The Golden Web

Everywhere on Iona is a place from where it seems possible to drop into one’s own nature and expand out to be met and embraced by the immediate reflection of Nature inherent in the wider landscape.

There will be times when we are called to visit the interior of the island and others when we may head to the far south and meet the labyrinth and the stones small and large at the beautiful Columba’s Bay.

Stomping across the peaty hills and heather cropped moorlands or a special pilgrimage to the Fairy’s Altar or a Dragon’s Cave, A shared hot flask of tea or nip of single malted whisky to offer the many other magical places and beings we may come across could come in handy.

It will be the land that calls us to where our connections to the wider biofield of Earth, so we are keen to be able to wander out over most of the days to meet the edges and the inner spaces of both the island and ourselves.

Although our days are few and we have a guiding impulse to be with the Trees you will find there are many ways to wander, to explore, to be free to enter a space that allows you to connect and commune with your own guiding impulses..

Being with the golden web . . .

Sound Weaving and attunement with the land will facilitate us to be with the planetary biofield that brings us to the forests of our Earth through the wood wide web of being and interconnectedness.

Sound and songs will be the gift that weaves many of our group times together with stories rising from the swathe of encounters and tales that have been gathered and lived over time. Each is a frequency carrier and connector opening us up to many of the other realms who co-create and facilitate pathways and possibilities for our communications with the Trees and Forests that are our special focus over these days.

There will also be a special time for you to experience a Sound Weaving in Oran’s Chapel where the stones, the nature beings and the night sky come together to join us in a unique and intimate ceremony of healing and profound connection.

Connecting with the Golden Web is our innate, or indigenous, way of Being. Giving yourself the space and the environment to fall into and open out to be with some of our wider relationships with Nature is key. Iona will grace us each day with a different and unique expression of these energies and openings.

One of the many blessings of these days is that we will have with us our friend and artist, Susan Morley. Susie has a profoundly beautiful connection with the ancient trees of Ireland and Ancient Britain and through them has a way of allowing her art and skills to be accessible for others. We are looking forward to some of the meetings with trees on the outer levels being made possible through some of her guiding hand and direct relationship with the many tree beings and spirits that live through her work.

Coming to the island of Iona is a wonderful pilgrimage of journeying through some of the most beautiful landscapes – whether by train or car – the traveling will begin to wash away what you have left and prepare you for a nature rich immersion at a different kind of timing.

We have opted to start this Iona retreat time by meeting you at the Ferry terminal on Mull at Craignure. From here we will start our days together with a journey across Mull.

Our Gateway is the honouring of the ancient trees and stones at Lochbuie. It is one of Mull’s oldest stone circles embraced by Ben Buie, the guardian mountain in the north and opening the way towards the open sea through the Loch in the south. A perfect welcoming with groves of ancient oaks, hawthorns and others awaiting to greet us on the way.

By day’s end we will have arrived at the western edge of Mull at Fionnphort and made the short ferry crossing to Iona.

By evening you will have settled into a warm and waiting house, our home base for these days and nights together, Grianan – the House of the Sun.

Our home hub will be at Grianan – house of the Sun A large family home that stands alone on the land that neighbours the Iona Abbey and is a constant presence to all that move through the waters of the Iona Sound.

Neither fancy nor plain, this house is an old lady that has seen better days – but her spirit and energy are strong and she carries a light and frequency not easily found in other places. So even though she is a little run down and in need of an upgrade, we feel that she facilitates those in her care in ways that modern houses do not.

The house accommodates eight to nine people comfortably in shared rooms and allows us to make it our home in a relaxed way for the days and nights we are together.

We have found that the loss of glamour and modernity has not negatively impacted our many hosted retreats over the past ten years because the house itself is a living being that opens itself to us and our guests in ways that support, protect and enliven the engagement we have with the whole island – as if it welcomes us and responds in every way possible to assist.

We invite each person staying in the house to share in the care of the home space by offering support with occasional clearing after meals, food preparations and awareness and care of the shared spaces.

If you would prefer to have a higher standard of accommodation and/or desire a single room, you can book a B&B nearby if you are fast. There are details about this in the FAQ section below.

Our meals will be prepared at Grianan from as much locally sourced produce as we can access – organic, immediate and cooked with expertise and care and a focus on deliciousness! Essentially vegetarian menus with an openness to the wider wishes of the group if there is a wish to have a meal of freshly caught fish or locally raised lamb.

Special diets may be able to be accommodated such as gluten or dairy free but please contact us beforehand if there are any more rigorous personal needs.

We anticipate two meals a day at Grianan – breakfast and supper – with lunches being a DIY picnic or simple lunch such as a pot of hearty soup and bread depending on what the weather or plans for the day allow.

Please note – We anticipate that one evening meal or special lunch would be eaten at the local Argyll Hotel or the acclaimed Pizza window if it’s still open that week! This would not be included in the overall cost of the retreat and would be at your own choosing.

To secure your place

either pay a deposit of £375 or your first instalment of three to secure your place

or

pay the full amount of £999 before May 15th to get Early Bird Discounted offer.

You can pay in pound Sterling or the equivalent in euros or dollars:

For Pound Sterling, please make a bank transfer to
Heather Alison Cowen
Account number: 47969780
Sort code: 23-14-70
and send an email confirming your booking

If you wish to pay in Euros you can go here for your deposit/first instalment of £375 =€445

Or pay full Amount – early Bird: £999 = €1185

If you wish to pay in dollars or by paypal please let us know and we can send you a link or account details.

As an amplified field of energies, Iona invites a certain level of fitness for us as visitors. Fitness both physical and energetic.

The general terrain can be quite physically challenging to get around. There is much walking to be done – whether from the ferry landing to the house itself upon arrival, or daily wanderings and hiking over the unpaved and rolling moorlands and coastal paths.

All walking is exposed to the elements and, as this is the northern climes of Albion where the elements are able to shift and change at a moments notice, wet weather is a reality . . .  as is the possibility of long night skies of awe filled wonder that can have us out into the setting sun with our coats and scarves on.

Equally some of the finest blue sky days have come to us when we have been there in September so you can anticipate a wide range of encounters with the weather beings!

Iona can also be a demanding place simply because of the energies and frequencies of the island itself.

We will be living and co-creating in and with a gloriously amplified field where we are given and blessed by many heart opening and transforming opportunities . . .  gifts that carry the frequencies of pure, unadulterated Nature and Love.

For more about transport and mobility on the island see the additional section of questions below.

Please get in touch if you have any additional questions: [email protected]