Spinning Moon Silk

This six-day immersive soul journey, both together and alone, on wild Dartmoor is a chance to listen to your own wildling voice and those in circle with you. We will spin our stories together and ‘make silk’ from the experiences of our lives. Spinning Moon Silk uses the ancient practice of going out alone onto the land with a particular intention… to learn, reveal and grow. After our time alone in the wild, we are welcomed back into circle to share our stories, experiences and insights, which are then mirrored back to us. While it may sound simple, this type of inner journeying is profound, psyche-shifting and culturally revolutionary. It is very much needed in these times.

Sometimes the simplicity of silence - emptying ourselves of food, company and comfort – means we can fall and, in falling, be caught by something greater than ourselves. The wilding voice is yours alone, but it speaks to the rest of the earth and each of us on the earth. There is power in making time for the earth to hear us and to hear what may be spoken back. To sit together and share the places we have found so that we can grow deeper, stronger, softer…

Over the six-day Spinning Moon Silk quest, we will be sitting in circle, clarifying our reason for questing at this time, setting our intentions, camping, singing by the fire, cooking and eating together. We will co-create an appropriate, self-initiated ceremony and two-day fast alone in the wild. We will then come back to our comfortable ‘village’community to tell our stories and hear reflected back to us what we have shared. We will feast and celebrate our return before transitioning back to our normal lives.

You are invited to attend a one-hour one-to-one meeting with the facilitators prior to the start of the quest. The aim is to help hone your intention and make clear why you are undertakingthis immersive soul journey. There will be also be a group Zoom meeting one month after the quest to support with integrating what you have learned.

Irrespective of your age, you are encouraged to invite a trusted friend to anchor and support you before and after your quest. This is someone who can act as an anchor for you, witnessing our journey, hearing your stories from it and perhaps sharinginsights with you. This person might welcome you back on your return and support your integration afterwards. If that's not feasible or doesn’t feel right for you, that’s fine and we will be there to support you and welcome you back into the group.

What people say about this work
“……perfect location and great experience, brilliant event , beautifully held......”

"The camp was a life-changing experience that I will carry with me forever. I felt safe, held and honoured. It was a profound journey and I feel deeply grateful to have had the opportunity to participate alongside some incredibly powerful individuals, immersed in the beautiful land."

"I feel I've crossed over a potent threshold into my adult life through having the gift of a dedicated, safe container to continue processing my childhood/adolescence. I communed with the Earth in a profound way.......The learnings I've gained feel wordless—it's like the vibration of my body has changed and my ability to relate with life has widened. I feel strongly that this experience will ripple out into the rest of life in unimaginable ways... "

"The quest has opened up my mind about the possibilities in life, not for the physical things I can achieve, but how to slow down my mind and sit with myself, which was something that I had needed to do for a long time. It felt like a work of magic.”

"I seriously can't thank Heidi enough. The experience was life changing to all of us. Being given time, energy, love, support, respect, healing, I could go on, was an extremely beautiful thing to be a part of........I now have a much deeper understanding on where I'd like to take the next chapter of my life. P.S. food was amazing! "

“What a profoundly moving and beautifully vital rite of passage the quest was for our daughter, and also for us parents"

"I think it's an incredibly important experience for all people, especially those who haven't had opportunity or access to nature, ceremony and deep listening before. It's a deeply supportive and transformational practice.”

“This work is vital at this time....... it is so needed.”

Who is this for?

Spinning Moon Silk is for women of all ages and backgrounds. We believe that sitting in a circle of women of all ages and phases of life offers the richness that our souls crave. It allows us to ask important questions… What have we forgotten, as we’ve aged, that the voice of the maiden still speaks strongly? How do we mother in this world that so desperately needs mothering and yet that simultaneously pushes it aside? What guidance do we yearn for in our younger days that those who have travelled further in their years hold? This is an opportunity to listen and share and grow, both individually and together.

Cultural influences
The ancient tradition of fasting for vision has been passed down through generations of indigenous peoples. In the spirit of honoring these traditions, while drawing from wisdom gleaned from our connection with this land and adapting to our present needs and times, we will be hosting this experience, not strictly adhering to the cultural intricacies, however we aim to capture its raw, elemental essence.

When is it?

Dates: July 21st to 26th 2025

Arrival: 2pm on 21st July

Departure: 3pm on 26th July

Zoom call: 12th March 2025

Time: 5.30-7pm

Sign up for free zoom call here:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/zoom-call-about-spinning-moon-silk-tickets-1249820910989

How much does it cost?

The cost is on a sliding scale, from £550-£650, with the possibility of subsidised and bursary places. The cost includes all meals, land fees, tuition and guidance.

We want this to be accessible to everyone so we encourage you to apply for a bursary or subsidised places if you need it, but to leave these available for others in greater need if you can pay for yourself.

To secure your place please pay a £200 deposit.

For more information please contact Heidi atinfo@circlewise.co 07891062769 or Rebeh at rebehfurze@gmail.com

Practical information

Location: Wild location on Dartmoor National Park

Guides: Heidi Rose and Rebeh Salisbury

You will need to provide your own personal camping gear -a full kit list and directions will be sent when you book.

Circlewise is a service that provides facilitated listening circles, the way of council training and rites of passage ceremonies to community members, organisation's and those working in education. They are committed to supporting individuals, groups and the community by building life skills in communication and empathy through circle practices.

Circlewise offers facilitated circles and ceremonies, support, training and resources to promote:

- Excellence in compassionate communication

- Social, spiritual, emotional, mental well-being

- Empowered and relational learning

- Nature inspired ways of relating

https://www.circlewise.co

For the past 15 years Rebeh Sailsbury has been pursuing a friendship with the river dart and beautiful Devon with her young family. She has an eclectic handful of interests and is a perpetual learner, delving into holistic science, social ecology, permaculture, eco facilitation, mythology, playback theatre, kinesiology and women’s menstrual mentoring and currently studying naturopathic nutrition. All with the intention of supporting the beautiful, fragile and vitally important relationship between the human soul and the phenomenal wild earth for the deeper wellbeing of both. She also assists on WildWises ‘Bringing the Bones’ threshold crossing yearlong training course.

Heidi Rose is a founding director of Circlewise CIC. She has been facilitating the Way of Council listening circles for over 25 years. Heidi is also a qualified Psychospiritual Counsellor, Eco Therapist, and Wilderness Rites of Passage Guide.

Over the years she has brought hundreds of deep listening circles to a variety of settings on many subjects and has a passion and devotion to the power, wisdom and simplicity held in the ancient practice of sitting in a circle, listening and sharing from our hearts.

Heidi's life has been profoundly impacted and informed by her own initiations and so wants to give back by facilitating these initiations through wilderness rites of passage experiences for others.

See more information on Circlewise facilitators here:

https://www.circlewise.co/people