Letting go in love;
cultivating a relationship with my own death
2026
Course facilitator: Anne Overzee
This course is a path we can choose to walk together now, whatever stage we are at in our lives. We can never know how or when we will die, but many who work with the dying share the view that it can potentially be a time of healing and spiritual transformation. With this possibility in mind, we will practice together, in times of silence and sharing, continuing the journey towards our death which we started at birth.
If we choose to enter the threshold of our own death now, our heart practices and enquiry in this territory may enable us to accompany others with ‘emptier’ hearts, so that more love shines through. And perhaps we ourselves can transition with less fear when it is our own time to die.
A fundamental intention underlying the course is to enable us to familiarise ourselves with our intrinsically open and loving awareness, which if we can drop into more often, can support us living our lives more fully with a deeper sense of joy and peace. There is so much that is unknown to us about our own death, but we can cultivate the capacity to enter and rest in an open state of presence that co-arises with our moment-to-moment everyday experience. And bringing kindness to our current feelings, thoughts and unspoken half-conscious intuitions concerning our own death can enable us to feel and ‘know’ the reality of our own death more intimately. At a subtle level such knowing helps shape our own death awareness, with the possibility of it becoming an inner ‘staff’ to support us as we go forward in our lives.
During the course we will have the opportunity to tend to ourselves and each other with compassion and to listen to what arises and speaks to us on our shared journey. Through this it is hoped that we may more easily discern what we need to go forward with less resistance and a greater sense of freedom at the heart of our experience. A particular focus will be: what does ‘surrendering in love’ mean to me, and how can I practice this so that when my death comes, I have this experience to draw on?
Course format
We shall use meditation, creativity, small and whole group experiential work, reflection themes and ritual to explore our feelings, experiences and understandings of death.
The course is essentially contemplative. Each day will begin and end with meditation, and there will be ‘blessed silence’ from 8.00pm to 8.00am.
A central practice will be to co-create a holding field of heart to sustain us through our individual and shared journeying.
There will be an opportunity during the course to create a ‘lifelong garment’ to wrap around us whenever we go through threshold moments in our lives, and which we could choose to be clothed in after our death.
We have the privilege and gift to be located at Karuna Institute, immersed in the changing seasons and wild beauty of Dartmoor.
Module One: Being on Thresholds of the Unknown
Let this darkness be a bell tower
And you the bell… (Rilke: Sonnets to Orpheus)
In Module One we will have the opportunity to enter the thresholds of our own fragility and mortality, and to call in the potency of love to surround and bless us as we commit to this journey together. We will begin simply through establishing our circle, listening to one another and orienting to our inherent natural state of loving presence, which we could say is our birth and deathright.
Silence will be a key thread running through our days together, and we shall spend time tending to ourselves with heart as we listen to what arises and speaks to us in the moment. Working with the senses, symbolism and wordcraft we will start exploring our experience of the implicate realm together, where life and death can sometimes seem less separate, less ‘either-or’; and where love (bodhicitta) can sometimes surprisingly arise as a felt experience without cause.
Module Two: Dreaming my Dying
In this uncontainable night,
Be the mystery at the crossroads of your senses,
The meaning discovered there… (Rilke: Sonnets to Orpheus)
In Module Two we will explore the dying process, especially drawing on Tibetan Buddhist understandings of the dissolution of the senses and of a ground state of being which can be experienced as non-dual. Using guided visualization and creative activities we will find our own language for these elemental processes and practice a death meditation together. Creative experiential enquiry involving the natural elements will support us, and ritual will be a vehicle for honouring and grounding our exploration of this territory.
Module Three: Moments of Recognition in Life and Death
And if the world has ceased to hear you,
Say to the silent Earth: I flow.
To the rushing water, speak: I am.... (Rilke: Sonnets to Orpheus)
Module Three will provide opportunities for sharing our collective wisdom gathered in our lives so far and on this path, concerning our relationship with our own death. We will look at opportunities we have now in our lives to ‘surrender in love’ to the natural processes of living and dying ‘the little deaths’ we experience throughout our lives. There will be a focus on integration on different levels, including reflecting on what we can draw on to nourish and resource ourselves to bring our hearts even more fully into our work, our world. The deep enquiry we are engaged in here concerning our own death can continue for the rest of our lives if we wish and have what we need to support us.
Who is eligible?
