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Openmind Training invites you to

A Shamanic Pilgrimage to the Heart of the San

16 to 28 August 2010

Kalahari Desert, Botswana

An unprecedented opportunity to participate in a shamanic journey with the Earth's oldest indigenous culture, the San people of southern Africa's Kalahari Desert. 

Highlights

At the start of our pilgrimage we spend five days and nights camping in isolation and privacy in the Kalahari Desert with a San clan of the Naro tribe.  We share fires, food and friendships as we explore their culture at a deeply meaningful level.  The main focus shall be on the healing tradition of the San.  We will be full participants in healing dances, learning the complex rhythms of clapping and polyphonic singing that have evolved since the dawn of human kind.  We will receive healing from the San shamans and share our own healing methods and ways with them.

By day we will walk with the San into the desert, gathering herbs and edible foods and sharing their astonishing knowledge of this wilderness.  They will demonstrate their simple survival skills including making fire by hand, making rope and share with us their skill in creating their beautiful ostrich egg shell jewelry.

We will spend a day with the San community at the D'Kar settlement where we will visit a San diviner and herbalist, an old man greatly respected in this community for his power to heal.  We will witness his work and receive a divination from him for our journey forward.  We will also come face to face with the contemporary life of the San people visiting historic sites in the settlement.

After saying farewell to our San clan we will take a two day break on the spectacular Okavango panhandle, gateway to one of the Earth's wildest and most beautiful natural landscapes.  We will cruise the river at sundown and relax with good local food by night. 

We then embark on the high-point of the pilgrimage, a three night vigil to the remote Tsodilo Hills, known by the San to be their mythical place of their birth and their most sacred place of power.  Tsodilo is a little-known World Heritage Site, carrying a profound spiritual significance, mirrored by over 4,000 rock art paintings that were drawn by the shaman-artists who have lived here over the past 100,000 years.  If the spirits are willing, we shall also visit the remote Cave of the Mountain Serpent, a sacred - and secret - site where an astonishing 70,000 year old, Serpent Petroglyph resides.  We shall also be guided by a San elder into the hills where we will receive initiation at the Sacred Spring, drinking from the bosom of the mother of the San.  Finally we will participate in the visioning, blessing, and birthing ceremony under the African night sky in the womb cave in the heart of the Mother mountain.

Words from past Pilgrims

It is impossible to relate what this experience was like; words do not work. How can you describe the gifts of healing which derive from the healers' own pain, suffering and exhaustion? How can you describe meeting these gentle, harmless people who are both minimalist and ultra-rich, who express their love for you from the second they set eyes on you? They are egalitarian and put to shame both communism and democracy and are self-taught. Their generosity of spirit moves me to tears, happiness, wonder and awe at such uniqueness, lost to 21st century world pride. They have no need of conversion to religion; they have their spirit world and they have nature, all bound up in their singular experience of life. This was a completion for me as I now had experienced for myself the healing dance so vividly illustrated in the cave paintings which inspired me 50 years ago which I saw in my travels as water engineer in rural Southern Rhodesia.

Alan Barrett

I want to thank you both once again so much for giving me the opportunity of having the privilege of spending those precious few days with the most gentle and loving people I could ever dream to meet, I will never forget the San people of the Kalahari.  I feel so grateful and humble to have been a part of such a spiritual and rewarding pilgrimage, I cant find the right words to describe how the whole experience has left me and how I will carry the San so close to my heart. You were both so remarkable the way you tended to all our needs and wants in such a beautiful and caring way, you are truly amazing people and I love you both so much

Rosemary Shale

Thank you for connecting me to the heart of Africa and her peoples, I will never forget.  The trip was profound for me. An accumulation of 6 years of experiences and teachings in Shamanism, deepened and informed my experience with the San, and the land. A special thanks to the organizers for facilitating my experience, and giving me this opportunity. Truly, an experience that will stay close to my heart......and one that ripples outward into the world

Jo George

A very dramatic chapter in my life, beautiful, joyful, often sad and at times totally overwhelming.  These words are easy to say and often overused but I assure you I do not use them lightly. The San and their Land have taken a piece of my heart, a piece I give gladly. Their gifts to me and the wonders I have seen are beyond measurement

Craig Cordiner

I thought the whole time with the San was so powerful and moving it is difficult to find the words to express my feelings.  They are indeed the gentlest people I have ever met and I felt honored to have done so.  The casual meetings between our two camps were really enjoyable - and the children were such fun!  It was also fantastic that they taught us some of their skills and knowledge of plants - I really enjoyed this.  All I can say is that it was incredible, powerful, moving and humbling.  I can't thank you enough for giving me this opportunity

Ann Wilson

The first few nights back I couldn't sleep. I hated the confinement of the four walls, missing the night sky of the Kalahari.  It is changing the way I work.  There really aren't words to describe the experience.   Very humbling and awesome.  I am sure that the love I experienced from my San family and the healings I received will inform and influence my work from now on.  I have never come across people who are so open and full of love, being hugged by people who gave me their whole bodies and being, to experience eyes that I could just drop into with only openness and love.  Just experiencing that with Qwexwa and also Kaoga showed me I have a long way to go to being that accepting and open.  What a gift.

