“Is Kali, my Mother, really black?
The Naked One, of blackest hue,
Lights the Lotus of the Heart…” ~Ramakrishna
For centuries, meditation retreats in rooms completely devoid of light have been known to induce profound shifts in consciousness. Hridaya Yoga invites you to deepen your meditation practice by experiencing a private retreat in one of our Dark Rooms (Kaya Kalpa), suites especially prepared to admit no light. You may choose the length of the retreat, and we can provide meals and other support for your practice. Please email us for more information and to make a booking.
The Hridaya Yoga Perspective
Hridaya Yoga considers that darkness and the abyss are nothing to be afraid of, because who we really are is the very essence of Darkness and Light as well. There are not animalistic tendencies at the bottom of our being. Even if it might appear like this for many people, nirvana is there and the Supreme Self, consciousness, is the background of it. Sometimes the darkness of anguish or desperation or fear or death can instantaneously reveal pure awareness, nonconceptual bliss. And this is because there is a quantum leap between what seems to be the bottom and the top. The abyss is as much topless as bottomless.
This Pure Darkness will absorb many of our obscure trends, of our psychological “darkness,” and of our fears arising from the lack of awareness. As black holes absorb enormous quantities of matter, in a similar way, in the psychological domain, the darkness of transcendence can absorb our limited personal emotions and psychic residues.
In a Dark Retreat, as in deep sleep, the whole objective world disappears. But, it remains the Witness “surrounded” by nothingness. We are aware of this nothingness and eventually in this Nothingness, the Witness is revealed as the very nature of it. Then, it is still Nothing, but the Nothingness is not meaningless anymore, or just a lapse in memory, but is full awareness, the Witness.
The Hridaya Yoga Center’s Dark Room
Our center in Sanpetru, Brasov, Romania, features a well-appointed Dark Room ideal for solitary retreats. It has a private bathroom, single bed, and an entrance hall where which we can deliver meals without allowing light to enter. We provide linens, towels, and can offer such yoga props as a chair, cushions, and a mat.
Rates
1-3 Nights: 30 euro per night
4-7 Nights: 26 euro per night
8-21 Nights: 24 euro per night
21-29 Nights: 22 euro per night
30+ Nights: 20 euro per night
Nightly rates include one consistent meal daily, and other can be established individually. Check-in is at 6:00 pm, and check-out is at 10:00 am unless other arrangements have been made.