In-Person Programs
Living Being
Fall Retreats with Pir Elias & Friends
The intention of this retreat is to evoke in us, and deepen, the great mystery of aliveness. While we are all biologically alive, being fully and spontaneously alive includes not only our physical well-being but the radiance of our hearts, the freedom of our minds, and the openness of our spirits. During the retreat we will explore aliveness in each of these realms using experiential practices, inquiry, conversation, guided meditation, silence, music, and dance.
What are the moments when you feel most alive? Can something get in the way of your sense of aliveness? What is the life you share with all reality? What does it teach you about belonging to the earth and to the cosmos? How does your aliveness help you to serve in these uneasy times?
The retreat will be led by Pir Elias along with contributions from several teachers of the Sufi Way. Together we will experience ways of awakening our bodies and spirits, meditations in nature, and investigations into the mental habits that cloud our aliveness.
Netherlands
The Place: Sufi Temple Universel Murad Hassil, Katwijk aan Zee
Dates: September 1-5, 2026*
Accommodations. Please note that lodging accommodations are separate from registration and need to be organized by each participant. More information can be found here: https://www.sufiway.org/s/Lodging_in-Katwijk-aan-Zee.pdf
Travel to the Universel. http://www.sufiway.nl/umh/route.htm
Arrival. Please arrange to arrive at the Universel at 4pm on September 1st; supper will be servied at 6pm. The retreat concludes on September 5th after lunch (2pm).
Cost: €620
(Includes retreat tuition, lunch, dinner, and snacks during the program, and contribution toward the venue)
*this is sold out. to join our wait list, please contact pippa@sufiway.org
Germany
The Place: Himmelreich Retreat Center, near Lindau
Dates: September 8-12, 2026
Arrival. Please arrange to arrive at the Himmelreich Retreat Center at 4pm on September 8th; supper will be served at 6pm. The retreat concludes on September 12th after lunch (2pm).
Full Room & Board*
Single Room: €600 (sold out)
Double Room (per person): €560 (sold out)
Shared Room (per person): €520 (sold out)
Non-lodging (per person) €300(sold out)
Tuition: €400
(Includes retreat tuition, accommodations, lunch, dinner, and snacks during the program, and contribution toward the venue)
Upon registration, please send an email directly to Dieter Schmidt @ dieter-kurt.schmidt@gmx.de to discuss room assignments. Lodging/non-lodging fees listed above will be collected upon your arrival on September 8th.
Directions to the Retreat Center: https://www.sufiway.org/s/Himmelreich-Directions.pdf
*this is sold out. to join our wait list, please contact pippa@sufiway.org
2 0 2 7 P R O G R A M S
Entering Into Silence
A Sufi Walking Retreat in the Moroccan Desert
with Karim Noverraz & Luca Salvini
March 13-23, 2027
This walking retreat offers us an opportunity to experience how the vast emptiness and silence of the desert connects us with our own inner silence. As we walk into the desert, we are invited to leave behind our attachments, preoccupations and excessive activity, and orient ourselves to Presence.
Amongst other practices, there will be silent and singing meditations, zikrs, evenings of poetry and story-telling. The main language will be English, translations into French and Italian will be available. This retreat will be facilitated by Karim and Luca, two senior retreat leaders.
Click here to watch a video of the desert retreat we did last March::
https://desert-montagne.ma/purete-du-desert-sud-maroc/
Advanced reservations and enquiries, email to: sufipilgrimage@gmail.com
The Place: Moroccan Desert
Dates: March 13-23, 2027
Click here to read: PROGRAM OVERVIEW - Entering into Silence 2027
Click here to read: REGISTRATION & PRACTICAL DETAILS - Entering into Silence 2027
This spiritual journey is a joint project of the Sufi Way and Agence Désert et Montagne
A Garden Among the Flames
A Sufi Retreat with Binah Taylor and Elmer Koole
April 12 - 17, 2027
La Loma Viva, Gualchos, Spain
‘Oh Marvel, A garden among the flames! My heart can take on any form!’
Ibn ‘Arabi, Sufi teacher 13th century
Amidst the agitation of the world and the turbulence of our personal lives there is a place of peace and beauty that is open to all of us. The Sufi teacher Ibn ‘Arabi uses the poetic metaphor ‘A Garden among the flames’ giving inspiration to our gathering. During this retreat we will cultivate our inner garden through silence, friendship, guided meditation, sandtray, movement, zikr (musical meditation), sohbet (mystical conversation), and other experiential Sufi practices. This is a time to nurture and be nurtured playfully and creatively.
In a contemporary context we will also walk in the footsteps of Sufi teacher Ibn ‘Arabi who lived part of his life in Andalucia, exploring his teachings and reading his texts by practicing lectio divina, a meditative wayofreading.
Advanced reservations and inquiries : binahtaylor@gmail.com or elmerkoole@gmail.com
Place: La Loma Viva (The Living Hill; www.lalomaviva.com), a non-profit foundation and a 15 hectare farm (permaculture) on the coast of southern Spain between Almeria and Malaga. It is beautifully situated on the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, overlooking the Mediterranean sea.
Dates: April 12-17 2027
Click here for registration and practical details