Return to Self: A Spiritual Lifestyle Retreat
With Gurudev Shri Amritji, Nirali Lauren McCrea and Danielle Matthews
August 20 - 23, 2026
Return to Self: A Spiritual Lifestyle Retreat
With Gurudev Shri Amritji, Nirali & Danielle
This retreat is an invitation to immerse yourself in the Integrative Amrit Methods (IAM) and truly experience what it means to live a spiritual lifestyle.
Whether you are curious to explore this ancient wisdom for the first time, have trained with us before and are craving space to simply soak in these teachings again, or just need to step away from the demands of daily life, this retreat offers a supportive environment for you to pause and reconnect with your true Self.
Features
- Morning I AM Yoga® – All levels, meditation-based and energy-infused
- Darshan with Gurudev Shri Amritji — daily discussions on how these ancient teachings offer real peace in modern times
- Teachings and practical exercises for applying eastern wisdom to the challenges of work, family, and daily life
- Hands-on Ayurvedic cooking instruction each evening — learn to prepare satisfying meals that nourish and balance the body
- Restorative evening I AM Yoga Nidra™ or I AM Yoga Therapy™
- Sacred silence, 10pm–10am
This retreat is designed to give you deep restoration so your nervous system can begin to regulate, your mind can loosen its grip on all the managing, fixing, controlling, and doing that life demands, allowing new perspectives, new ways of seeing, and new possibilities to emerge.
“Just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder… when you change, the whole world changes.”
-Gurudev Shri Amritji
This retreat includes interactive lectures with Gurudev, whose presence and perspective, after a lifetime dedicated to this path, will allow you to see, feel, and experience the potential transformation that awaits you.
The Ocala National Forest provides a serene setting where nature will naturally begin to quiet the mind, and the energetic vortex of the Amrit Yoga Institute will begin to open a deeper part of you.
Sacred silence will be observed every evening and into the morning, so you have the space and time to truly listen, go within, and connect with your body and mind on a much deeper level.
The combination of yoga, yoga nidra, insightful teachings, relaxing in nature, Florida’s natural springs, and personal time with a living yoga master creates the potential for a truly life-altering experience.
During these four days, enjoy comfortable accommodations in the heart of forest, vegetarian meals which each evening you’ll help prepare to better understand the principles of Ayurvedic cooking and a sacred space held by the presence and teachings of Gurudev and our highly trained facilitators, Nirali and Danielle.
After a few days truly immersed in the spiritual lifestyle rhythm, you’ll leave with more capacity to handle the challenges of life. More clarity to know what direction to take, and what choices to make. More ease and comfort in your physical body. And, most importantly, the tools and daily practices to bring home with you so this deeper connection to your true Self can continue to unfold.
If you are ready to step out of the momentum of daily life, hit a deep reset, and discover a world within that has been hidden to you, then this retreat is for you.
Benefits:
- Slow down enough to hear yourSelf again.
- Give your nervous system the reset it has been asking for.
- Discover how a quieter mind changes the way you experience life.
- Learn Ayurvedic recipes and lifestyle principles you can use every day to optimize body-mind wellbeing
- Build a daily rhythm and practices you’ll want to continue at home.
Retreat Schedule
Wednesday — Arrival
4:00–6:00pm — Check-in
6:00–7:00pm — Dinner
7:30–8:30pm — Welcome circle & opening
Thursday / Friday / Saturday — Full Days
7:30–9am — Morning sadhana
9:00–10am — Breakfast
Break & End of Sacred Silence
10:30-11:00am Pranayama or Chanting
11:00am–12:00pm — Darshan with Gurudev
12:30–1:30pm — Lunch
Break & Free time (nature walks, natural springs, rest)
2:30–4:30pm — Teachings & practical exercises with Nirali & Danielle
5:00–7:00pm — Ayurvedic cooking instruction & Dinner
7:30–8:30pm — Evening sadhana
10:00pm — Sacred silence begins
Sunday — Departure
7:30–9am — Morning sadhana
9:00–10am — Breakfast
10:15–10:45am — Closing Circle
11:00am–12:00pm — Closing Darshan with Gurudev
12:00–1:00pm — Lunch & check-out
Lead Teachers
Gurudev Shri Amritji is the first disciple to bring the sacred teachings of the Lord Lakulish (Shiva) and Kripalu Lineage to the West in 1960. Gurudev was personally empowered to give shaktipat by his Guru Swami Shri Kripalvanada. In 1970 Gurudev experienced a spontaneous awakening of the Soul Being Presence that I AM. This was reinforced by a three month meditation retreat in silence and seclusion. He emerged as a spiritual master embodying the rare capacity to transmit profound healing and transformative prana Shakti through energetic transmission. He discovered the body is the book of secrets; it is the temple of prana Shakti, and heart is the center of Shiva consciousness. Gurudev is repeatedly honored by prestigious organizations and world-renowned authorities in the East and West. You can learn more about Gurudev Shri Amritji at https://amritji.org He comes from an ancient lineage of energetic transmission and his teachings have ignited the fire…
Learn more about Gurudev Shri Amritji
Nirali began regularly practicing yoga when she was thirteen. She came to the feet of our lineage at the age of fifteen while taking classes from a Kripalu trained yoga teacher, which altered the trajectory of her life in a profound and enduring way. At eighteen, she devoted herself to yoga full-time, and at twenty, she moved to the Amrit Yoga Institute, entering a period of immersive study and professional development that continues to shape her life’s work today. Since 2009, she has trained daily with Gurudev Shri Amritji as one of his most advanced students, cultivating a rare and intimate understanding of the inner dimensions of yoga. She has led seminars throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and India, and in 2021 she was honored as Yogacharya in recognition of her mastery in transmitting the subtle essence of the teachings. As a senior yoga educator, Nirali is known for…
Learn more about Nirali Lauren McCrea
Danielle began practicing Yoga Nidra regularly after a traumatic brain injury pulled her away from the life she once knew and initiated a profound inner awakening. Through daily practice she experienced relief from anxiety and depression and discovered a deep sense of peace within, inspiring her to study the practice more deeply and share it with others. In 2015 she completed both the I AM Yoga Nidra™ Certification and Advanced Certification at the Amrit Yoga Institute and became a regular assistant in these programs. In 2021 she moved to the institute to immerse herself more fully in the teachings of Gurudev Shri Amritji and the Integrative Amrit Method. In 2023 she traveled to Iceland to complete I AM Yoga Therapy™ Certification with Kamini Desai, where she experienced a powerful initiation into the therapeutic impact of this modality. Danielle now offers personalized Yoga Nidra and Yoga Therapy sessions, as well as…
Learn more about Danielle Matthews