A list of the 42 Sauerland-Seelenorte

WARMING UP

Start with a short exercise to open your senses. This will help you to refine your perception: if you are walking, walk in silence for the last 10 to 15 minutes until you reach your destination. Try to concentrate on one of your senses at a time: Listen for a while to what surrounds you. Listen to the crackling of a dry leaf as you rub it against your ear. Is there something to taste? Perhaps you can pick a wild berry and let it slowly melt in your mouth? What does the snow by the wayside taste like? The water of the spring? Take in the place with your eyes. Enjoy the different colors and shapes, the small and the large, the far and the near. Feel the sun or the rain on your skin, the wind in your hair... Feel your feet touch the ground - perhaps you would like to walk barefoot again? Smell your surroundings. What scents and smells can you detect? If you are traveling by car or public transport, find a sheltered spot in the immediate vicinity. You can also do this little exercise standing up. A tip: Our senses need to be enticed. Give yourself some time to do this. Be patient.

EXTEND

Look for a branch, a gully or the edge of a path.
With a conscious step over this 'threshold' you enter a new space of perception. Now let yourself drift - without speaking. Follow your feelings. What attracts you? Where do you want to keep your distance? Do what you might not normally do: Spread out on the forest floor, put your ear to a tree, take on an unfamiliar perspective in a church. Use all your senses to take in what surrounds you. Sensitively perceive your surroundings like a radar. Gather what this place has in store for you with curiosity and without preconceptions. Do not
nothing! Extend your 'antennae' and get in touch with what you see. What effect does it have on you? Observe your thoughts. Does your mood perhaps change? Is something stirring in your body? After a while (about 15 minutes), go back to the threshold you have chosen, cross it and consciously leave this special space of perception.

REVIEW

Round off the experience with a short period of silence.
Alone with yourself or together with others: At the end, take some time to become aware of what this place has moved in you. Which images, associations or stories have come to life, which strings inside you have begun to vibrate? Do your thoughts, feelings or physical sensations have a common theme? And finally: How are you feeling now? Did the time do you good? Has the encounter with this place inspired you? Have you become calm inside? Have you found answers? Or have you come across a question that takes you further?
Trust your perception and give it meaning. It helps to summarize what you have experienced: with a small diary note, a postcard that you send to yourself or a picture. If you are traveling in a small group, it is worth compiling your experiences. You will be amazed at how different perceptions come together to form a whole. The quality of a place is reflected in this. Sometimes bright and clear, sometimes as a glimmer or a flash. And on your next visit, you may discover a completely different quality of this place of the soul.