Human Growth and Initiations
What is a vision quest?

Also known as nature-based rites of passage or deep nature immersions, vision quests involve growing a person and connecting them with their innate wisdom through marking life transitions.

There are particular points in life when something needs to change and you want to evolve into the next chapter. These ‘identity shifts’ are as natural as life itself; whether from childhood to adulthood, becoming a parent or transitioning through a change of career.

There are also more nuanced changes we go through in a life but no less important; times when it might seem like the hardest thing in the world is to be ourselves. When we ask, Who am I? Really? Aside from what family and society tell me. And how do I get to that place of self-knowledge and confidence where I are able to state without doubt, fear or anger, ‘This is who I am, this is what I believe, this is how I intend to live my life’.

These are all death and rebirth moments within a life; when we die to what is old so that we can open to what is new. What Meredith Little calls, “Standing in the graveyard of the myth of our old lives’.

Nature shows us that these cycles of death and rebirth are inherent to all life, human and more-than-human. With every day each sunset and sunrise signals this to us. These ways of collectively honouring and supporting identity shifts was once the life-blood of our ancestors, considered fundamental for both the health of the individual and community. Ultimately these journeys invite us to live our truth and share our gifts within our communities. They are our offerings for future generations.

In Greek myth there are two types of quest. There’s the kind of heroic quest that you hear about in stories like the Iliad, the siege of Troy, but the second type, which in a way I think many of us go through in the second half of our life, is what they call the ‘Nostos’. Nostos is the quest for home. Odyssey, the ancient Greek epic at essence, is simply someone trying to get home

-Martin Shaw

Keeping Things Current

Each year my co-guides and I come together to ask ourselves, how can we keep our wilderness vigils | nature solos | vision quests relevant to what is happening in the world, so that we can best serve life now. Below you’ll find some of our current emphases.

Trauma Awareness

For many, spending time alone in nature is a new experience. While the idea of several days alone in the "wilds" might sound idyllic to some, it's not unusual for apprehension to surface when considering it.

This is a subject close to my heart, as I've made a long personal journey alongside the fear that arose, and occasionally still does arise, from being alone in nature.

Here at The Art of Rewilding, we're committed to finding creative ways to support you in making this ceremony your own. We honour its traditional form while being open to creatively adapting it for each unique human that comes our way. If you are under the illusion that this is some kind of Bear Grylls military endurance then please let us dispel that. If you have any questions or concerns about how to make the solo time work for you please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Both my vision quest co-guide and I have completed trainings in Identity-orientated Psychotrauma Therapy. This, alongside my background in somatic modalities, gives us experience and skills specifically aimed at supporting participants in developing their capacities for self-regulation and resilience, and finding ways to navigate emotional territories without falling into overwhelm or dissociation.

Embodiment

Some traditional quests emphasise spending a great deal of time sitting in sharing circles. Whilst sharing circles are an important aspect of this ceremony, sitting still for many hours each day can lead to feeling very disconnected from the body and overly rational states of mind. We try our best to avoid sitting in council for lengthy periods of time and prioritise different kinds of embodiment practices, specifically to help connect with the wisdom of the body.

Embodied Animacy.

The principle of animism is a way of perceiving and engaging with a living and animate earth, including all the seen and unseen beings that inhabit it. This alive connection emerges not through abstract thinking but through direct experience - rooted in our direct sensory experience - and a cultivation of reciprocal relationships. This is a participatory way of being, where humans are just one among many expressive participants in the dynamic, interconnected fabric of life.

This way of being demands that we listen—not just with our ears or eyes but with our hearts, our intuition, and our senses. Animism is a deeply, relational way of being in the world, encouraging us to remember that we are not separate from the natural world, but are woven into the fabric of life itself.

Gene Gendlin’s Focusing method, though often seen as a contemporary approach to self-awareness with its origins in psychotherapy and philosophy, carries a similar invitation. On a very simple level Focusing is a somatic practice, where we turn our attention inward, tuning into the subtle, unspoken language of our bodies. It is through this body-based listening that we find clarity and healing, accessing wisdom beyond the reach of the mind alone.

At first glance, these two paths might seem worlds apart—one rooted in ancient spiritual traditions, the other in contemporary therapeutic practice. However, a closer look reveals their shared essence: both call us to a profound, deeper listening to life unfolding within and around us.

Since 2019, I've focused on creating practices that foster embodied relational reciprocity, drawing on the Focusing method and nature connection. I integrate aspects of this work into the preparation stage for our vision quests.

Incorporation

We support individuals to begin integrating their journey before they go home in the final stage of the programme.

Incorporation literally means ‘taking into the body’. I believe any lasting transformation must include a connection and relatedness with our bodies - it’s not possible to just ‘think’ ourselves to change. During this phase we share body-based practices to support grounding and landing your experiences - both within yourselves, and back into your everyday lives.

Long-term support and resources are then made available in the form of 1:2:1 mentoring, circles of correspondence and an online community gathering, ensuring this incorporation period is nurtured after the programme’s end.

Alongside this, both Werner and I offer One 2 One Mentoring and Kinfolk Gatherings for those who have completed previous programmes to come together, to practice and share around each others on-going journeys.

The Vision Quest Will Not Be Psychologised

Vision Quests were never intended as personal development or psychotherapeutic processes; instead, they were meant to serve seventh-generational thinking and the health of the community in the widest sense of that word..

As with most things in life, commercial and corporate "benefit" can begin to merge with specific fields—something we've seen an equivalent of with Mindfulness in the last decade or so. I'm wary of the potential to secularise and "self-development-ise" the vision quest for commercial gain.  

Whilst these processes can be valuable complement to anyone in therapy, my co-guide and I are committed to moving beyond the pervasive influence of psychology and staying true to the mystery of this profound and ancient practice.

Full Quest September 2025 (2 places left)

Full Quest 2026 in Crete - dates now confirmed and registration is open.

We offer a free, no obligation 30 minute call, where you can speak to us about our quests and find out if we are the right guides for you.