Why You Ought to Add Meditation to Your Iceland Itinerary

In the event you’re planning a visit to Iceland, you seemingly have plans to go to the recent springs, some waterfalls and perhaps a volcano or glacier. Nonetheless, one factor that you just won’t have in your itinerary simply but — however that it’s best to actually add? Meditation.

Whether or not you’ve by no means meditated earlier than otherwise you’re a long-time meditation practitioner, meditating in Iceland could be an enriching and rewarding expertise. Right here’s why, and how one can go about experiencing Iceland meditation each throughout your journey and later (or now!), at dwelling.

Meditation provides a spread of advantages, each bodily and religious. Meditation lets you relieve stress, loosen up the physique and reframe the thoughts so to higher method the struggles and challenges of day-to-day life. And the place higher to expertise that rejuvenating affect than whereas in Iceland on vacation?

Iceland is already extraordinarily well-suited to disconnecting from the concerns of on a regular basis life. A visit to Iceland is usually stuffed with communion with nature. The dramatic landscapes and surroundings, pure and untouched, unpolluted and clear, from the volcanoes to the ice fields, the Midnight Solar to the Northern Lights — all of it makes for a spectacular spot to cease and actually mirror on what’s necessary to you. And past the pure environment, Icelandic society is simply extra geared towards mindfulness and a extra fulfilling lifestyle. The truth is, Reykjavik has its personal Mindfulness Centre, which works carefully with the Directorate of Well being to implement mindfulness in Iceland’s college techniques and different areas, offering sources and coaching to Icelanders who wish to stay a extra conscious life.

So, all this thought of, would you agree that getting away to Iceland for some time will mean you can actually, deeply loosen up, and are available away refreshed and energised, able to tackle no matter life throws at you sooner or later?

In the event you agree that the thought of meditation in Iceland sounds, frankly, nice, the place and how will you truly go about it?

First, you’ll want to come back to Iceland (and in the event you can’t simply but, no worries; we have now an at-home answer for you, too). From there, you may both select to meditate by yourself or meditate with the assistance of others.

In the event you’re a long-time meditation practitioner, you would possibly certainly wish to meditate by yourself, at any time when the temper strikes you throughout your go to. There are quite a few stunning locations to meditate all through our island nation. Whether or not you wish to meditate close to a waterfall, on a seashore, throughout a hike or whereas bathing in one of many Icelandic scorching springs, there are plentiful choices so that you can select from. A few of our favorite meditation spots embrace close to the Skogafoss Waterfall in southern Iceland, on the seashore of Raudasandur within the Westfjords, on a Highlands hike in Landmannalaugar and within the Reyjadalur scorching springs, not removed from Reykjavik.

If, nonetheless, you’d favor to meditate with the assistance of meditation specialists, you could find particular occasions and workshops that target meditation, led by native Icelandic leaders. Circulate provides a few of these such occasions and workshops, together with customised and curated in-person meditation workshops that cowl what precisely meditation is and the way attendees can make the most of meditation to handle stress, improve focus, get pleasure from higher relaxation and construct stronger relationships.

Circulate additionally hosts a particular, yearly retreat that’s open to the general public. This particular retreat features a tour all through Reykjanes that takes you to among the greatest and most stunning meditation places in Iceland, with meditation classes held all through the day, in these spots. Past the meditations classes, we additionally encourage attendees to pair the occasion with a go to to one of many many Icelandic well being spas, for an much more enjoyable expertise.

Circulate even hosts in-person, specially-curated workshops for company teams and firms, for an academic and interactive expertise that focuses in on the subject of your group’s selecting. (You possibly can both select an present workshop program that we provide on your group, or request one thing extra customised.) Past the handpicked subject of the day, although, the company workshops additionally embrace a guided meditation and ideas that your workers can use effectively past the one-day occasion, in order that they will start training meditation on their very own, of their private lives and likewise at work. We’ve discovered that these workshops are a wonderful addition to a gaggle’s team-building day or outing.

Be taught extra and ebook the workshop expertise on your group, right here.

Whereas travelling to Iceland for an all-encompassing meditation retreat amongst among the most stunning surroundings on Earth sounds wonderful, we additionally recognise that it’s not possible for everybody. In the event you’ve already used up your journey price range for the yr, or in the event you simply can’t take the time away from actual life, there are methods you can replicate the Icelandic meditation expertise with out ever leaving dwelling.

For people, experiencing meditation in Iceland by digital actuality is extremely simple. When you have a VR headset, you should use the Circulate VR app to immerse your self in stunning Icelandic surroundings and sounds, whereas having fun with guided meditations. You could find the Circulate VR app on Oculus, for Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR; on SideQuest, for Oculus Quest and Quest 2; and on Steam VR, for Oculus Rift.

Nonetheless, in the event you don’t have a VR headset, you may expertise Icelandic meditation in different methods, from Circulate’s cell app that permits you to take the meditation expertise on the go. It empowers you to meditate at any time when, wherever, so you may get the short hit of rest and rejuvenation while you want it most. At dwelling, whereas on public transit, earlier than you fall asleep — there are countless methods to expertise meditation, all out of your cellphone.

Circulate’s cell meditation app options:

• Excessive-quality guided meditations in English and Icelandic

• Beautiful nature scenes from throughout Iceland

• Video and immersive 360° footage

• 28-plus meditations to make you are feeling higher in as little as 4 or 8 minutes

• Hand-picked music and soothing nature sounds

• Customisable experiences by size, music, steering and language

• Skill to trace your progress

In the event you’re excited about introducing the Icelandic meditation expertise to your staff or a gaggle, although, you’ll wish to benefit from Circulate’s wellness-focused company meditation program, which helps firms enhance workers’ psychological well being by meditation and Icelandic practices. Circulate’s wellness program for company teams comes with:

• VR meditation programming out there by way of VR headsets supplied by Circulate and shipped to your workplace

• On-line workshops out there to every worker

• Meditation sources out there to every worker by way of their private cell gadgets

• Meditation sources out there by way of an online portal, to be used throughout in-office group classes

Our company companions report a mess of advantages, together with higher stress administration within the workplace, elevated worker focus, elevated productiveness, strengthened collaborative partnerships, larger resilience and higher particular person self-development amongst groups.

Whether or not you select to make use of Circulate’s VR, cell app or net portal, you’ll get pleasure from a spread of advantages that you just’ll solely discover with Circulate.

Pure Icelandic surroundings incorporates volcanoes, lava fields, the Icelandic Highlands, waterfalls and plush inexperienced valleys — all of the scenes that you’d see and expertise throughout a visit to Iceland. As you retain your eyes open throughout this one-of-a-kind meditation expertise, you may see all of it. The distinctive surroundings is enhanced by Icelandic music from artists comparable to Sigur Ros, GusGus, Of Monsters and Males and Ólafur Arnalds. Guided meditations are even out there in Icelandic, for an much more genuine expertise, as you take heed to the island’s language because it lulls you and guides you thru a meditation like none different you’ve skilled earlier than.

Able to meditate in Iceland? Whether or not you’re planning a visit to the island and wish to meditate in individual, with or with out the assistance of a educated information, otherwise you wish to see what all of the hype is about earlier than you ebook that airplane ticket, you are able to do so with Circulate’s help. Tell us how we may also help you meditate in Iceland. Attain out, at data@circulate.is.