Coming Home to the Land Gathering, Scotland

Coming Home to the Land Gathering

A week of Story, Song, Craft & Sacred Sites as we approach Autumn Equinox

12th – 17th September 2024

Loch Tay, Scotland

We invite you to join us for a gathering of beauty making and weaving of old ways, in the heart of Scotland.

It is very special to come together and gather in ways of beauty in the land—to touch the earth, be present with one another, laugh and cry, weave, craft, and mend, listen to the songs of the stones and the stars, bathe in the waters, and share stories around the fire.

This nourishes and feeds not only ourselves but also the land herself.

This is a heart warming, life inspiring gathering, where dreams are woven into being, & deep beauty feeds the heart & soul as we gather around the fire, share stories, walk, sing, craft, offer & come together within the sacred heart of Scotland…

Including:

Ritual & Shrine Tending
Pilgrimage to Ancient Sites
Ancestral Crafts
Storytelling
Old Lore
Optional traditional Scottish Wecht Drum Making Workshop
Walking journeys through the Sacred Landscape of Glen Lyon:
Schehallion ~ Crystal Mountain
Fortingall Ancient Yew Tree
Simple ceremony & Earth-honoring rituals
Listening with the land practices
Song circles & sound healing
Wild plant foraging & local foods

A wild & magical gathering in the heart of Scotland
Explore Celtic Lands & Culture
Ancestral skills, crafting, weaving, singing, drum making
Walks to sacred & ancient sites
Upon the land, surrounded by lochs, mountains and vast skies

About the teachers:

Peter Ananin & Bethan Bray

* Crafting, Lore, Ancestral Foods, Shrine Tending & Scottish Wecht Drum Making *

Bethan is an artist and craftswoman, specialising in hide tanning, leatherwork and wild pigment painting. She works with the world of ochres with the aim to reconnect with the heart of the Earth, restore deep intimacy with place and translate the primordial voice of animal, soil and stone.

Peter is a traditional tanner, teacher and craftsman focusing primarily on connecting people to our human and natural heritage through working with animal hides and other ancestral materials, as well as exploring Scottish folklore and how it weaves together the practical and the spiritual.

Together they run their small bark tannery from their home in the Highlands of Scotland, where they also run Ancestral Skills Gatherings and courses in Hide Tanning throughout the summer months – reconnecting people to place, and to ancient ways of being and working with the land. Tending to wild shrines is a deep love and ongoing act of devotion for them both, as is making traditional offerings and feeding their hearts and bodies with ancestral nourishment from the land on which they live

Dougie MacKay

* Storytelling, Nature Connection, Culture *

Dougie is a native Highland storyteller with a passion for tracking key aspects of ancestral cultures through mythology, lore and story. A professional storyteller for over 12 years, he has been mentored by some of Scotland’s finest seanachies, seeking modern applications for these timeless tales. His recent show ‘Animate Lands’ allowed a deep dive into the Fianna cycle, gleaning aspects of the older animistic culture once thriving on these islands. It was described as ‘a fresh and joyful take on Celtic lore and Scotland’s landscape’. In his “Myth as Medicine” course, he explores a cycle of northern myths with a group of students, tracking the treasure within each tale and offering exercises to journey with each story and touch the medicine within.

Dougie will be weaving his magic with spoken word, storytelling and culture making.

Lana Lanaia

* Sound Healing, Ritual & Listening with the Land *

Lana was born in England, and lives in the Scottish Highlands. She a singer, healer & weaver of bridges between the ancient & new earth. She has spent much of her life journeying with the wild places and sacred sites of these lands, while also learning ways of healing and remembrance from other indigenous traditions. Lana leads retreats and journeys, and creates ceremonial spaces working with sound and earth wisdom.

Lana will be offering simple rituals, listening with the land, singing with the earth, and tending our community hearth.

✨

“Sometimes the land calls us.

I imagine it has happened to you too.

Maybe through an inner pull, a whisper, or a dream…

This is what happened to me with the lands of Alba, and I’m so grateful that I listened.

Now we are offering another gathering on the land, and spiraling deeper with wisdom carriers from these lands.

Come if you hear the whisper, or feel the pull.” ~ Hanna Leigh

✨

Our Gathering Program (an organic guide!):

We come together as a village for a week, nestled within the land, cooking over the fire, dreaming with the stars

Thursday 12th September:

Led by Lana, Michael, Dougie

Arrival between 5pm -6pm to set up camp & pitch tents

7pm into the evening – Evening fire ceremony, welcome & dinner. Orientation

Friday 13th:

Led by Peter, Bethan, Dougie

Supported by Lana, Michael, kitchen & hearth tenders

Greeting & ritual for arriving and coming home to the land
Meeting each other & exploring ancestral traditions
Growing our roots with stories, lore & song
Butter & cheese making
Weaving beauty & offerings of love

Saturday 14th:

Led by Peter, Bethan, Dougie

Optional Wecht Drum making workshop
Storytelling, old lore, song & ritual
Evening Cèilidh

Sunday 15th:

Led by Peter, Bethan & Dougie

Pilgrimage to the Cailleach shrine

Monday 16th:

Led by Lana & Dougie & hearth tenders

Integration day & listening with the land, stones & stars
Shamanic journeying
Community growing
Evening Cèilidh
Or evening starlight journey to stone circle

Tuesday 17th:

Led by Lana & Dougie

Morning visit to ancient trees and/or stone circles with storytelling & singing the land

Afternoon closing circle.
Mid afternoon pack up & finish by evening (we will all work together to pack up camp!)

Our gathering completes the evening of the 17th around 7pm.

There is the option to camp until the morning of the 18th. Camp needs to be cleared by 10am on the 18th💫✨

Food:

2 – 3 delicious, healthy, organic meals per day ~ grown & harvested in the land, chopped with love, cooked over the fire

As much as possible, produce is from the organic farm where we will be staying

Accommodation:

Camping on site with beautiful views, river and walks

Or arrange your own local accommodation