EvoDARK Retreat
Darkness Retreat in Germany
The First Combined Group and Individual Darkness Retreat Experience in the World.
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Embrace Your Shadows,
Find Your Inner Light
Uncover your deepest, most tender places in a radically honest and compassionate way – by submerging into complete darkness.
Reintegrate your shadows, gain clarity about your true purpose and reconnect with yourself, others, and life with one of the most intense ancient practices out there - all without the aid of any external substances.
Next EvoDARK Retreat
What our clients say
My experience was truly unique and something that I think I will remember for the rest of my life."
I felt a lot of love... it's really different to know those things cognitively versus feeling them. "
I think the most interesting thing which I found was my body...everything was going through my body as I never experienced before."
My experience was really deep, really strong. I found a connection to my inner demon and to much of my past. I appreciated the team's support in these difficult situations."
Highlights of the Evodark Retreat
Premier Darkness Retreat
Our DARKNESS Retreat at a Glance
A curated 3-week-journey with like-minded pioneers
1-week digital, part-time preparation phase for deepening your experience: one group session + one personal 1-on-1 session
7 days full-time in our beautiful and peaceful private retreat center in Southern Germany. 5 nights and 4 days in complete darkness. Individual support for your darkness experience in a safe, compassionate, and professional setting.
1-week digital, part-time integration phase for transforming your life: one group sessions.
Our pledge of quality and professionalism to you
We support your experience of altered states of consciousness in complete darkness in a safe and professional way.
Cutting-edge curriculum based on newest science and ancient wisdom traditions. A bespoke personal development curriculum for people who want more from life and get to the next level.
Promoting your growth with psychology, meditation, body- and breathwork, art, and inner capacity building
A learning experience that will open new horizons
We focus on your individual intention and needs with 1-on-1 coaching sessions before, during and after the darkness experience.
Maximum safety thanks to our skilled and experienced facilitators (psychologists, psychiatrists & MDs, psycho-spiritual guides) and a medical-psychological screening procedure
Support during the darkness retreat is key – you’ll receive daily 1-on-1 sessions and 24/7 support while you’re in the dark.
Overview over your EvoDARK Darkness Retreat Journey
Three Phases to Maximize
Your Benefit
I. Preparation
The better you are prepared for our intense darkness incubation, the deeper will be your experience. You will get to know your fellow program participants, the facilitators.
The idea of the preparation phase is to learn what's important for the upcoming weeks. We cover important aspects such as intention setting, the importance of set & setting for a fruitful journey, and what scientific research can tell us about what happens with our minds and body under prolonged darkness.
II. Incubation
Darkness Phase
For our time in our darkness retreat center in Southern Germany, we prepared a curriculum for you that gradually increases in intensity, prepares you for the descent into darkness, and eventually brings you back into the light.
Our carefully crafted program focuses on conveying you the techniques for dealing with darkness and all its potential forms of manifestation (such as anxiety, fear, boredom, impatience, ecstasy, blissfulness, emptiness...), exercises around resistance, radical acceptance and compassion, as well as capacity building for dealing better with inner tensions and the paradoxes of being human.
You will experience intense altered states first-hand through prolonged darkness and breathwork. We will offer daily check-ins while you are in the dark and are available 24/7. There is also space for contemplation and journaling to get more clarity around values, vision and purpose.
You will engage in challenging but highly rewarding individual and group exercises to better understand yourself and your special gift to the world. We will use the last 1.5 days after you come back from the darkness to start the integration process together.
III. Integration
After you return from the darkness incubation into your day-to-day life, it's essential to cement the insights you've gained and start applying them in both your personal and professional life.
You'll have support from your fellow participants as well as from our coaches. Additional one-on-one coaching can be booked. You'll also be welcomed into a community of individuals - our Alumni - who share your values and are there to support you while holding you accountable to the commitments you've made to yourself.
Evolute Institute
Facilitation Team
"We support you in unfolding your potential towards a life of vitality, connectedness, balance, creativity, and overall flourishing."
How PARTICIPANTS benefit from Evodark
Personal Level
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Self-knowledge
Explore your own depths like you never did before to understand who you truly are.
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Potential
See what you are capable of and start tapping into your full potential.
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Purpose
Connect with that deep yearning inside of you to find your unique path in life.
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Growth
Face your blind spots and blockages to relieve unnecessary limits and constraints.
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Connection
A deepened connection to yourself and your environment changes the way you live and lead.
Professional Level
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Clarity
Learn how to remain centered and clear in environments of ambiguity and uncertainty.
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Resilience
Lead from your core and become less affected by the stresses and pressures of everyday life.
