Here is a wonderful description of the retreat as >> PDF (English).
It’s time to declutter tantric massages. They deserve better.
We want luxuriously long, deep, sensual-oily-warm caresses and orgasmic full-body feelings - without over-simplified talk about male and female "energies".
We want to bathe in the radically tender joy of being touched with the full presence of the other - without unsolicited "healing" attempts by self-proclaimed gurus.
We want playfully surprising love for detail where even toes and eyelashes are honoured simply for existing - without being forced into foreseeable intimacy through eye-gazing and listening to the ever same numbing flute music.
It is time! This is our unapologetic offer with cherries on top: integrative breathwork, unconventional play nights, limitless snuggles with the farm’s many animal inhabitants, all whilst being lavished with freshly prepared organic food, breathtaking mountain landscapes, stimulating conversations and refreshing dips in the pool in between.
WHERE?
At >> Cortijo Casería del Mercado, an organic farm in rural southern Spain, nestled in the heart and solitude of the Andalusian mountains—the Alpujarras.
HOW DO WE TEACH MASSAGE?
The main part of our experimental retreat - the massage sessions - accommodates different learning styles. Sometimes we get nerdy, with precise instructions, anatomical knowledge and guided sequences. Sometimes we enter a flow space that makes room for the unknown, the spontaneous, the surprising. Sometimes it's about attentive improvisation, with suggestions for following your intuition and inventing your own style. Sometimes we learn from each other as a peer group, for example putting together a diverse buffet of different ways to begin a massage to which you can freely help yourself.
What is close to one person's heart can be another person's nightmare. That is why we promote self-efficacy, a reflexive awareness of one's own actions, and to offer a variety of approaches without prioritizing, even though we have our own preferences. The respective modules may therefore be discussed, celebrated, torn apart, reassembled, taken to heart forever or simply forgotten again. This is all embraced, because in our opinion tantra massages, as intimacy itself, have a lot to do with ambivalences that want to be held with curiousity, not ‘fixed’ by one-size-fits-all solutions.. What works for you depends on the uniqueness and waywardness of situations, subjects and their soma..
We learn with and from each other. Sometimes solo, sometimes in pairs, in threes, fours, altogether.... This is actually the underestimated highlight of the retreat: who with whom? There is a lot of potential in this, because it has so much to do with desires, wishes, patterns, prejudices, reputation, attractiveness, experience levels, social capital, different qualities, security, irritations and possibilities. The well-sounding optimism we encountered in way too many tantra workshops, that we should all just love each other harmoniously as one, is just not very helpful here.
Because this is so, we have developed a didactic repertoire to make the experience of "choosing a partner" - this word alone is so loaded!- as empowering an experience as possible for everyone.
LIVING WELL TOGETHER
We share knowledge and expertise with a vigilance for hierarchies that we deal with as consciously as possible. For example: We moderate discussion groups so that sharing rounds are more balanced to avoid "first come, first served" attitudes. We give priority to experiences in the here-and-now, which can mean that we adapt our schedule. As workshop facilitators we sometimes step back to give space to the expertise and co-creation of the participants - but still remain at the helm so that the retreat doesn't drift apart arbitrarily, and with all our love for the pinch of salt, isn't oversalted by too many cooks....
In addition, we work with sophisticated exercises for negotiating mutual consent and calibration mechanics. This enables participants to easily get out of situations, to get into them, as well as to invite practice-partners to dial the intensity of their encounter up or down. It also practices an overall sense for oneself, the others and of what it takes to have a good time together - depending on what 'good' then means in each case (maybe: "Is this in alignment with the quality of life I/you/we want?")
To find this out and to integrate all of the experiences , there will be space for resting and accompanying each other’s processes, with a focus on physical Felt Senses, in order to keep sharing rounds nourishing and sustainable.
Collective care also includes attention to safer sex and hygiene as well as avoiding stereotypical assumptions or misunderstandings by talking to each other, e.g. about pronouns. More information will follow after registration.
OUR APPROACH
Our approach to Tantra is non-dogmatic, critical, informed, and embedded in a fundamentally benevolent, gently challenging, humorously light atmosphere. We align with the philosophical motto "Have the courage to use your own mind (and, we would add: your own sensuality)".
For our retreat this means the following: We give cultural-historical backgrounds on tantric massage, with all its modern transformations and projections. Whilst this might not have so much to do with spiritual origins anymore, it is this understanding which allows us to appreciate without exoticizing. We have a decidedly queer and sexwork-friendly approach. This starts with language (we ourselves are on a humble quest to invent satisfactory names for erogenous zones and will never dictate to you what and where yours are) and ends with sharing what offering massages for money can entail.
We know about the entanglement of retreats in neoliberal conditions - and yet we don't want to spoil the remnants of pleasure by over-criticizing. Communal moments of joy and radical ridiculousness (“ris de mon cul!”) are sacred to us. And last but not least, we have a heart for "competent incompetency." This means that not knowing, uncertainty and clumsiness are welcome and do not have to be hidden behind a display of perfection. We do however, expect participants to be accountable for their actions and to make an effort to learn from their mistakes. We rely on everyone doing their best with the means available to them at the time. Participants can also expect all of this from the facilitators.