Deirdre Gough

Your Guides

Greg and Anne Laws, are your guides.  They are the founders and Directors of Openmind Training and the creators of the San Shamanic Pilgrimage. 

Greg is an internationally renowned environmentalist and writer specializing in southern African culture, adventure and story-telling.  He has qualified in the Foundation of Shamanic Practice and a graduate of the year's training in Core Shamanism through The Sacred Trust.  He runs his own successful training company in the UK.  Greg wrote his Masters degree on the interface between remote rural communities and modernization and has decades of direct exposure to Africa's shamanic traditions including significant work with the San people.  He has appeared on television and radio on numerous occasions and has been commended on his work by a minister in Nelson Mandela's cabinet. 

Raised among rural Zulu, Anne has a deep connection to African shamans, being called to the Zulu Sangoma from a young age and has since trained in core shamanism through The Sacred Trust.  Anne has a profound empathy with Africa's people and a deep love of the Kalahari.  She is a professional photographer and a highly skilled chef specializing in catering for large groups in remote wilderness locations.  Anne is also qualified in First Aid with excellent knowledge of medical care in the African wilderness. 

Itinerary

The pilgrimage includes twelve nights in Botswana, southern Africa. 

16 August 2010 – Fly into Johannesburg, South Africa for your connecting flight to Maun Botswana. You must not land in Johannesburg later than 10h00 on 16 August. Alternatively fly into Johannesburg on 15 August and overnight at a safe hotel close to the airport. The flight from your home to Johannesburg is not included in the price. You will be met at Maun airport and transported in our overland vehicles to our camp outside Maun for the night.

17 August 2010 - Set off from Maun to Ghanzi, some 300km, for Dqae Qare Game Farm.  Set up camp some 10km from the main base camp, deep in the desert. We undertake ceremonial work to establish our clan for the two weeks ahead.

18 to 20 August 2010 - We will be joined by a large group of San for three nights including men, women and children and the most experienced and respected healers of the tribe. The San will live alongside us in their traditional grass huts and will work with us throughout in a deep cross cultural experience. By day we will share with them their profound knowledge of their desert home, gathering foods and medicines on easy walks into the wilderness. We will also share the entertainment dances including those of the maidens as well those of the hunters where the behaviours of the desert animals are enacted with astonishing accuracy. The San have an extraordinary approach to raising children and for many past pilgrims the time spent with these children was a high point of their experience. Every night we will participate in full healing dances, the centre of the San shamanic world. We are very close and dear friends of this tribe with the result that our healing dances with them are quite unique in their power and purpose. You will be healed by the San and invited to participate in the hypnotic and deeply spiritual experience.

21 August 2010 - Our San family will leave us today and we will travel to their village of D’Kar. We will come face to face with San contemporary life and experience the challenges these people face in the modern world. We will visit the charities working on their behalf and visit the cultural museum that they have set up. There will be an opportunity to support the San by purchasing the beautiful crafts that they have made. We will visit a San diviner and herbalist, an old man greatly respected in this community for his power to heal.  We will witness his work and receive a divination from him for our journey forward. We then return to our camp in the desert where we have a short solitaire planned to integrate our thoughts and seek guidance on our way forward.

22 August 2010 - An early rise, pack up camp and head north for the remote Shakawe region on the Okavango panhandle, just south of Angola, some 450km.  Here we set up camp on the banks of the spectacular Okavango River in relative luxury camping at Drotsky’s Cabins.

23 August 2010 - We have set aside a day of leisure at Drotsky’s on the beautiful Okavango River. There are options to visit a crocodile farm or to simply to relax in the African sun. In the late afternoon we will include a river cruise to watch a sunset over one of Africa’s most beautiful landscapes.

24 to 26 August 2010 - We travel to Tsodilo Hills for three nights, a World Heritage Site, the Earth’s oldest shamanic site and described as “pure thunder” by Simon Buxton. This legendary place has humbled visitors for centuries and the presence of Spirit is quite extraordinary. In our experience it is highly likely that simply approaching this place will reduce you to tears. We will set up camp under the "Female" hill and call to the Spirits of this land to welcome us and to accept our work. Our second day will include a slow walk across the female hill with a San guide to witness the amazing San rock art, the highest concentration of rock art in the World. We will bring water or soil from our own land to offer at the San sacred spring in a ceremony we are indeed privileged to share. By night we continue our own shamanic work. On our last day we will offer a walk to the 70,000 years old Serpent Cave where a 70 foot petroglyph has been carved into the rock. We can only surmise at the ceremonies performed in this place by long lost San shaman. On our final evening we will undertake our own sacred ceremony in the womb cave of the mother mountain. Guided by Anne and Greg we will make a pilgrimage under the African night sky to the cave where we will spend time in solitude to reflect on this incredible journey and these equally incredible people. The group will be split with half the group holding power in a drumming circle at our base camp and then swap over during the night. We will then retire in sacred silence.

