Nature and the Human Soul: An Experiential Exploration of the Soulcentric Developmental Wheel – March 2024

Anchored in traditional four-directions wisdom, contemporary depth and archetypal psychologies, and twenty-five years of nature-based soul guiding, the Soulcentric Developmental Wheel (SDW) is a new ecopsychology of human development and cultural transformation. It’s a blueprint showing how richly we can grow and mature when soul and nature are embraced as our wisest and most trustworthy guides. It includes an integrated set of developmental guidelines that can help every human mature into an adulthood of visionary leadership — precisely what we need in this century if we are to create a just, compassionate, and sustainable world.

A life-span model of development from infancy through authentic elderhood, the SDW presents eight distinct stages of life and shows how these stages are almost always independent of chronological age, biological development, cognitive ability, or social role. Rather, the movement from one stage to the next comes about through progress with psychological and spiritual tasks that are specific to each stage. The SDW presents an achievable vision of a contemporary way of life that holds soul-discovery and genuine contribution to the more-than-human community as its most central features and goals.

(If you are a previous Animas participant familiar with the 4-directions-based map of the Self and the sub-personalities — used on many of our programs — please note that the SDW is something quite different and complementary.)

During this intensive, we employ talks (with handouts), conversation and story telling, and experiential exercises on the land as we explore the SDW and its applications to education, parenting, rites of passage, psychotherapy, personal growth, and cultural change. You’ll discover how to use the SDW to clarify your own next steps of soul-infused development and learn a set of principles and practices by which you can align yourself with the lifelong journey of growing whole.

This is an all-camping program for those who desire to camp. Participants will be meeting at Taft Gardens each morning for the Program and camping each night at Lake Casitas Campground (a 5 minute drive from the Gardens). Price includes campground fees, however participants can arrange their own nightly lodging if desired.  

We invite participants to arrive at the Lake Casitas campground the evening before we commence (March 24th) to get settled.

TAFT GARDENS, OJAI, CALIFORNIA

Taft Gardens is located near the wild edge of the Pacific Ocean. The gardens include 15 acres of South African and Australian succulents giving the land a wild feel to it. The gardens open up to several hundred acres of oaks, pine, eucalypt, and a variety of grasses and ponds,  and is home to eagle, hawk, scrub jay, hummingbird, woodpecker, lizard, snake, bear, bobcat, mountain lion. It is nestled at the edge of the Los Padres National Forest and looks out upon the Topa Topa mountains.