Yoga, Breath & Sound
on the Big Island, Hawai’i
October 2-6, 2024
with Cynthia Bates, Rachel Mathenia & Friends
Discover your inner song
for healing and liberation
Are you ready for a deeply nourishing and inspiring retreat exploring the power of sound and vibration to open inner worlds of creativity, life and purpose? Come together in the vibrant rainforest of Hawaii Island, for a journey of body, breath and sound.
This retreat will include guided sessions with instructions on using breath and sound as part of your spiritual practice, creativity and life. It will also include periods of exploring our own voices through toning, song and chanting. Learning to listen to our own inner breath and sound we will awaken our unique song which is longing to arise.
This retreat is open to all and does not require any experience with singing or music. If you feel intrigued….then this might be for you!
The majority of sessions will be led by Cynthia & Rachel joined by guest facilitators in breathwork, sound healing and Hawaiian cultural practices.
Our Schedule
Wednesday, October 2
4pm Opening Ceremony with Hawaiian Cultural Practices
5-6pm Restorative Yoga & Sound Healing
Thursday, October 3 - Saturday October 5
8-9am Breath practice
9-10:30am Tea and fruit
10:30-12pm Asana and Sound
12-5pm Free time to rest and explore
5-6pm Restorative Yoga & Sound Healing
Sunday, October 6
8-9:30 Last session
10-12pm Farm to Table Brunch in Volcano
1-2pm Guided hike in Volcano National Park
Closing ceremony - offerings
Accommodations
Our studio Mana Mauna (Spirit Mountain), is located in the Fern Acres subdivision halfway between Hilo and Volcano on the Big Island of Hawaii. We do not have rooms on site but there are plenty of wonderful and affordable accommodations within a 5-10 minute drive.
Studio Address: 11-3447 Lehua Street, Mountain View, HI
SHARED HOUSE OPTION
If you are interested in sharing a place with others, please contact me and I will connect you.
Reserve Your Spot
Contact Cynthia to pay and reserve your spot at cynthiabates88@gmail.com.
$585 (through Cash, Zelle, Venmo)
$600 (through Paypal)
$250 to reserve your spot; remaining due by September 1, 2024.*
*Full refunds minus a $25 administrative fee will be given until September 1.
Things to Do Around Hilo
Visit the local Fire Goddess Pelé at her home in Volcano National Park. (Be sure to stop by Volcano Art Center as well)
Take a swim in the warm, clear blue ocean where sea turtles and fish abound. Our favorite local beach is Carlsmith.
Explore exotic tropical plants, some of which are only found on this island at one of the island's Botanical Gardens.
Go stargazing on top of the highest mountain in the world from the sea floor, the majestic Mauna Kea. Here you can look out over the entire island and catch a view of the stars and the universe like nothing you have ever seen! The summit is at almost 14K feet so there is even snow in the winter.
Visit the Imiloa Astronomy Center and take a tour of the night sky through various cultures.
If time allows, plan a couple of days on the Kona side of the island to take in some of the most beautiful white sand beaches and clear blue water in the world. Our favorite beaches are Hapuna, Beach 69 and Mauna Kea.
Cynthia (Chöying)
The first 30 years of my life were about exploration. I lived in other countries and took many paths including art, politics, foreign languages, and teaching young children. My spiritual path began when I was 30 when I was introduced to hatha yoga. One of my first yoga teachers was Ann Dyer who incorporated nada yoga (the yoga of sound) into her classes and retreats. From there I studied Iyengar Yoga, eventually becoming a teacher and apprenticed with Manouso Manos for many years learning therapeutic applications.
During this time, the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali became an integral part of my practice and I learned to read and chant Sanskrit. The practice of memorizing and chanting the Yoga Sutras had a revolutionary affect on my life. Perhaps, even more powerful than the asana. But, after 15 years of dedicated yoga practice, I felt called by my other spiritual path of Buddhism.
I was introduced to Vipassana meditation at the same time as I started my yoga practice and it was part of my personal practice for many years. But, in 2015 I met Tsoknyi Rinpoche, a Tibetan lama who has dedicated his life to cultivating enlightenment in female form and took formal refuge vows. Chöying (Dharmadhatu) is the refuge name that I received. It means the realm of dharma and after many years of contemplating the meaning, I believe it refers to the womb from which everything arise, abides and passes away. I began a Vajrayana practice of Green Tara and Dzogchen which is core to my practice now.
I moved to the Big Island of Hawai’i in 2019 and have made a home here. I built my own off-grid tiny house and live in tune with my environment and community. This powerful place has also been my teacher and practice. I began to feel nourished and grounded in a way that none of the other practices I was doing provided. I experienced the pranic healing powers of the elements and unseen forces which is something that I like to share with others when they come here.
It was during our worldwide retreat (2020) that I began to explore music and sound again. In 2022, after a dream initiation, I began channeling songs. Like the chanting of Sanskrit, this began to have a profound affect on my being. And, it is from here that I am beginning to experiment with putting together the practices of yoga asana, breath and sound into something that I can offer others, for the benefit of all beings.
May we all be liberated, may we all be liberated, may we all be liberated!
Rachel Mathenia
Rachel Mathenia has been practicing yoga for almost two decades. Infusing humor, compassion, and large doses of encouragement and honesty, her students learn about themselves and how to approach their yoga practice in a way that encourages curiosity and transformation.
As an artist at heart, Rachel credits Iyengar yoga as providing a structured environment that encourages her own creativity. She continues to be inspired by the tremendous power of practice that the Iyengars and her teachers have provided. While Rachel no longer maintains her Iyengar certification status, she has spent decades immersed in the Iyengar tradition and you will find that it has deeply shaped her teaching and approach to practice. Rachel is also a LMT and sees clients privately to integrate yoga with other healing modalities. You can reach out to her to learn more about her private practice as a massage therapist.
Mermaid Mōpua
I am Mōpua Cann, multidimensional healer. I catalyze physical and emotional freedom in beings, both human and animal. I do this using my quantum level reprogramming tools and my expertise as a bodyworker to facilitate the optimum healing that my clients require to move to their next level of expansion.
Mōpua is an artist and an alchemist, a dancer, a poet, a singer and a chanter, an animal and plant communicator, a bodyworker and movement educator, an essential oils enthusiast, a natural healer and a catalyst for the upliftment of this earth and all who live here.
Cynthia Bates
Chöying - Dharmadhatu
Enter the Realm of Dharma
cynthiabates88@gmail.com
© 2024
