Instants, the Relais & Châteaux Magazine

Instants, the Relais & Châteaux Magazine

Inspirational magazine about travel, taste and the commitments of the Relais & Châteaux association, bilingual and free. It offers a variety of articles with points of view from journalists, illustrators and digital influencers.

  1. 40 Days & 40 Nights - #42: Day 40 - "Searching for the Spirit of the Great Heart"

    05/13/2020

    40 Days & 40 Nights - #42: Day 40 - "Searching for the Spirit of the Great Heart"

    Why has the mystic and the natural world been intertwined with symbolic meaning and the path of awakening to a different way of perceiving life since the beginning of human experience? From the 1st of April 2020, Boyd Varty from Londolozi Game Reserve in South Africa realizes a life long dream as he goes into the wilderness alone for 40 days and 40 nights to try and answer that question from inside that experience. - Episode 42: Day 40 "Searching for the Spirit of the Great Heart" And then all of sudden we were there. The face of the people I love. Saying goodbye with immense gratitude to the tree and this beautiful place on the river. The last dawn from inside this experience on the river. I know this is not the end but the beginning. You will be hearing from me. There is so much life for us all to live. I’m not going to try and summarize of sign off well. I have said what I need to say. I will leave you with an anthem by the late great South Africa Johnny Clegg. Volume up, listen to the words: The world is full of strange behavior Every man has to be his own savior I know I can make it on my own if I try But I'm searching for a great heart to stand me by Underneath the African sky A great heart to stand me by I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart To hold and keep me by I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart Under African sky Sometimes I feel that you really know me Sometimes there's so much you can show me There's a highway of stars across the heavens There's whispering song of the wind in the grass There's the rolling thunder across the savanna A hope and dream at the edge of the sky And your life is a story like the wind Your life is a story like the wind I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart To hold and stand me by I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart Under African sky I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart I see the fire in your eyes I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart That beats my name inside Sometimes I feel that you really know me Sometimes there's so much you can show me I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart (Guka 'mzimba, sala 'nhliziyo) I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart (Guka 'mzimba, sala 'nhliziyo) I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart To hold and stand me by I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart Under African sky I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart (Guka 'mzimba, sala 'nhliziyo) I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart (Guka 'mzimba, sala 'nhliziyo) I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart (Guka 'mzimba, sala 'nhliziyo) I'm searching for the spirit of the great heart. Songwriters: Jonathan Paul Clegg Great Heart lyrics © Rhythm Safari Pty Ltd https://www.johnnyclegg.com

    7 min
  2. 40 Days & 40 Nights - #41: Day 39 - "Reflection"

    05/13/2020

    40 Days & 40 Nights - #41: Day 39 - "Reflection"

    Why has the mystic and the natural world been intertwined with symbolic meaning and the path of awakening to a different way of perceiving life since the beginning of human experience? From the 1st of April 2020, Boyd Varty from Londolozi Game Reserve in South Africa realizes a life long dream as he goes into the wilderness alone for 40 days and 40 nights to try and answer that question from inside that experience. - Episode 41: Day 39 "Reflection" A ceremony is a place to remember to remember. As I walk through my last 39 days I have a lot to reflect on. I remember the resistance that arose before leaving home. I remember the anxiety of the first few days when six weeks seemed like an eternity. I must remember to sit with anxiety with compassion. I remember the feeling of a shell being taken off after one week. How do I work with this after I return back? Optimization for me comes out of consistency. I must remember to sometimes just start. All through the day I intend to reflect on all these moments. In my experience re-entry is its own journey and art form. You have to remember that in change processes we spiral forward. We sometimes go back but on a different rung on the spiral. The key is to notice yourself, watch yourself and pay attention without judgement. That will create the awareness to shift from. Our inner world shapes our outer world. Imagination, creativity, enchantment, tracking, storytelling and pattern interruption. Nature is the deepest teacher. The gratitude I feel for the land here is impossible to put into words. Beauty to the point where I feel overwhelmed. Elephants, rhinos, leopards, starry skies, storms. I will miss the elephants mid-morning arrival at the river. And of course the tree is a love story all of its own. I have been a part of its ecosystem all on my own. This tree has taught me so much. It has been the host of one of the most transformational experiences of my life. In native cultures everything is alive, it is a being and I understand that now. This tree has been a true friend and will continue to be. In gratitude I also turn to all of you who came along for the ride and sent me notes of support. To be able to do this alone and with you was perfect. We are all connected. We know why we are here. To learn to heal to bring back the new old ways. To have fun and reach out and not let it all be too serious and to remember what living actually is. What if what we made here is the real world. The most natural scape is the real world. Its just a deep sense of the sacred which makes me reflective. Jesus is often depicted with his eyes open. Buddha is often shown with his eyes closed. In truth we need contemplation in action. No enlightenment has any power unless it is lived. I am also full of a very simple desire to do the best work I can do towards the transformation of consciousness. Today I am going to run as far as I can. Slowly relishing the feeling of the land under me. I am going to swim in the river and sit by the fire. There is a time to reflect on our reflections and PS its probably good I’m close to the end as I have a tooth that is killing me. I guess the lasting question is that in a matter of time, all of our lives will go back to normal. What do we want that normal to be? The treehouse is like a nest, my books tarpaulin, clothes and yoga mat is all around me. It’s quiet in the way of nature where the sounds make the silence rather than break it. Covid has been so hard for so many people but it also gave me a glimpse back in time. This reserve has been an empty Eden and I am Adam. What will it mean in 30 years to have lived with wild animals? Will it all be gone or will be wake up? Would you find it very hard to understand if I said that I’m learning to be at peace with both? Wherever we land, it will be there.

    12 min
  3. 40 Days & 40 Nights - #40: Day 38 - "Push"

    05/13/2020

    40 Days & 40 Nights - #40: Day 38 - "Push"

    Why has the mystic and the natural world been intertwined with symbolic meaning and the path of awakening to a different way of perceiving life since the beginning of human experience? From the 1st of April 2020, Boyd Varty from Londolozi Game Reserve in South Africa realizes a life long dream as he goes into the wilderness alone for 40 days and 40 nights to try and answer that question from inside that experience. - Episode 40: Day 38 "Push" If you think 6 weeks is long you should try two days. The moon rises here have been truly epic. Last night as it rose a small pearl spotted owl was perched on a Marula tree silhouetted for a moment. An astounding truth that the moon controls the tides and fertility in its cycle. The night was so bright I didn’t even need a torch. You know you are so hungry when everything looks like food. A huge pancake, a wheel of French cheese and a ripe peach. It’s not that I’m tired but rather how you would feel at the end of a long experience. It’s a head space. I really want to shower, I really want to talk to my friends. Drink pints at the taps and get cut mercilessly before they turn on each other. It’s the things that play on your mind like warm anticipation. You can’t do that early on as it would just derail your whole sense of presence. It makes me think of Renias and how any tracker worth his salt is just wired this way. On a prior retreat the tracks had been tricky but were fresh. Part of the art of guiding is being able to read where people are and know where to push and when to let them go. Renias, however couldn’t leave the tracks. It offended something in his nature to let the lion tracks go. A few days ago I left the trail of the lion when the sun climbed high in the sky and the light grew flat and white. I needed to go back on the track and be certain the trail was lost over the border which it was. Courage is knowing when the hold on and knowing when to let go. I need to be here all the way until the end.

    10 min

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Inspirational magazine about travel, taste and the commitments of the Relais & Châteaux association, bilingual and free. It offers a variety of articles with points of view from journalists, illustrators and digital influencers.