A residential retreat in Somerton, near Glastonbury, U.K.
Five days of teachings, embodied practices, and community
with Lama Rod Owens & Friends
28th April - 3rd May, 2026
Sliding Scale & Installment Payments Available
"Activism + Non-duality. Multi cultural. Personal practices are centered! You show, not just tell." —2025 Participant
Winter offers many of us a season of depth. It's a time for quiet reflection and introspection, often presenting the challenges that help us awaken to what matters most. In a world marked by profound injustice and uncertainty, this contemplative space becomes even more essential.
As spring arrives, we step into transformation. This season calls us to embody the truths we've discovered and naturally move toward freedom — finding ease within turmoil and space within complexity. Through this grounded awareness, we tap into our most vital, creative energies — the ones that help us meet the world's unraveling with clarity and compassion.
Join Lama Rod Owens & Friends for The Dharma of Spring Awakening – an invitation to both aliveness and spaciousness, moving us through the brokenheartedness of a long winter into the vitality of spring. This is the challenge, invitation, and blessing of our practice.
Our time together during this community retreat, will invite us through:
- Meditation
- Movement
- Love and compassion practices
- Ancestor practices
- Earth based rituals and practices
- Group dialogues and discussions
- Laughter and Joy
- The werk and work of getting free
If you have any questions about this retreat or about your registration, please contact [email protected].
Registration
Please review the registration options below and apply here.
- Pay it Forward £615 (£123 per night) (10% double booking discount - limited spots available, see details below)
- Standard £545 (£109 per night) - There is a Waiting List; Pay it Forward spots are available if you'd like to secure your spot
- Supported £375 (£75 per night) - There is a Waiting List
Flexible payment plans available for all registration options, and you can pay in 3 or 5 month installments.
Double Booking - 10% Discount
Register for both 2026 UK Retreats (Dharma of Spring Awakening and Autumn Moon) and receive a 10% discount!
Limited spaces.
(The Both Retreats Pay It Forward spots are still available.)
What Participants Have Said:
"As someone who holds a lot of space for others, it is so important to come to a space that is held and supportive where all I need to do is just be."
"I have waited so long for a space that welcomes me as a whole, complex being with intersectional experiences and multitudes."
"These retreats tread the middle grounds in a way that I do not see elsewhere — urgency/rest, ultimate/relative, humility/confidence."
Important Information
The Retreat Container: A Space of Supportive Silence
Meals
Room Allocation and Registration Process
Accessibility
FAQs
Where is the retreat?
The retreat venue is called Earth Spirit Retreat Centre, and is a 25 minute Taxi ride from Castle Cary Train Station. If catching a train, please ensure your selected train stops at Castle Cary as not all trains do. A train from London Paddington takes approx 1hr 45mins.
Taxi information and additional travel details will be provided after registration.
Can I travel to the retreat by car?
The retreat venue is accessible via car and there is plenty of parking on site.
Further details on travel and arrivals will be sent following registration.
Do you accommodate dietary requirements?
Food allergies and restrictions can be provided during registration. Should you have any questions around allergy and dietary requirements, please contact us at [email protected].
How will I communicate with the teachers in the space of supportive silence?
You will be invited to communicate with teachers and retreat coordinators using a written note system. Spaces each day are scheduled for questions with teachers, and discussions with yogi affinity groups are also an option, during which silence may be broken, if you wish.
What happens when all the retreat spaces are full? Is there a waitlist?
After initial tickets have sold out, we will open our waiting list. Registration for the waiting list will not require immediate payment.
Individuals on the waiting list will be invited to share their room sharing preferences and access needs. If you are on the waiting list, and your accommodation needs match a room that becomes available, we will get in touch so you can complete payment and confirm your space. All waiting list tickets are available at standard and pay-it-forward rates only.
Refund Policy:
Should there be health related travel restrictions preventing Lama Rod Owens traveling to the UK, the retreat will be postponed to a later date and all yogis will have the option of receiving a refund or their funds being held for the future date.
If you cancel more than 8 weeks before the retreat start date, the cancellation fee will be 50% of your deposit.
If you cancel between 8-4 weeks before the retreat start date, the cancellation fee will be 75% of your deposit.
If you cancel 4-2 weeks before the retreat start date, the cancellation fee will be 50% of the total retreat cost.
If you cancel less than 2 weeks before the start date, we cannot offer a refund. Your registration payment will go towards further supporting those unable to pay the full amount and administrative costs.
Any applicable cancellation fees can be partially waived in exceptional circumstances.
Do you have any advice on choosing my registration option?
If you are able to meet your monthly outgoing costs with spaciousness, we invite you to lean in and consider this opportunity to be a benefactor to our community. This Pay-It-Forward option allows those who have the material means to support those who would not otherwise be able to attend due to financial constraints. The generosity of our community allows us to offer a limited number of supported spaces.
In a tumultuous global economy, we continue to negotiate the expenses of producing these retreats with our commitment to financial accessibility in support of a diverse community of retreatants. Currently, the Pay-It-Forward rate reflects the true cost per person for our retreats. The Standard rate reflects our intention to minimize the barrier of cost for as many as possible.
We freely invite anyone who needs the Supported rate to choose this option and contact [email protected] to request a booking link. We are mindful that even the Supported rate cost of the retreat remains inaccessible to some, and we continue to consider ways of resourcing and support for our community. Please note, when contacting us for a Supported space you are not expected to provide details about your financial situation.
