Plant Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm, x10 Week Online and In-Person Study Group

Description:

☆☆ SOLD OUT - please join the waitlist via the ticket link to be the first informed about the next round starting in January 2025 ☆☆

Join me for a deep dive into this profound body of work by renowned master herbalist, earth poet, bardic naturalist, deep ecologist and prolific award-winning author of 25 books, the late Stephen Harrod Buhner. Stephen was a radical thinker, polymath and synthesiser whose work continues to have a deep and lasting impact on Plant People and Deep Ecologists all over the world.

I have read Plant Intelligence dozens of times (as well as most of his other books) and consider Stephen to be one of my primary teachers on the topics of Plant Medicine, Animist Living Earth Perception, Gaian Systems and Earth Sentience, Deep Ecology, and Eco Soul Poetics. 

According to Stephen, 'Plant Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm' offers a "sophisticated theoretical foundation for contemplative animism." It provides an accessible philosophical framework in combination with simple yet profound exercises to help us open up our perception towards a living, breathing and dreaming earth.

"The world is alive, intelligent, aware, communicative, and filled with soul...we are not alone...we are part of something much larger than ourselves...we are companioned by millions upon millions of related life-forms; and that the dead, mechanical world we have been taught about in school does not exist.... and never has."
~Stephen Harrod Buhner

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Schedule:

*Note, online session times are in AEST until October 5th and then will switch to AEDT after that. Sessions are on Saturday afternoons in Aus, which roughly translates to Sunday mornings in Europe and South Africa, and midnight in the US 

Sept 21st -Intro session (4:00 - 6:00pm): Group intros, Overview of the Course, Agreements and Intro of first Assigned Chapters and Supplement Materials

Sept 28th -Session 1 (4:00- 6:00pm): ch 1-3 The Doors of Perception and Reclaiming the Invisible 

Oct 5th- Session 2 (4:00- 6:00pm) last AEST timezone: ch 4-6 Everything is Alive, Deep Gaia and The Pattern that Connects

Oct 12th  - Break for online classes / in-person workshop for Melbourne-based participants (9-1pm venue TBC)

Oct 19th -Session 3 (4:00- 6:00pm) first AEDT timezone: ch 7-9 Inextricable Intertangling and the Role of Psychotropics in the Ecosystem 

Oct 26th- Session 4 (4:00- 6:00pm): ch 10-12 Golden Threads and the Sea of Meaning 

Nov 2nd- Session 5 (4:00- 6:00pm): ch 13-16 Deep Earth Perception and the Imaginal World 

Nov 9th- Break for online classes / in-person workshop for Melbourne-based participants (1-5pm venue TBC)

Nov 16th -Session 6 (4:00- 6:00pm): Ch 17-19 The Ecological Niche of the Human and Becoming Barbarian 

Nov 23rd- Integration Session (4:00- 6:00pm): Integration, Feedback and Farewells

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Includes:

• x8 live Zoom calls, all 2 hours. Calls will be recorded and made available if you have to miss a class or two. Preference is for majority live attendance.

• x1 pre-recorded intro video and x6 pre-recorded summary presentations of the chapters covered before each live call

• Optional supplemental resources to deepen into the topics that Stephen opens up in Plant Intelligence 

• Home practice invitations

• The live calls will include whole group discussions of the material and home practice, deeper explorations and reflections in breakouts and some live group practice. All live calls will be recorded and shared with participants.

• WhatsApp community chat group for everyone to stay in contact, share reflections and ask questions 

** X2 4 hour, in-person workshops for Melbourne-based participants who purchase the relevant ticket option

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Testimonials:

"We all have those events in our lives that mark a before and an after.

This course was that for me.

Reading Buhner for the first time felt like a remembering rather than a learning, it was relearning. 

Skye is a magnificent facilitator, weaving in poetry, art and all the different modalities she has worked with throughout her journey. She brings in so much depth and experience, all in service of the work, always allowing space for the group to move organically to where the material takes it.

