Description
WITHIN THE CAVE SOMETHING PULSES is a 6-week interactive experience to slow down, apprentice to the season of darkness, and dive deep into the caverns of our Whole Self in order to discover what emerges in the fruitful darkness.
“And don’t think the garden loses its ecstasy in winter. It’s quiet, but the roots are down there riotous.” – Rumi
When: December 2-January 20
Time: 10am-12pm PST | 6-8pm GMT
Where: ONLINE – Zoom
Note: Class does not meet December 23 or 30. Class limited to 6
We will be a small group of Spelunkers of Wandering/Wondering into the Cave, leaning into the Big Silence where we can hear ourselves—not the voice of society, not the voices of family and friends, but our own Inner Guide(s).
What if we allied ourselves to the energies of the season?
What if we dove into the silent dark and sat with the wholeness of who we are?
What emerges in the fruitful darkness?
What if our shadow was an offering, and the monsters were actually the secret password?
The season is turning, both outside and within. The deep dark feminine womb of winter invites an Underworld transformation. A cave comes beckoning. We go to the cave to find renewal and our own sacred. We go to the cave for the descent into ourselves, to rest, to embrace the wounds and monsters, but also uncover the shimmering treasures to bring back as a gift to the world as medicine. We go to the cave, not ultimately to disappear, but return to the world and show up fully in our unique way during this Great Turning.
This is not a Cave full of gadgets and toys or things to make you beautiful. This is the Cave of the Deep Self and Season. You are done with distractions. You are done with destruction and self-punishment. You are ready to know yourself in all its grand ripples, all its wounds and powers. You are ready to be of service to people and your purpose.
This experience is for you if any of the following describes you:
- You want to ally yourself to the season’s energy to spelunk into your fruitful darkness.
- You are ready to deepen self-knowledge and cultivate a deep belonging to your power, place, and purpose.
- You are longing to befriend Darkness and Apprentice to Silence.
- You are walking the Labyrinth
- You are ready to own your shit and get real with all aspects of your wholeness.
- You’re ready to bring your shadow and monsters into the Circle of your Whole Self.
- You are exploring, or want to explore, your inner wilderness and open to expanding your toybox of exploration.
Over 6 weeks we will explore through Online Gatherings, Council Circle, poetry, and integration activities the following themes:
- Deep Listening
- Honoring the Darkness & Living the Seasons
- Lessons From the Labyrinth
- Shadow Work/Embracing Monsters/Holy Shit
- Knowing Yourself Like Guardian Oak
- Rite-of-Passage and Self-Generated Ceremony (Including Death Lodge)
- Inner Fire and the Proliferation of Imaginal Cells
Sacred Apprenticeships:
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- Slug & Snail Seminar (Slow Sensitivity, Decomposition, Slime Magic, Beyond the Binary)
- Bear Wisdom: (Fierce Presence, Power, Protection, & Purpose; Hibernation; Omnivore; Hunting/Gathering Your Wholeness; Unleashing Your Growl)
- Inner Composting: Invoking Your Inner Worms
- At the Feet of Our Brutal, Beloved Teachers, Death
A key component of this experiences is having the opportunity to do a supported solo overnight or extended DayQuest on-the-land ceremony through the framework of wilderness rite-of-passage.
In addition, ALL participants in ANY Wild Nature Heart course series receives:
- One-on-one consultations about the course material and the solo experience
- Private Online group to connect, share, learn, and ask questions
- A copy of Re-Membering: Poems of Earth and Soul (and early glimpse of new collection Within the Cave Something Pulses)
- Discount on future Wild Nature Heart Courses and Wilderness Programs
- Substantial discount on the Annual Wild Nature Heart Gathering (Next one Summer 2023)
Recommended Investment: $169
Other options: $139-$239
Register and pay course fee below,
Or Email: ryan@wildnatureheart.com with your interest & send registration fee to PayPal.Me/WildNatureHeart.
Scholarships available for BIPOC and LGBTQ2+
Email ryan@wildnatureheart.com introducing yourself and what you hope to get out of this experience.
Class limited to 6 participants
About the Instructor:
My name is Ryan Van Lenning, Founder of Wild Nature Heart, and I am an earth-lover with a deep desire to be of service in the work of re-connection, re-wilding, & re-membering. I started Wild Nature Heart to support people to re-connect with the wisdom of both inner and outer wild nature, to live their soul callings into the world, and to assist in the work of repairing broken belonging.
I am an inner/outer wilderness guide and poet (author of Re-Membering: Poems of Earth & Soul) and High-Cooing Through the Seasons: Haiku From the Forest. I am trained as a rite-of-passage/wilderness vision fast guide through the School of Lost Borders, certified as an Ecotherapist through The Earthbody Institute, here I teach the Level 1 and 3 ecotherapy courses, and am a Certified Wilderness First Responder through Foster Calm. Prior to moving to California 13 years ago, I taught Comparative Religion, Philosophy, and Environmental Ethics at Sinclair College in Ohio. I live among the forest and rivers in northern California, ancestral Wiyot and Yurok land.
Recent Testimonials:
“I find myself repeatedly touched by the depth of your caring for Earth and all her beings and by your dedication to practice and evolving new pathways of relationship and culture. I am moved by the presence that you bring to deep listening and your willingness to explore different perspectives. Your ability to express through poetry and action what’s in your heart and your desire for healthy relationship among all beings is a source of inspiration for me.” —Marianne B. Rowe, MS, LMFT, Summer 2022 Level 3 Ecotherapy Training, Earthbody Institute
“Ryan’s well-designed course on Deep Belonging for the Great Turning was just what I needed at a stressful time in life. The facilitation, knowledge and materials shared were generous and truly a gift to enhance my nature connection and learn about myself. This course also provided support for a solo experience which was rich and rewarding. I appreciated being in a group and connecting with other like-minded people.” — Lezlie Scaliatine, Psy.D, Deep Belonging for the Great Turning Course Participant (Fall 2020)
“Ryan is a very thoughtful and sensitive instructor. His background in teaching and poetry, along with his ability to effectively “mirror” our stories about our journeys make him an excellent facilitator. Ryan helped us to organize our thoughts and feelings in this politically and environmentally challenging time, gave us hope, and guided us towards developing a personal plan for coping with the future of our planet.”
— Nan Siringer, California, Deep Belonging for the Great Turning Course Participant (Fall 2020)
“Thank you again Ryan for your mentorship prior to this quest of mine. You empowered me to trust in myself, in the wild, and in the ceremony and it seemed so fitting to receive these gifts of yours just prior to a decent. I love and am sincerely grateful for your poem. It certainly helped give me courage to unflinchingly make those leaps over trees and off every known cliff and will continue to do so. I feel super motivated to continue on this path of mine and stay open to all the wild mysteries that present themselves within myself and within this more-than human world of ours. And to taking the next steps in unfurling my own gifts and presenting them to the world.”— Brady W., Wisconsin, 1-on-1 Ecotherapy Client and Course Participant (Fall 2019)
“This course is a deep-dive across 6 weeks. Ryan’s skill and generosity of spirit has guided me through a variety of themes and practices that have been both thought-provoking and empowering. I’ve valued this time immensely, and the abundant materials provided will keep me moving through this journey for a long time to come. I’ve developed a richer relationship with my Urban Wild environment in very unexpected ways, and for that I am so very grateful.” —Claire, United Kingdom, Course Participant (Fall 2019)
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