RETREAT FACILITATION
With TWAPOS – Tantra with a Pinch of Salt – we are developing a collaborative culture also for our teaching team. Every year we invite a different expert to co-facilitate the retreat and add a fresh outlook and new activities into the mix. This year, we welcome Swan Alyon.
SWAN…
... is an art director, performer, researcher, and coach specializing expanded states of consciousness. They earned a PhD in philosophy & divinity from the University of Cambridge, trained at the Jacques Lecoq school of physical theatre, and hold certifications in yoga, tantra, and pranayama. Swan has been guiding individuals and groups for more than 10 years and has curated events in 13 countries on three continents. They are the founder of the Institute of Devotional Arts.
15+ years combined professional tantra massage experience
15+ years combined teaching experience in bodywork, movement and sex-positive content
Academically trained in queer theory and cultural studies
Are convinced never to trust anyone with a neat bedroom
On a crusade to invent satisfying new names for human genitalia
Read more about us below :)
SCHEDULE
Sat, July 15, 2023 - Arrival
Sun, July 16 through Sat, July 22, 2023 - Workshop
Sun, July 23, 2023 - Departure
LANGUAGES
: English/German
Here is a wonderful description of the retreat as >> PDF (English).
Choose your ticket price based on your own assessment.
With our Low(er) Income Tickets, we want to give low-income individuals the opportunity to attend our events.
We cordially invite high earners to make it with a higher contribution possible for us to make this offer.
With that in mind, we would like to thank you in advance for your support.
For people with very low incomes, there are usually additional options available for even lower prices.
Please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions. We'd love to have you join us!
PRICE PER PERSON:
: €990.00
Low(er) Income Tickets
I – EUR 810.00
II – EUR 630.00
III – EUR 450.00
High(er) Income Tickets
I – EUR 1,170.00
II – EUR 1,350.00
III – EUR 1,530.00
ADDITIONAL COSTS FOR ACCOMMODATION AND FOOD
to be paid cash on arrival!
Prices cover 8 nights accommodation and 3 meals a day (not on arrival and departure days). Vegan and vegetarian options will be available.
Choose from 4 options:
380 EUR per person for camping with your own equipment. (A limited amount of camping gear can be rented for an additional €30.)
500 EUR per person in a shared room (only 1 bed left in a mixed-gender room for 3 people)
590 EUR per person in a double or twin room (sold out)
690 EUR per person in a single room (sold out)
Returning customers of our courses in the Alpujarras receive a 50% discount on the selected fee. Please contact us via the inquiry button in this case as well.
Further informations
FACILITATORS
BEATA sees her work as a kind of species conservation for the strange, weird, baroque, sometimes hilarious and sometimes delightfully awkward sides of the sexual. Her experimental workshop formats are dedicated to, among other things, erotic explorations of laziness or creepiness, the fusion of bondage with massage techniques or dealing with performance anxiety in BDSM play. Her practical, embodied approaches are interwoven with theoretical ones. She is currently working on a cultural studies PhD project on the aesthetics of making consensual sexual practices.
REBECCA is a Breathwork teacher, tantric masseuse and certified Thai yoga masseuse. She has an untamed approach to bodies, having previously spent years studying and working in both Cambridge and austere yogic and tantric environments. Today her focus is on movement, sound and breath as catalysts and pathways to relaxation, pleasure and the most authentic self-exploration possible. She is currently exploring the dirty core of sexual spirituality and spiritual sex - her book on the experience of tantric massage from the perspective of a sex worker is forthcoming...
MATÍS loves ropes, BDSM and playing with various stimulating roles... He is a workshop leader, sex worker, coach and sometimes also an artist and performer. Driven by the conviction that consciously exploring the body, intimacy, sexuality and power relations is not only a lot of fun, but can also open up a special access to one's own personality and a path to its development, he developed the label luhmen d'arc in 2013 to create an inviting place for unconventional play spaces, jams, workshops, sessions, lectures and art projects.
DISCLAIMER
— Participants should be generally open to work with anybody and any body in group exercises. Still, exceptions to that can surely always be discussed, especially the more intimate a situation gets.
— You are encouraged to honour your boundaries and self-responsibility.
— Gender identity, sexual orientation, age etc. are not criteria in the registration process or selection of participants.
— It is required that you act with care, communication, consent, caution and confidentiality.
— Please inform yourself about STIs, safer sex, consent and pronouns (e.g. here: https://sex-positive.com/education/safer-sex-cat/ , https://www.hrc.org/resources/why-we-ask-each-other-our-pronouns)
— We do our best to meet different needs, though our resources are limited. Contact us if in doubt.
— We reserve the right to ask participants to leave, should their behavior be harmful and we reserve the right to do that without explanations – though we will likely try to explain.
— Hate speech will not be tolerated. Please bring candy speech.
FEE, CANCELLATION & REFUND POLICY
When booking the event, there is a non-refundable administration fee of €20.
To secure your place, your ticket must be booked and fully payed. Accommodation fees are to be paid in cash upon arrival.
If you need to cancel your participation for any reason, you can do so free of charge up to 12 weeks prior to the event. We retain a 20% charge for cancellations up to 10 weeks prior to the event. We retain a 50% charge for cancellations up to 6 weeks prior to the event. After this, there are no refunds but you are welcome to find someone to take your ticket and we will transfer the ticket to their name.
In case of cancellation by the organizer, the course fee will be refunded in full. Further claims are excluded.