This course is designed both for those who are involved professionally or personally in caring for those at the end of life, and for those who feel drawn to this personal work now, for whatever reason. While many of us are familiar with co-creating circles of compassionate care around others, we are often not so accustomed to wrapping around our own personal enquiries such deep-hearted intentionality and care.
Participants are expected to be familiar with sitting in shared silence and working in groups; and to have a meditation/spiritual practice.
It is a requirement that participants commit to all three modules.
Please note: it is recommended that if you have experienced a recent death or loss (within two years) you consider delaying your start to this course; and if you have any queries about this please contact Anne: sarana@posteo.com
Location: Karuna Dartmoor
Dates 2026:
March 11-15
July 15-19
November 25-29
Timings: The modules will start on Wednesday afternoons and finish on Sundays at lunchtime.
Cost: The cost of the course is £1250 in total, payable as a deposit o £350 followed by 3 instalments of £300. Anne is offering the course for dana (voluntary giving), and details for this will be provided to participants nearer the time.
Please note that in addition, any materials for creating a ‘lifelong garment’ are to be found/purchased by participants themselves.
For enquiries about the course please contact Anne via sarana@posteo.com or for details concerning your stay please contact admin@karunadartmoor.co.uk
This course is in Italy with Italian translation. It is also possible to participate if you are English speaking (although it is also being run in the UK in 2026, see above). If you would like to find out more about the Italian course please contact Anne and she will put you in touch with Satimudita who is organising it. Click here to contact Anne.
Lasciar andare nell’amore;
Coltivare una relazione con la propria morte
15 aprile 2026 - 18 aprile 2027
Un training con Anne Overzee
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Letting go in love; cultivating a relationship with my own death
Course facilitator: Anne Overzee
This course is a contemplative path we can choose to walk together now, wherever we are in our lives. We can never know how or when we will die, but those who work with the dying often share the view that for some it can be a time of healing and spiritual transformation. Bringing compassion to our current feelings, thoughts and unspoken half-conscious intuitions concerning our own death at this point, can help us shape our own death awareness into an inner ‘staff’ to support us as we go forward. In addition, we will explore the existential territory of our mortality through reflection, textual study and collective enquiry. The fundamental intention underlying the course is to enable us to live with a greater sense of joy and aliveness at the heart of our experience, and to die our ‘little deaths’ with more openness to grace.
Sometimes we can only imagine what it might be like to walk alongside those we care for, and our loved ones, with hearts that can open and close appropriately and naturally when faced with the threshold of death. But if we choose to let go and enter the threshold of our own death now, perhaps our practice in this territory can enable this to become possible, so that our hollowed out hearts can let more love shine through.
Module One: Being on Thresholds of the Unknown
Let this darkness be a bell tower
And you the bell… (Rilke: Sonnets to Orpheus)
In Module One we will have the opportunity to enter the thresholds of our own fragility and mortality, and to call in the potency of love to surround and bless us as we commit to this journey together. Silence will be a key thread running through our days together, and we shall spend time tending to ourselves with heart as we listen to what arises and speaks to us in the moment. Working with the senses, symbolism and wordcraft we will explore our experience together of the implicate realm where death and life can be experienced as a non-dual ground state of being.
Module Two: Dreaming my Dying
In this uncontainable night,
Be the mystery at the crossroads of your senses,
The meaning discovered there… (Rilke: Sonnets to Orpheus)
In Module Two we will explore the dying process, especially drawing on Tibetan understandings of the dissolution of the senses. Using guided visualization practices and image work we will open the door of the ‘love-window’, to let the ‘moon’ of our being-nature reveal to us in the present the simple things that matter to us, giving us meaning.
Module Three: Moments of Recognition in Life and Death
And if the world has ceased to hear you,
Say to the silent Earth: I flow.
To the rushing water, speak: I am.... (Rilke: Sonnets to Orpheus)
Module Three will provide opportunities for sharing our collective wisdom gathered in our lives so far, as well as on this path, concerning opportunities to surrender, and to allow the veils protecting our hearts to gently dissolve in love. Is dropping into the transparent immediacy of our present experience enough to enable us to taste deathlessness? We will consider what we draw on to nourish ourselves so that we are resourced enough to bring our hearts more fully into our work, our world. This deep learning can help us continue to cultivate a relationship with our own death, which by now may be felt as our lifelong ‘staff’ and companion.
Who is eligible?