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Mindsets
Access higher-level mindsets of systems thinking and emotional awareness.
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Vision
Build a more authentic and meaningful vision for yourself, personally and professionally.
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Impact
Learn how to lead others from a position of competence and intuition: calmly and effectively.
Curious?
Let's Have A Chat.
Book a free call with us, and let’s discuss any questions or concerns you might have. We’ll help you determine if this program aligns with your current needs and ensure you feel prepared and confident to embark on this transformative journey.
"We are here to be in service of your journey."
— Dr. Dmitrij Achelrod
We care about accessibility. This is why we offer flexible pricing with a sliding scale for private payers. Our sliding scale empowers you to choose what feels right and doable for you based on your financial situation but also considering the financial sustainability of our organization.
Safety & Framework
- Professional medical-psychological screening
- 2 virtual group sessions (Prep & Integration)
- 24/7 support during your incubation in darkness
- Alumni community access
On-Site Retreat
- Complete 7-day program with expert facilitators
- Intimate small group environment (6-8 people)
- 4+ individual 1:1 personal coaching sessions
- Private accommodation & organic private chef
Pay only as much as it is truly worth to you
To ensure the price feels right, we’ll reach out after the program so you can re-adjust your sliding scale position based on your actual experience. We want the contribution to reflect the dedication of our team and the impact it had on you. For questions regarding the pricing or our available payment plans don’t hesitate to reach out to us.
Essential Information
Admission
Safety
Privacy
Accomodation
Transportation
Language
Admission
We have two guiding criteria for the admission of applicants to our program: safety and group fit.
Safety:
- Because we want to maximize your safety, we require all applicants to fill out a screening questionnaire on their mental and physical health. While we strive to adhere to the best known therapeutic practices and professional standards, we do not provide any therapeutic care or clinical treatments for mental illnesses. This is why we do not admit participants with e.g. diagnoses of depression, PTSD, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or anxiety disorders.
Group fit: Curating a good group
- Group dynamics are paramount for a powerful experience – hence, unfortunately, we cannot accept every applicant that passed the medical-psychological screening.
- We aim to assemble a coherent yet diverse group of participants who can support each other during and after the program. We designed our program for people who are aware of their potential to influence others / their environment / the state of the world and want to responsibly act upon it.
- We judge the appropriateness of our applicants not by their job title but by their willingness and potential to assume responsibility for themselves and for others. Our participants must be willing to enter into an honest, open and sometimes challenging dialogue with themselves and with others. They need to be curious and willing to engage in self-exploration, reflection and deep inner work.
- This is why, prior to final admission, we have individual video / phone calls with every applicant to ensure participant-program fit.
Safety
We maximize your safety by the right screening, preparation, facilitation, and integration.
- Screening:
We undertake a physical / mental health screening via an online questionnaire to minimize the risk of any potentially adverse health-related outcome. - Preparation:
Participants will learn about a responsable approach to working with intense meditative states (risk and harm reduction). In addition, they will receive guidance in how to navigate during states of altered consciousness. - Facilitation:
The darkness periods are supported by experienced facilitators and guides. Our experts give you enough freedom to make your own steps and will be always at your side in case you need their support. We offer daily check-ins and are in service 24/7 while you are in darkness. - Integration:
Darkness experiences can be very profound and transformative. Journeyers can go through intense emotions days and weeks after their stay in darkness. This is why we crafted an integration program that will help you incorporate your insights into your life in a sustainable manner.
Privacy
We know very well how important privacy is to most of our clients. We will never share any information about our clients publicly or to any third-party. We will never post photos of participants from our retreats without the prior explicit written approval from the affected participants.
We process personal data (e.g. name, email address) in compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (“GDPR”).
Accomodation
The 7-day retreat immersion takes place in Southern Germany.
Our exclusive retreat center is located in a calm and green environment 30 car minutes away from Freiburg (I’m Breisgau).
The facilities offer a relaxing and private atmosphere with ideal conditions for deep work.
All participants will be housed in high-quality private rooms.
We will offer fresh and healthy drinks and vegetarian food daily.
Transportation
We will get in touch with you regarding your logistics as soon as you have been admitted to one of our retreat programs.
Language
The main language for the group sessions (virtual and on-site) and of the learning material is usually English. Some retreat programs might be conducted in other languages (such as German). Please reach out to us if language might be a barrier for your participation and we discuss the options with you individually.
Our facilitators and guides speak multiple languages and your 1:1 sessions plus individual conversations on-site can be in German, French, Dutch, Italian, Russian or Spanish as well. Let us know during the application phase if you have any questions or concerns regarding languages.