At nehan retreats, rather than receiving something from outside, we cherish the time to quietly notice the changes happening within yourself.
At the timing of moving to a new place,
“I want to take a fresh look at myself”
With such thoughts, Akemi Sano joined our 2-night, 3-day retreat.
What she gained there was not an answer given by someone else, but a solid sense she discovered through her own power.
Three Days of Facing Yourself Completely
During the three days of retreat, you spend time in a way completely different from everyday life.
Sano
For three days I wasn’t allowed to touch my phone, couldn’t talk to anyone, and just faced myself completely. That time was so precious.
There is no contact with smartphones or computers at all, and conversation with others is kept to a minimum.
As external stimulation decreases, awareness naturally turns inward, and sensations and emotions you’ve overlooked until now gradually begin to surface.
Suppressed Emotions Naturally Emerged
At nehan, we combine specialized neurosensory music that shifts brainwave patterns with our unique Theta Breathing technique to naturally guide participants into meditative states.
In that state, without forcing yourself to remember anything, emotions and memories that had sunk into the unconscious can naturally rise to the surface.
Sano
Through various practices while facing myself, emotions I had suppressed came out naturally, even though I wasn’t trying to bring them up.
When suppressed emotions surface, it’s not just about remembering painful events.
It might be said that the time has finally come to reconnect with feelings you’ve kept stored deep in your heart for so long.
When you fully feel sadness or anger as they are, mysteriously your breathing deepens and your mind begins to settle.
And afterward, you may touch upon your “true feelings” that even you weren’t aware of.
“I’m Truly Glad to Be Alive”
At nehan, we don’t forcibly turn emotions into something positive or push them down.
We value simply feeling and accepting them as they are above all else.
Sano
Through everyone’s support, I learned that I have the power to accept those suppressed emotions and move through them.
Facilitators and staff are not there to give answers, but are companions who support you so you can look at what’s inside yourself, by yourself.
Beyond the release of suppressed emotions, what Ms. Sano arrived at was—
Sano
I could truly feel from the bottom of my heart that I’m glad to be alive.
What You Find Yourself Won’t Waver
What mattered most to Ms. Sano in this experience was not “what she felt,” but “how she arrived there.”
Sano
This wasn’t something taught or guided from outside, but something I moved toward and arrived at myself—I think there’s tremendous meaning in that.
Sano
What I grasped through my own power—even though life will bring various things and I might forget at times—I have this conviction that it will remain within me, unwavering.
Not someone’s words, not a correct answer given from outside, but finding the answers within yourself, through your own power. That sensation quietly continues to remain, even as time passes.
The Answer Is Always Within
At nehan, we believe in the power that exists within everyone.
We never forcibly draw anything out, nor do we guide with expectations.
Whether to speak or express emotions—everything happens at each person’s own pace.
What facilitators and staff can do is gently accompany that process and offer a hand when needed.
There is no need to force emotions out, nor to try to create special “insights” or “changes.”
Just quietly looking within.
We believe that what you discover for yourself is what holds meaning.
If right now you feel a quiet urge to pause for a moment——
that timing may already be here.
