Moving Mindfulness Retreat

 Dancing as a Bridge between Somatic Practice, Athletic Training and Formal Meditation

 The Moving Mindfulness Retreat is a deep dive into the world of meditation, movement practice, and the relationship between the two. It focuses on the role of dancing as a bridging practice between different approaches to the development of “Body, Heart and Mind”. 

During the Retreat we will explore:

In addition to my training in Contemporary Dance, Urban Dance, and Contact Improvisation, I also draw upon Buddhist Practice as taught by Western teachers, teachings of The Nine-Sided Circle (a no-mystery Sufi school founded by Mushtaq Ali al Ansari and Noor Kyle George), as well as the work of Moshé Feldenkrais  and Frey Faust.

If the following questions seem interesting, this retreat might be for you – not because they will be definitively answered, but because the continual asking of them has shaped the material you will engage with at the retreat.

What is the relationship between mindfulness and playfulness?
What would a dance practice be like if it was not about performing for an audience?
What kind of qualities do we cultivate through dancing?
What could a 21st-century meditation/movement practice look like?
Can moving help us pay better attention?
Can paying attention help us move better?
What is the essence of a given method?
How do we know that something is working for us?
How can we detect where we are working against ourselves?
How do we learn to move?
When does (verbal) thinking get in the way?
Why does everything become so much more interesting if you pay attention?

I am excited to invite you to my playground – a time and space for quiet reflection, wild play, and asking interesting (embodied) questions. 

About Šuka

Šuka Horn was born and raised in Germany, where he began his early training in martial arts and music. His passions found a meeting point when he discovered breakdancing at the age of 12. This love for dance eventually led him to earn a degree in Dance from Codarts University in Rotterdam. After performing in projects across Thailand, Spain, and the Netherlands, Šuka relocated to Athens in 2020 to join Dimitris Papaioannou’s production, Transverse Orientation. This collaboration led to another creation: INK, a duet performed with Papaioannou himself.

During this time, Šuka also developed a deeper interest in meditation, which led him to begin an ongoing mentoring process as a private student of Mushtaq Ali al Ansari, supporting his journey toward awake living. He also deepened his studies of the human body and movement training with Frey Faust. After touring the world for five years with Papaioannou’s productions and conducting his own workshops, Šuka decided to move to Leipzig to focus solely on developing his research and teaching. His Upside Down Inside Out workshops have been held in universities, dance companies, festivals, and studios in more than 20 countries. 

How to get there:

On this website, you will find detailed instructions on various ways to reach the location. (Just click on "Getting to Bio28") We expect some participants to arrive by car and will likely arrange pick-ups from the train station to the venue to help minimize the need for taxis. 

Meals & Food Options

Breakfast is included for all participants on all days. Dinner on the arrival day is also provided.

There is also the option to book full catering for the entire week at an additional cost of 300€. Vegetarian and vegan options are available for those who prefer.

If you prefer to cook for yourself, you're welcome to use the communal kitchen. It has four independent units, each with two burners, an oven, a sink, a dishwasher, and an extractor hood. You'll find all necessary kitchenware, tableware, fridges, a pantry, and a filtered water dispenser. 

Pricing & Registrations 

The retreat is offered on a sliding scale to make participation accessible for people with limited financial resources. This is based on the idea that those in a stronger financial position may choose to contribute more than the minimum. 

You can freely choose any amount within the given range:

• Early Bird: 490–650 € (until November 15)

• Medium Bird: 530–650 € (until January 15)

• Late Bird: 580–650 € (after January 15)

These basic prices include accommodation in shared rooms and breakfast. They also includes dinner on the arrival day.

If you would like full catering for the entire week, there will be an additional cost of 300€ on top of the basic fee. Vegan and Vegetarian options are available if needed, and you can indicate your preference in the registration form below.

Please register by following this link! 

Cancellation Policy

If you cancel your registration before December 31st, 2025, you will receive a refund minus a 50€ cancellation fee. After this date, cancellations are non-refundable except in cases of genuine emergencies. However, you are welcome to transfer your spot to someone else at any time.

Questions?

Feel free to reach out to me at hornsuka@gmail.com.

Please keep in mind that I’m organizing (and teaching) everything on my own, so I’d really appreciate it if people could double-check whether the answer to their question can be easily found on this website or through a quick Google/ChatGPT search. This will save me a lot of work, and I teach much better without a headache from too much organizational stuff. So it’s a win-win situation!

 Below is a collection of pictures from the last retreat, taken by Elise Øymoen .