The experience begins with a short talk from Alexandre Tannous on the healing properties of sound, based on 12 years of research and fieldwork around the world.
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Alexandre will then facilitate a sound meditation, combining a ceremonial setting with an emphasis on breathing and visualization. Gongs, antique Himalayan singing bowls, and tuning forks will provide layers of harmonic overtones. As he guides us into a deep meditative state, we let go of habitual thought patterns and embrace layers of beautiful sound.Â
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This sonic experience will offer the opportunity to experience a space where science, art, spirituality and philosophy intersect.Â
Please remember to bring warm and comfortable clothing, eye mask (very important!), yoga mat, a refillable water bottle, blanket, a small pillow.Â
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Alexandre Tannous is as an ethnomusicologist, sound therapist and sound researcher. Â For the past 12 years he has been investigating the therapeutic and esoteric properties of sound from three different perspectives - Western scientific, Eastern philosophical, and shamanic societal beliefs - to gain a deeper understanding of how, and to what extent, sound has been used to affect human consciousness. His multidisciplinary research has led him to the intersection of art, science, philosophy and spirituality.
RESPIRA en Colombia promotes mindfulness practice with a sense of social responsibility through targeted training programs that aim to improve personal wellbeing and foster community peacebuilding throughout Colombia and in all sectors of society, specifically to populations affected by the internal armed conflict or by other contexts of violence who require special individual support in order to contribute to peacebuilding in their communities.
Colombians have suffered a war that has left scars in our bodies and minds. No matter where we come from in Colombia, or what is our social background, for over 50 years we have grown very close to violence. What impacts can this reality have in our mental health? How do we inhabit our bodies and relate to our minds in this context? What habits and behaviors have we created as individuals and as a collective in this context of violence? Mindfulness has proven to be a positive tool for people living under complex violent situations. We need resources to keep the program going and keep on positioning mindfulness as a pertinent and key tool for reconciliation at both individual and collective levels to build the peace that we hope for our country.Â
