Step into a five-day immersion in the living intelligence of the five elements — Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water — explored through the healing art of Zenthai Shiatsu.
Each day is dedicated to one element, opening its qualities, teachings, and the ways it expresses itself in the body and in the natural world. Through yoga, mindful movement, and hands-on bodywork, these elemental forces move from idea into direct experience.
This training invites you to learn with your hands, listen with your whole body, and reconnect with the deeper rhythms of nature. It is designed as both an entry point and an expansion, and may be taken before or after Level 1 Foundations training.
This immersion is ideal for anyone drawn to the meeting point of touch, presence, and ancient wisdom. It welcomes Zenthai Shiatsu Level 1 students, bodyworkers, massage therapists, yoga and somatic teachers, osteopaths, Shiatsu practitioners, and anyone curious about working with the body’s elemental nature.
Whether you are beginning your journey in bodywork or seeking to deepen an existing practice, this is a space for exploration, growth, and authentic connection.
Anam Cara is located 600 feet above Inverness, overlooking the Monadhliath Mountains. Though only three miles from the city, it is surrounded by farm and woodland, creating a peaceful setting with seven acres of land, winding paths, ancient trees, and a sheltered kitchen garden. There is room here to walk, to rest, and to let the landscape become part of the learning.
Nourishing vegetarian meals are prepared with care using organic produce, some of it grown on site. Special diets can be accommodated on request. Participants also take part in a simple “Helping Hands” wash-up rota, adding a gentle sense of shared community to the experience.
Accommodation is in three timber-clad cabins set into the hillside, each with south-facing views toward the mountains. Rowan and Willow each include three single rooms and one twin room with shared bathroom facilities. The Bothy offers one single and two twin rooms, also with shared facilities. The turf-roofed Pavilion serves as the heart of the retreat, offering a warm communal space for meals, rest, and gathering.
WHEN: Tuesday the 6th to Friday the 9th of October (we will start at 8.30am on Tuesday and finish around 5pm on Friday).
Arrival is on Monday the 5th for an opening circle, with dinner and accommodation included. Departure is on Saturday the 10th, with breakfast included.
LOCATION: Anam Cara Retreat Centre, 18 Upper Leachkin, Inverness, SCOTLAND, IV3 8PN
EXCHANGE
Residential £950 - includes the course fee, all teaching, manual and video, accommodation, and food. On-site accommodation includes cabins with 7 small but cosy single rooms and 3 twin rooms.
Non residential £650 - offered with priority for local participants and does not include meals, though you are warmly invited to join the group for shared lunches, which are a meaningful part of the experience and support community and connection. All lunches and dinner on the last day are included.
*PAYMENT PLANS AVAILABLE and a non-refundable deposit of £400 secures your place.
**If you genuinely feel called to join but financial reasons prevent you from doing so, please reach out; we can find a way.
Registration Deadline: Registration closes when all places are filled. Once the deposit is received, your place is confirmed.
Cancellation by participant: If you need to cancel and find another person to take your place before the course start date, you may transfer your registration. If your place is filled from the waiting list, you will receive a full refund minus a £50 admin fee. If you cancel and your place cannot be filled, payments already made are non-refundable.
*Please note if circumstances change due to natural disasters or other extraordinary event the retreat may be cancelled last minute, in which case you will be fully refunded.
WhatsApp or Email for questions and payments
Combined Training Offer: If you’d like to join both the Level 1 Foundation and the 5 Elements Training, you’ll receive 15% off the total tuition cost. You’ll stay at Anam Cara for the full period from the 30th of September to the 10th of October, 2026, and there will be a rest day to integrate and recharge.
Zenthai is more than a massage or bodywork modality. It is deeply transformative healing rooted in unity and interconnectedness, inviting conscious and safe touch, focused intention and attention, embodied presence, and powerful enquiry.
Anam Cara
Price
£950.00
Tue, Oct 6 – Fri, Oct 9