27 August 2009 - Our journey draws to a close as we make the long drive back to Maun on the Okavango Delta. Hot showers and a special meal will round off our final evening together and begin the long process of assimilating the experience.

28 August 2009 - Rise at leisure for flights out of Maun at midday to Johannesburg or, alternatively, stay on for a few days for an optional safari in the Okavango Delta, one of the greatest game parks in Africa.  The safari is an optional extra at an additional cost. We will offer this safari at nearly half the price of the local rate and you will be accompanied by a professional guide along with Greg and Anne Laws who have decades of experience of the African bush. If you want to experience Africa’s big game up close then this will be an unforgettable experience. If you are keen to participate in the safari then please enquire as to costs and itinerary.

Health, Safety and Comfort

Once your booking is secure you will receive detailed health and safety information along with reams of additional advice to make your visit to Africa as comfortable as possible. In the interim however, here is some information to set your mind at ease.

This is not an adrenalin rush adventure and the trip will suit any individual in reasonably good health. We have been running these trips for years and have hosted all manner of people from youngsters to wise elders in their seventies, super fit to over-weight, experienced campers to many who had never slept in a tent before.

Accommodation for the entire trip is in comfortable “two man” tents, completely sealed and bug proof. There are limited options to upgrade to a backpacker room for a reasonable extra cost for the two nights in Maun. No alternative to tents is available at the other sites. We will provide comfortable foam mattresses and you are required to bring a 4 season sleeping bag (it gets cold at night in the desert). Most venues have hot showers and toilets. Tsodilo Hills had cold showers in 2008 (super in the middle of the day) but it is quite possible that it will be upgraded by our visit.

Anne and Greg have decades of experience with camping in the wilderness and, regardless of whether you have camped before, you will be exceptionally well looked after. The food that Anne can produce over a camp fire in the desert will amaze you. We cater for most diets and allergies although supplies are limited so please enquire about your personal needs.

We will visit the Kalahari Desert in the southern winter where the risk from creepy crawlies and mosquitoes is very low. We will give you advice on taking malaria precautions although we do not take any ourselves. This is a personal choice. There are no other prevalent diseases in Botswana other than Aids. Again we will offer sound advice although, outside of intimate relations with local people (definitely not allowed among our San hosts), we will bring our own needles in case of medical emergencies. The Desert is quite safe although we do carry a fully comprehensive medical kit including antibiotics. We also carry a satellite phone at all times and are in 24/7 range for Medical Rescue International to airlift patients out within hours should this unlikely necessity arise. You must have travel insurance to embark on this trip as MRI will not fly if you don’t. All these precautions are way over the top for the area we are visiting but this is something we offer to reassure you anyway.

If you ever dreamed of coming to Africa, safely, this is your chance.

Cost

The total inclusive cost of the pilgrimage is £1900.00 per person.  We can accept all major credit/debit cards, cheques or cash.  To allow for deposits due to various service providers, the following payment schedule is required:

£300 deposit by 28 February 2010

£600 installment by 31 March 2010

£1000 final payment by 31 May 2010

A cleared deposit will secure your place on the pilgrimage on a first come, first served basis.

Included in the Fee:  Flight from Johannesburg to Maun.  All transport in overland vehicles including driver, fuel, tolls etc.  All accommodation costs.  All meals including teas, coffees and water supplies.  All camping equipment (tents, mattresses, cups, cutlery, plates, chairs, etc).

Not included in the Fee:  The flight from your home destination to  Johannesburg, South Africa.  The optional safari. All extra refreshments, snacks etc. not included in regular meals.  Sleeping bag and pillow and all other items of a personal nature.

The Final Word

It is simply unforgettable to be a part of this experience.  Knowing that these are our most ancient ancestors and that this healing tradition has continued, uninterrupted for at least 100,000 years, is deeply moving.  Above all is the overwhelming sense of responsibility one feels towards these extraordinarily gentle people - to do everything within one's power to ensure that these healing dances and the enduring resilience of this culture are never lost to humanity. Greg and Anne much look forward to undertaking this pilgrimage with you to the Kalahari Desert and to the heart of the San peoples and their culture.

Contact

Please notify us as soon as possible of your intention to join us

Email

info@openmindtraining.co.uk

Phone

0845 050 8448

+44 (0)1722 790635

Click HERE to contact us.