ANAM CARA
Retreat Centre
in the Scottish Highlands
Anam Cara is a Gaelic expression meaning "soul friend". It symbolises a spiritual friendship that is not affected by time, distance, or separation.
In the old Celtic tradition, the Anam Cara is someone with whom you could share your innermost self, mind and heart. This soul friendship is an act of recognition and belonging, helping us return to the hearth of our Spirit.
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We have chosen this name as a symbol for the 'circle of belonging', that inner friendship which embraces nature, divinity, spirit and human world as one.
Highland Retreat Experience
Workshops, trainings and retreats are fully residential with nutritious, wholesome, vegetarian meals provided with special diets catered for on request. Our rustic caravan accommodations allow for a simple living experience while enjoying the beautiful views and walking paths of Anam Cara.
Stunning Location
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Nurturing Meals
Cosy Accommodation
Anam Cara lies 600 feet above sea level and overlooks the city of Inverness with stunning southerly views towards the Monadhliath Mountains. We are only three miles from the city centre yet surrounded by farm and woodland. The scope for walking is endless. The centre is set in seven acres of land which offers a delightful network of paths through a rich and varied landscape with extensive wooded areas and a sheltered fruit and vegetable garden.
Workshops and retreats are fully residential with nutritious, wholesome, vegetarian meals provided with special diets catered for on request. We use organic produce as availability allows - an ever-growing proportion of which is produced in our own garden. All meals are prepared by our experienced cooks, with participants assisting in the 'Helping Hands' wash up rota. During working retreats, meals will be prepared as a community exercise.
The guest living space is comprised of three large wooden clad cabins, which are set into the hillside, with south facing views. Rowan and Willow can each accommodate up to 5 people with three single rooms and one twin room with shared toilet & shower room. The Bothy can accommodate up to 5 people with one single room and two twin rooms with shared toilet/shower room. The turf roofed Pavilion offers a comfortable communal space for eating and relaxing.
Meet the 'Tufty'
Our Mindful Meeting Space.
Healing, Open, Inviting.
The main venue, affectionately known as the 'Tufty', is an octagonal building constructed from local timber with large patio windows that offer views south over Inverness and beyond. The log burning stove, oak floor, spiritual library and turf roof create a unique and lovely space.
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Anam Cara has a range of additional buildings tucked away in various nooks and crannies around the croft.
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Explore The Property
Healing. Meditation. Ceremony.
Anam Cara is set on 7 acres of peaceful woodland and atop a hill, giving us picturesque views overlooking Inverness, city of the Highlands. The property is home to the Anam Cara community, as well as some special buildings used for soulful purposes.
Healing Well Garden + Barrel Treatment Room
We have a wood fired Sauna with shower & changing area and a spacious relaxation room.
Nearby is the Healing Barrel, formerly a whisky mash barrel. This delightful turf roofed conversion serves as a therapy room.
Both the above buildings are situated in the Healing Well Garden, a quiet retreat space with shady decking overlooking a natural spring and its aquatic abundance. Water may be drawn from the well by those seeking the benefits and blessings of a water ablution.
Meditation Shrine Room
Our Shrine Room is a quiet and secluded venue used for daily meditation, which retreatants are welcome to attend or use at other times of the day.
The Earthlodge
The Earthlodge is buried into hillside with thick stone walls and turf roof and is most often used for shamanic ritual and ceremony.
Twobirds is one of the co-founders of the Anam Cara Retreat Centre where she lives and works full time as a shamanic practitioner and teacher of cross-cultural and Toltec Shamanism.
Embracing Shamanism offers a wide range of highly experiential training opportunities including introduction weekends, a comprehensive Practitioner Training plus Shamanic Teacher Training for those wishing to pursue a teaching role. Additional trainings focus on Toltec Shamanism, conducting Healing Circles and Sweatlodge Ceremonies, and a one-year training in Earth Centred Shamanism with emphasis on Nature Intelligence.
