother nature, or emergency situations. We ask that you come to the retreat with an open heart, be willing to except unexpected changes, and continue to bring joy! Everyone is part of the sacred circle… Everyone is Love.

About the Venue: Potash Hill Retreat Center

Potash Hill is located in the southern Vermont town of Marlboro, between Brattleboro and Wilmington, off Route 9. It is a lovely 560-acre property with early 19th century farm houses, arts and academic buildings, expansive views, fields, private roads, and undeveloped forests with extensive hiking trails. Hartford’s Bradley Airport is about 90 minutes away, and Boston’s Logan Airport is 2.5 hours by car. There is also daily train service to Brattleboro from east coast cities.

This expansive rural property is spread out primarily over a beautiful, rocky hilltop in the southern part of Marlboro, extending over the border to Halifax, Vermont, to the south. The total combined property consists of 59 buildings with approximately 150,000 square feet. Much of the land is forested, with smaller portions cleared for the central campus, roads, parking areas, fields, and off-campus houses. The campus buildings range from original farm structures to the recently completed Jerome and Celia Bertin Reich building. The Reich building opened in June 2021 and contains three spacious music rehearsal studios, the Maxine and Stuart Frankel Foundation Library—a library for Marlboro’s extensive collection of some 8,500 chamber music scores—administrative offices, and social spaces.

The rest of the campus is primarily undeveloped forests. We are committed to preserving this land, which is home to wildlife and contains hiking and cross-country ski trails that are popular with our community and town residents.

About Farima Berenji

Dr. Farima Berenji is a distinguished scholar with an MA in Anthropology/Archaeology, MA in Iranian Ethnochoreology, an M.Msc, and a PhD in Metaphysics specializing in Iranian mysticism and Sufism. Farima is a Sufi master (initiated) of the Yarsani order and brings a unique blend of academic rigor and spiritual depth to her work, performances, and teachings. As an award-winning and internationally acclaimed performing artist and choreographer, Farima has been recognized as one of the foremost global scholars in ancient and mystical Iranian ethnochoreology, becoming a UN Cultural Ambassador. Notably, she is honored as the first Iranian woman to direct a Persian dance company, showcasing performances for notable figures such as President Obama, President Biden, the EU, the UN, and other international dignitaries.

Farima Berenji is Integrative Healing Practitioner, founder of Dance of the Soul™ Founder and Artistic Director of the Simorgh Dance Collective. She is also the Assistant Director and Program Coordinator of Eastern Arts and serves as an Advisory Council Member of Mosaic America, member of the International Dance Council (CID-UNESCO), and a member of the National Folk Organization. Distinctively, Farima is recognized as the first Iranian-American woman TEDx lecturer and performer in the field of performance art and spirtuality. As an artist, scholar, and spiritual master, Farima’s contributions span the globe, encompassing research, lectures, performances, and education. Her mission is to inspire the cultivation of dynamic creativity and rejuvenation through the transformative power of dance, movement, dance as prayer and music.