375 Panterkill Road PO Box 70 Phoenicia, NY 12464 United States
Feb 14 - 16, 2025
About this Retreat
John Minks is a gifted musician with over 15 years of exploring and studying the healing power of sound. John’s first experience with sound healing was in Amsterdam in 2006. Since then, his tone quest has taken him from the Brazilian Rainforest to the islands of Hawai’i and beyond. He began his study of the Didgeridoo while in the jungles of Brazil in 2007. His sessions are part sound bath, part molecular massage. He continues to explore how vibration and sound can restructure and re-align the cells and atoms of the physical body. John has also studied guitar for the past 10 years and has extensive experience in its healing power with plant medicines. In addition to the Didgeridoo and the guitar, John also uses the Gongs, Djembe, Singing Bowls, Flute, Shruti box, Accordion, Khomus, and Tuning forks in his sound sessions.
Billy Pinkerton has been practicing, studying, and teaching vinyasa and restorative yoga for nearly a decade in studios, corporate offices, retreats and private sessions. His background as a yoga teacher, athlete and businessman gives him a unique perspective on how to make yoga relatable and experiential to all audiences. Billy has experienced firsthand the healing power of yoga within his body. Working with his many injuries, surgeries, and pain points, he has been able to align his body into a more optimal position for overall health and wellness which means less pain. By working with the breath and moving slowly, he believes, we can use the body to heal the body. When the body is engaged in the physical practice, and the mind is relaxed on the breath a unique experience emerges that is personal to each person. New sensations are discovered and the healing we didn’t know we needed begins to happen naturally.
Sound plays a crucial role for a deeper yoga practice as the combination of yoga and sound make it easier to release the mind from habitual thinking to be comfortable in stillness. With this understanding, Billy has been working with instruments like the gong, handpan, didgeridoo, tuning forks, and bowls to evoke new sensations, mental experiences, and relaxation, that enhance his yoga students’ experiences in practice.
Billy is also an accomplished meditator. He has developed a daily practice over the years and has done intensive work on his mind, having spent 6 months working with an authorized Buddhist meditation teacher in the Kagyu Lineage. He has practiced at Karme Choling, a Shambala Meditation Center in Vermont. There he took part in traditional meditation practice and received instruction on various meditative techniques. He loves sharing the practice of meditation as much as he loves the physical practice of yoga. His goal is to mix the physical practice of yoga and meditation so that a powerful personal practice can be born.
Details of this retreat
“A person does not hear sound only through the ears; he hears sound through every pore of the body. It permeates the entire being and, according to its particular influence, either slows or quickens the rhythm of the blood circulation; it either awakens or soothes the nervous system.”
― Hazrat Inayat Khan
Are you ready to go Deep? We invite you to a celebratory and immersive exploration of sound, yoga, and meditation. Join us for three days of rejuvenation, expansion, bliss, and practice including yogic sound meditations, vinyasa, and restorative yoga, and Deep Space sound baths. Sound is coupled with yoga and meditation to deepen the experience and raise auric vibrations to new heights. Providing a fun, nurturing environment to restore and renew our physical, mental, and emotional bodies, we’ll release tension in our nervous system, cultivate loving Hygge, and find peaceful spaciousness.
While our daily schedule includes yoga, meditation, and sound baths, there will also be time to explore all that Menla has to offer including hiking, the world-class spa, and stunning amenities. Surrounded by the beauty and majesty of the Catskill mountains, this is a precious opportunity to explore our Deep Space internally and with one another.
This is a retreat for all levels of experience.
Schedule
Friday, February 14
3 pm Arrival and Check-in
6 - 7 pm Dinner
7:30 - 9 pm Deep Space Sound Bath
Saturday, February 15
8 - 9 am Breakfast
9:30 - 11 am Yoga + Sound
12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch
2 - 3 pm Meditation + Sound
3:30 - 5:30 pm Free time (Spa, Snowshoe, Read, and Rest)
6- 7 pm Dinner
7:30 - 9 pm Deep Space Sound Bath
Sunday, February 16
8 - 9 am Breakfast and Check-out of Rooms
9:30 - 11 am Yin yoga and Sound
12:30 - 1:30 pm Lunch & Departure
*Please note that the schedule is subject to change.
Testimonials
“I’m not sure where to start because I didn’t really know what a “sound bath” would be all about but I knew I needed it. It was one of the most transcendental experiences I’ve ever had. I’m not sure what the right words are but to keep it simple- John’s intuition and musical talents took me to a part of my brain and body I didn’t know was there but it was so familiar and comforting I didn’t want to leave. Do yourself a favor- book an appointment with John. Can’t wait to do this again!
Cheers, PS- my neck and back feel better too"
-Jaimie
“A friend and I had a Sound Bath session with John, and we were utterly astounded at what a remarkable experience it was.
The setting was a spectacular light-filled space. The array of different Tibetan singing bowls and other instruments was immense.
The soundscape he created, the moods and landscapes he evoked, and the attention to detail were profound.
I would highly recommend someone do this. It's a molecular Massage, a healing modality and a profound experience of spiritual Ascension.”
-Rebecca Rentoul
“Experiencing a sound therapy session with John was life-altering. During our session I was overcome by a feeling of calm and oneness with the world around me. After our session I felt as if a fog had lifted, a fog that I had been so immersed within that I didn’t even realize I was in a fog until it was lifted. I can’t recommend sound therapy with John enough.”
-John C.
"John's sound session was epic. The experience was both interesting and healing. John uses a multitude of instruments to create an all-encompassing sound bath that reverberates through the room and your body at the same time. He is extremely well versed in the background, history and healing properties of the instruments he uses and it shows. Highly recommend!"
- Sinan A.
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