Access Information
For information about the venue and accessibility, please visit this link and contact [email protected] with any questions.
Registration
Please review the registration options below and apply here.
- Pay it Forward £615 (£123 per night) (10% double booking discount - limited spots available, see details below)
- Standard £545 (£109 per night)
- Supported £375 (£75 per night) (There is a Waiting List)
Flexible payment plans available for all registration options, and you can pay in 3 or 5 month installments.
Double Booking - 10% Discount
Register for both 2026 UK Retreats (Dharma of Spring Awakening and Autumn Moon) and receive a 10% discount!
Limited spaces.
(The Both Retreats Pay It Forward spots are still available.)
Your Teachers & Support Team
At the end of the retreat you will be invited to offer donations in recognition of the generosity of the team that collaborates to offer teachings and care.
Lama Rod Owens
Lama Rod Owens is a Black Buddhist Southern Queen. An international influencer with a Master of Divinity degree in Buddhist Studies from Harvard Divinity School. Author of The New Saints: From Broken Hearts to Spiritual Warriors and Love and Rage: The Path of Liberation through Anger, and co-author of Radical Dharma: Talking Race, Love and Liberation, his teachings center on freedom, self-expression, and radical self-care.
A leading voice in a new generation of Buddhist teachers with over 11 years of experience, Lama Rod activates the intersections of his identity to create a platform that’s very natural, engaging, and inclusive. Applauded for his mastery in balancing weighty topics with a sense of lightness, the Queen has been featured by various national and international news outlets.
Highly sought after for talks, retreats, and workshops, his mission is showing you how to heal and free yourself.
síofra jackson
síofra jackson (she/they) is a student of liberatory practices: she lives in her body and vacations in her mind. She is a black nipmuc embodied liberation teacher. She works with individuals and groups in the United States and Europe who do healing and education work. sister sadada has earned two masters: in Indigenous Tradition from Harvard Divinity School and in Secondary Education from UMass Boston. Her work centers clarity, creativity, freedom, and radical self-love.
Since 2015, síofra has her own business provided guidance and mentoring services to individuals and groups in the public, private, and non-profit sectors. From development and deepening leadership practices to instructional guidance, she helps those she labors with to curate the causes and conditions for liberatory practice and liberated practitioners. She also co-founded Dharma Queens, a series of conversations on Instagram Live along with Lama Rod Owens, to help people get freer faster.
cathy-mae karelse
cathy-mae karelse (she/her) hails from South Africa, with strong cosmic roots. A scholar-practitioner with a PhD in Religions and Philosophy from SOAS University of London, she is a changemaker focused on equity, belonging and liberation.
Her deep systems change work composts and decentres underlying social norms and narratives that keep institutionalised and systemic discrimination in place, opening hearts to freedom. cathy-mae is the Climate Youth Resilience Global Lead and collaborates on various policy, change and peace programs. As author of Disrupting White Mindfulness: Race and Racism in the Wellbeing Industry, she foregrounds global South, Indigenous, and queer knowledges in worldmaking.
Born on International Star Wars Day, cathy-mae draws inspiration from The Force and sci-magic.
Fairooz
Global Retreats Manager
Marinated in London and a seasoned global spirit, Fairooz moves between borders, weaving together practices of community building, creative education, and embodied wellness. Their work spans event curation and management, DJing and music production, radio host, yoga instruction, and creative mentorship for young migrants—all guided by a commitment to intersectional social justice and decolonial frameworks for the global majority.
Fairooz draws inspiration from their travels, infusing their work with global perspectives and cultural exchange. Beyond their professional endeavors, they find joy in feline companionship, making hot sauce, tapping into mycelium networks and exploring the spice-rich culinary traditions across the global south.
Their practice remains rooted in fostering collective liberation and nurturing spaces where transformative connections can flourish.
Mo
Accessiblity Coordinator
Mo (he/him) is a creative producer, curator, facilitator, and community organiser whose work bridges gaps and amplifies the voices of marginalised communities within the arts and healing spaces.
As Art Director of Shangri-La at Glastonbury Festival, Mo is driving cultural change by shaping programming and spaces that create genuine opportunities for people often excluded from the mainstream festival industry. He also serves on Glastonbury’s Diversity & Inclusion Board and its Accessibility Advisory Board, where his collaborative approach has helped influence festival-wide policies on accessibility and equity for artists, crew, and performers.
Mo’s life’s work—as both an activist and community organiser—has always been rooted in access: access to space, opportunity, and representation. His efforts at major events like Glastonbury have expanded accessible camping options, improved infrastructure, and fostered a more inclusive festival culture.
Holding an MA in Art and Politics, Mo’s research explored intentional spaces for queer empowerment, identity exploration, and spiritual connection through art, ritual, and archiving. He has worked with organisations such as Good Chance, mentoring and facilitating projects led by displaced artists.
Mo’s practice is also deeply informed by a long-standing spiritual journey. Guided by Buddhist philosophies and enriched through learning with plant medicine communities since 2012, he has studied plant medicine facilitation alongside Indigenous elders, integrating this wisdom into his creative and community work.
Liz
Retreat Coordinator
Liz (she/her) is based on the Isle of Wight, has attended our previous Spring retreats and is a volunteer facilitator of groups at Southsea Sangha. Liz spends her time working as a freelance artist / flagmaker / event producer, reading, writing, cooking vegan food for family and friends and learning to grow vegetables.