The course is designed especially for those who are involved professionally or personally in caring for those at the end of life, since while many of us are familiar with co-creating circles of compassionate care around others, we are not accustomed to wrapping around ourselves such deep-hearted intentionality and care. In addition, anyone who feels drawn to this territory is welcome to attend and to this end, it is possible to take a module as a one-off in addition to choosing to follow all three modules as a path.
Please note it is recommended that if you have experienced a recent death or loss (within two years) you consider delaying your start to this course. If you have any queries about this or anything else, please contact: segreteria@satimudita.com
Location: The workshops will be held in Northern Italy in the lovely surroundings of Maguzzano Abbey on Lake Garda in Via Maguzzano 4, Lonato (BS) in the following dates:
Dates: 15th of April to Sunday 19th of April 2026; 30th of September to Sunday 4th of October 2026; 14th of April to Sunday 18th of September 2027.
Timings: The modules will start on Wednesday afternoon and finish on Sunday at lunchtime.
Connections: The Abbey is less than 15 minutes’ drive from the train station at Desenzano, where you can get a taxi (approx.15 euros). The closest international airport is Verona (about 35 minutes’ drive) or Bergamo Orio al Sorio (1 hour’s drive).
Cost : The cost of the whole Training is 1470 euros (plus 25 € for the annual registration in the organization). The participation fee for a single module is 590 euros plus 25 € for the annual registration in the organization.
The payment is through Bank transfer to: Associazione Sati Mudita Iban: IT83 E030 6909 6061 0000 0128 339 BIC: BCITITMM Reference: Surname and Name of the Participant – Letting go in love
Or through the following paypal account: segreteria@satimudita.com
The cost for room and board is 80 euros per night in single room with private bathroom or 70 euros. If you would like to apply and have financial issues, or for any application enquiries please contact us at: segreteria@satimudita.com
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Lasciar andare nell’amore
Coltivare una relazione con la propria morte
Questo corso offre un cammino contemplativo che possiamo percorrere insieme, qualunque sia la fase della nostra vita in cui ci troviamo. Anche se non possiamo sapere né come né quando moriremo, chi lavora a stretto contatto con i morenti spesso racconta come quel tempo possa essere ricco di guarigione e trasformazione spirituale. Portare compassione ai nostri attuali sentimenti, pensieri e intuizioni semi-coscienti riguardo alla nostra morte può aiutarci a trasformare la nostra consapevolezza attuale della morte in una fonte di sostegno che ci accompagni nel cammino futuro.
Esploreremo insieme il territorio esistenziale della mortalità attraverso l’esplorazione collettiva e la riflessione con il sostegno di alcuni testi. L’intento fondamentale del corso è di aiutarci a vivere con un senso più profondo di gioia e vitalità, e a morire nelle nostre “piccole morti” con maggiore apertura alla grazia.
Possiamo solo immaginare cosa potrebbe significare camminare accanto a coloro che amiamo con un cuore capace di aprirsi e chiudersi spontaneamente e in modo appropriato, di fronte alla soglia della morte. Ma se scegliamo di lasciar andare e varcare ora la soglia della nostra stessa morte, forse la nostra pratica in questo territorio potrà renderci capaci di farlo davvero, affinché i nostri cuori svuotati possano lasciar trasparire ancora più amore.
Modulo Uno: Sulle Soglie dell’Ignoto
Lascia che questa oscurità sia una torre campanaria
E tu la campana…
(Rilke, Sonetti a Orfeo)In questo primo modulo avremo l’opportunità di entrare nelle soglie della nostra fragilità e mortalità, e di invocare la potenza dell’amore perché ci circondi e ci benedica mentre ci impegniamo in questo viaggio insieme. Il silenzio sarà un filo d’oro durante i nostri giorni insieme, e dedicheremo del tempo a prenderci cura di noi stessi, ascoltando con il cuore ciò che emerge nel momento presente. Lavorando con i sensi, il simbolismo e l’arte della parola, esploreremo insieme l’esperienza del regno implicito dove morte e vita possono essere vissute come uno stato non-duale dell’essere.
Modulo Due: Sognare la Mia Morte
In questa notte incontenibile,
Sii il mistero all’incrocio dei tuoi sensi,
Il significato che lì si rivela…
(Rilke, Sonetti a Orfeo)Nel secondo modulo esploreremo il processo del morire, attingendo in particolare alle comprensioni tibetane sulla dissoluzione dei sensi. Attraverso pratiche guidate di visualizzazione e lavoro con le immagini, apriremo la “finestra dell’amore”, affinché la “luna” del nostro essere ci riveli, nel presente, le cose semplici che per noi contano davvero e che danno significato alla nostra esistenza.