She really lives and breathes this work, it's been inspiring to be learning from her and alongside her. 

I would do this course again and again and again. And so should you."

~ Debi Azubel

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"THIS IS THE BEST COURSE THAT I HAVE EVER COMPLETED IN MY LIFE (and I have completed MANY courses). It gave me the theoretical understanding of who I am and my relationship to the earth as well as the practical experience of how to connect to the more than human world. Through frequent application of the exercises offered in this course, I experienced a deep sense of BELONGING to the land - something that I have been seeking and longing for all of my life. Therefore, if you desire a sense of belonging like I did and want to learn how to communicate with the more than human world, I strongly recommend this course. Additionally, Skye is a highly intelligent, passionate and humble guide - I couldn't choose a better teacher for this journey."

~ Regina Kousal

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"The name 'study group' doesn't do what Skye has put together justice! - It has been sooo much more than that for me. It's been a great opening of awareness & heart. 

A big sense of belonging to something which I have always felt but didn't have the understanding for that I wasn't alone or the vocabulary to describe my experiences. 

I can't thank her enough for seeing the importance in putting this work together, giving us so much material to refer back to, exercises to keep the work alive & a platform to discuss everything that's moving within us."

~ Lou Taylor

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"This work has been a light of deep truth shining through the muddle that is our mixed up world! Creating lasting growth and connections inside and out! 

Calling in like-hearted and brilliant-minded humans to explore and practice with, the community Skye is building around this epic body of work is exceptional!

This "take at your own pace" study group was so beautiful to digest, whether I had an hour just to watch her pre-recorded summaries or days spare to dedicate to reading the chapters and going through the extra resources. Skye invited us into the world of Stephen Harrod Buhner in her engaging videos filtered through her own inspiring mind, in candid and connected ways that bring the subjects covered literally into your life! 

Combined with the invitation to practice developing skills of perception as well as the call to reflect on them.

I cannot imagine a better translator and space holder for this work and all the shifting and opening that it brings."

~ Tanya Hawkes

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"If you've ever wanted to explore a little further beyond the doors of perception and a little deeper into the dreaming of the earth, I can't recommend highly enough the journey with Skye through the study group surrounding plant intelligence and the imaginal realm, the work of the late Stephen Harrod Buhner. 

I must warn you though, if you choose to enter this portal, you will not come out the same on the other side. And this may stir you in ways like never before and may challenge your very ways of perceiving. You even may, if you’re so lucky, find yourself on the wild edge of a new horizon. One made of wonder and felt rather than seen, fresh perspectives. You might even become barbarian in the process!

If you’re considering this journey and would like to deepen your deep-earth perception by following the tingling of a golden thread inviting you in, I say follow that impulse.

Thank you for your beautiful work Skye and for honouring Stephen in such a way."

~ Michael from Today Dreamer Podcast

Tickets:

Concession (online only): $200

Concession (includes in-person workshops): $240

Regular (online only): $300

Regular (includes in-person workshops): $340

Solidarity ticket: $400 (this supports me to meet my needs while also offering more concession and scholarship places for those who need it to access my work)

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%50 off the regular ticket price for repeat attendees

x2 Scholarship spots available, please reach out if feel this should be you

Payment plans available upon request

Giving Back: 

10% of the proceeds will go to the Melbourne Rainforest Action Group (MRAG) and their incredible efforts in supporting Indigenous Grassroots Activists in protecting their territories within mega biodiverse Old-Growth forest in the Ecuadorian Amazon, which is currently under threat from both Australian-owned and Multinational mining companies who are creating open-pit copper mines to supply the new electric car market.

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Refunds: 

A 90% refund is available until 14 days before the start of the event. No refunds are available beyond that time. If I need to cancel this workshop for any reason, 100% refunds will be given.

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Head here to learn more about Skye and her work an Experiential Deep Ecology facilitator, Grief Ritualist, Animist Healing Arts practitioner and Folk Herbalist 💚