Intention Obsession: Seasonal Self-Care Rituals for Burnt-Out Witches

This spiritual retreat at Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, is a weekend of relaxed witchcraft, simple ceremony and seasonal self-care, made for people who feel worn down and want their spiritual practice to be easeful, even whimsical. Professional witch and author Erica Feldmann and spell specialist Paige Curtin of Salem's HausWitch Home + Healing lead the weekend, drawing on the ideas in Feldmann's book Intention Obsession: Rituals and Witchcraft for Every Season.

What to Expect

The retreat holds that spirituality does not have to be serious or hard. Using the tools of witchcraft, you build a foundation of personal energetic awareness and a connection to the divine, inside and out, while examining the limiting beliefs and false narratives that keep you from your potential. The aim is to meet difficult subjects with purpose and strength, and to move through the darkest months of the year feeling more empowered.

Over the weekend you will:

- Take part in guided psychic meditations
- Build seasonal altars
- Learn magical correspondences and connections to the natural world
- Work with the elements in spellwork
- Use divinatory tools to navigate everyday life
- Look at manifestation through the lens of universal co-creation
- Try simple hands-on witch-crafting
- Explore astrological archetypes
- Connect with ancestors and spirit guides through devotional offerings

The topics range from winter wellness to community engagement.

The schedule follows the Kripalu rhythm. Opening day begins with check-in at 2:00 pm, a Kripalu Yoga class from 4:45 to 6:00, dinner, and a first program session from 7:30 to 9:00 in the evening. Full days start with yoga from 6:30 to 7:45 am and a silent breakfast, followed by program sessions from 9:00 to 11:30 am and 1:30 to 4:00 pm, with lunch between them. Another yoga class and dinner close each day. On the final day, the morning yoga, silent breakfast and morning session run as usual, and lunch and departure follow at 11:30. Actual times may vary, and the schedule given at check-in has the room locations.

About Erica Feldmann

Erica Feldmann is a professional witch and the author of Intention Obsession: Rituals and Witchcraft for Every Season, the recommended reading for this retreat.

About Paige Curtin

Paige Curtin is a spell specialist at HausWitch Home + Healing in Salem, Massachusetts.

The Setting

Kripalu is a yoga and health center in Stockbridge, in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. Its accommodations are intentionally simple, designed to help you unplug and feel grounded. You can choose a private room for solitude or a shared, community-style dormitory room for connection with other participants. Rooms are ready by 4:00 pm, and a Luggage Room is available for your bags until then. Check-out on the last day is at 10:00 am, though you may stay on campus and take part in workshops until 2:00 pm.

Three nutritious meals are served each day, with breakfast taken in silence, and the grounds are open to guests throughout your stay.

Before You Go

No prior experience with witchcraft, spellwork or yoga is required. The retreat welcomes newcomers as well as those with an established practice, offering foundational instruction alongside deeper exploration. It is taught in English.

Included are all program sessions with Erica Feldmann and Paige Curtin, more than ten yoga classes a day, three meals daily, and access to the Kripalu grounds and facilities. Accommodation is chosen separately. Healing Arts sessions and items from the Kripalu Shop and Cafe are available for purchase and are not included.