Modulo Tre: Momenti di Riconoscimento nella Vita e nella Morte
E se il mondo ha smesso di ascoltarti,
Di’ alla terra silenziosa: io scorro.
All’acqua che scorre, parla: io sono…
(Rilke, Sonetti a Orfeo)Il terzo modulo offrirà opportunità per condividere la saggezza collettiva maturata nelle nostre vite ed in questo percorso riguardo alla possibilità di entrare nella resa e lasciare che i veli che proteggono il nostro cuore si dissolvano dolcemente nell’amore. È sufficiente lasciarsi cadere nell’immediatezza trasparente dell’esperienza presente per poter gustare l’amortalità? Rifletteremo su ciò che ci nutre, affinché possiamo essere abbastanza sostenuti da portare il nostro cuore con pienezza nel nostro lavoro, nel nostro mondo. Questo apprendimento profondo può aiutarci a continuare a coltivare una relazione con la nostra morte, che a questo punto potrebbe essere sentita come una fonte di sostegno e una compagna lungo tutta la vita.
Chi può partecipare?
Il corso è pensato in particolare per chi si prende cura, professionalmente o personalmente, di persone alla fine della vita. Molti di noi sono abituati a co-creare cerchi di cura compassionevole attorno agli altri, ma raramente impariamo a circondare noi stessi con la stessa intenzionalità e premura profonda. Tuttavia, chiunque si senta attratto da questo territorio è benvenuto. È possibile partecipare anche a un solo modulo, oppure scegliere di seguire l’intero percorso composto da tre moduli.
Nota importante: Se si è vissuto un lutto importante e recente (negli ultimi due anni) si consiglia di posticipare l’inizio del percorso. Per qualsiasi domanda o dubbio, contattare: segreteria@satimudita.com
Date e luogo
Gli incontri si svolgeranno presso l’Abbazia di Maguzzano nelle seguenti date:
- 15 - 19 aprile 2026
- 30 settembre - 4 ottobre 2026
- 14-18 aprile 2027
Inizieranno il pomeriggio del mercoledì e termineranno con il pranzo della domenica.
Quota di partecipazione
La quota di partecipazione è di 1470 euro + tessera associativa per chi partecipa all’intero percorso. Per chi si iscrive a uno o più singoli moduli è prevista una quota di 590 + tessera associativa che dovranno essere versati tramite bonifico bancario a:
Associazione Sati Mudita
Iban IT83 E030 6909 6061 0000 0128 339
Causale: Cognome e Nome del partecipante - Lasciar andare nell’AmoreVitto e alloggio non sono inclusi e sono da pagare in loco (il costo è di 80 euro al giorno a pensione completa in camere singole con il bagno e di 70 euro al giorno in camera doppia con il bagno).
Mentoring support for End-of-Life carers
Anne offers one-to-one support to those working in the field of palliative care. She draws on her experience of working as a Core Process psychotherapist, supervisor and trainer for most of her working life, her commitment to including ‘the mystery’ in whatever she does, and her love of experiential learning using creativity and the natural elements.
End of Life Doula support: Dying with Grace
Anne is an End of Life Doula-in training working as part of a small team of working in South Devon.
For further information visit www.dyingwithgrace.co.uk
Death Cafes
Anne co-facilitates two monthly Death Cafes in Bovey Tracey and Ashburton, as part of Dying with Grace
Bovey Tracey, Devon
11.00am - 12.00pm
May 6 (NB MAY DEATH CAFE HELD AT MAKE SOUTHWEST as part of Bovey Tracey’s Dying Matters week),
June 10
Location: Ullacombe Farm Cafe, Haytor Road, Bovey Tracey TQ13 9LL
Booking is essential on 07717 221504
Ashburton, Devon
We meet monthly on Sundays from 2:15pm to 3:15pm.
Upcoming dates:
May 18,
July 6
Location: Rafikis, 2a, St Lawrence Lane, Ashburton, Newton Abbot TQ13 7DD.
Booking is essential on 07834 978560
You are invited to make a donation towards the cost of the refreshments.
DYING MATTERS WEEK in BOVEY TRACEY
ALL EVENTS FREE!
May 5th-11th 2025
Several wonderful creative workshops for Dying Matters Week (UK) are happening in Bovey Tracey
this year to help us explore death and dying through various creative activities.
These are freely offered in Bovey Tracey, sponsored by Dying with Grace,
through Awards for All funding (visit www.dyingwithgrace.co.uk)
Please see below for further information about each workshop.
VENUE: MAKE Southwest, Riverside Mill, Fore St. Bovey Tracey, TQ13 9AF
THURSDAY 8 MAY
10.00am – 1.00 pm – Creative writing workshop with Jackie Juno
Treasures of the Deep (www.jackie-Juno.com)
FRIDAY 9 MAY
10.00am – 1.00pm – Flat Needle Felting with Yuli Somme
drawing out; exploring meaning and intention through wool fibre (www.bellacouche.com)
BOOKING ESSENTIAL FOR ALL THESE FREE WORKSHOPS (LIMITED PLACES)!
DONATIONS for Dying with Grace (www.dyingwithgrace.co.uk) will be gratefully received
to fund accessible one-to-one End of Life Doula support for people in our community.
ENQUIRIES: please contact Anne on 0771-7221504 or email: sarana@posteo.com
About the workshops:
Creative Writing workshop with Jackie Juno - Treasures of the Deep.
Jackie will share tips and techniques to write about the Big Stuff of life and death, using strong imagery & concrete form, avoiding cliche and predictability.There will be guidance and time to write, and a chance to share work if desired (no obligation).
Jackie Is a multiple poetry slam champion, including the Glastonbury Festival Slam 2017, and 2024 - the only person to have won this competition twice - and Green Gathering Slam 2016 and 2024.
She has been a finalist in many international competitions for her short stories, flash fiction and poetry, including Arvon, Writing Magazine and Mslexia.
She has performed her poetry at two TEDx Talks. She held the title Bard of Exeter 2011-2012 and Grand Bard of Exeter 2012-2019.
She has five poetry collections published, the most recent being Priestess of the Powder Puff Experiment with Burning Eye Books.
She is planning a national tour of her latest multi-media one-woman show Cancer Dancer - My Quirky Quest for a Cure.
Flat Needle Felting workshop with Yuli Somme
-Drawing out; exploring meaning and intention through wool fibre.
The tenderness of wool invites us to touch, to connect and to make. Learning the easy immediacy of flat needle felting we 'draw out' the coloured fibres to explore shapes and symbols that hold meaning.
Yuli has worked with wool all her life. Her father died when she was 5 years old and she found the warmth, smell and texture of her parents' Norwegian hand-knitted garments comforting, often enveloping herself within their folds.
This feeling has been with her ever since and she has taken much of her inspiration from the traditions of her Norwegian roots.
She trained and worked as a dyer and weaver, switching to felt making in 1987. Over the last 25 years she has found herself working in the funeral sector, developing an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional coffins, called the Leafcocoon.
The thickness and layers of felt cocoons the body, perhaps a legacy of the comfort she found in wool in her childhood.
Her Chagford workshop is where she makes the Leafcocoons, working either direct with the bereaved or through funeral directors.
The covers for the Leafcocoons can be decorated using simple needle felting techniques and her workshops are run from her beautiful Chagford studio.
Bellacouche Ltd. (www.bellacouche.com) Tel: 01647 433929 Mob: 07763 935897
Imagining and painting workshop with Anne Overzee - Painting our way home
Anne will guide us through a visualization focusing on where we are now in our lives and moving forwards through time to include approaching the time of our death. The intention is to imagine the journey in terms of what we would most value and enjoy in our life now and going forward.
Painting then becomes a vehicle for expressing this imagined journey – or what arises in the moment when the paintbrush is picked up, using colour and shapes as experimental tools to support this creative process.
Anne works as a death doula locally as part of the small team, Dying with Grace. She has previously worked for many years with individual clients and groups exploring key thresholds in life on the interface between the spiritual and the psychological. She always seeks to use creative and elemental materials for what she sees as a mutual journey of discovery and learning and also brings this into any retreats and practice-led offerings she makes in-person and also online.
email: sarana@posteo.com tel. 07717221504
End of Life Choices: What do I want? (2024)
Facilitated by Sarah Parker and Anne Overzee
A series of 3 End of Life Planning workshops in Bovey Tracey. The first one is an introduction to the topic, and will be followed by a deeper look at the choices available for end of life in sessions 2 and 3. We will cover topics such a lasting power of attorney, personal wishes for end of life and funeral choices.
