Katrin Piepenbreier
“Happiness is your birthright.”
― Yogi Bhajan
Hi,
I am Katrin
I am an international teacher with a background in tantra, somatic integrative trauma therapy, Hatha yoga, Hridaya Meditation, sound healing and marketing & business administration. My deep curiosity to better understand the meaning and purpose of life have led me on an exploration to discover the deeper truths of life, love, spirit, vibration and freedom. I am embarked on this quest in 2016, when I left everything behind. Ever since I can remember, I have been curious, inquisitive and had a passion for embracing the human experience unconditionally. These yearnings have led me to constantly strive to deepen my understanding and embodiment of accepting life as it is, without seeking to negate or transcend any parts of our humanness.
For the majority of my life, I didn't have an intimate or any relationship with my body due to experiences of physical and emotional abuse in my past. My body therefore used to be a lonely house. I was not always home; I was often elsewhere. I didn't want to be in my body, I preferred to be disconnected and numb.
I used to be the rebel, the one that stands out, that always does things differently. It was a silent cry for acknowledgement, recognition and love. Somewhere along the way, my truth and authentic expression got lost in this constant war with myself and with life. Life had become exhausting. Even though I displayed a successful career and a good life according to society's definitions, the voices of modern society had become overwhelming and I felt dead inside. All I was longing for was meaningful relationships, mutual caring and honest interest in one another and a genuine aspiration to help each other go beyond personal limitations. Feeling defeated by the superficiality of my life in an advertising agency and night club, I was just ready to give it all up. I had an intuition that there is more to life, yet to be discovered.
In November 2016 I left my life in Germany behind and took off to Central America for some travels.. Little did I know how much this journey would change the course of my life. Having no meditation experience, I took my first steps of meditation and self inquiry in a community in Costa Rica, nestled in the jungle, away from the busyness of today's world. This was my very starting point to discover meditation coupled with embodiment practices to dive deep into the body and connect with its wisdom to discover the realms of the Heart and Soul. And by arriving slowly in my body and feeling safe in my body, ultimately just feeling safe to feel at all, I discovered my body as a precious temple that holds infinite wisdom. I learned through direct experience that the body is the very part of our being that is always connected to our real nature, to the Divine, the very part that enables spirit to live, to laugh and to dance.
The longing for Truth, unconditional Love and freedom got so strong, that I set myself on an intense quest to slowly and gradually decondition my mind and rewire my belief systems, deeply trusting in the sacredness of life, not knowing where the journey would take me. There was just this silent, yet persistent calling: "All in or nothing, ready to slay all dragons."
Eventually, I spent over 280 days in complete silence and over 98 days in darkness and solitude, celebrated the aid of plant medicine and psychedelics to inquire into the depths of the Heart. This intimacy with the Heart and trust in life has enabled me to also integrate intimacy and pleasure as sacred healing modalities into my life and I am genuinely in love with my body.
Consistent Meditation and embodiment practices have enabled me to see another way and today I prefer to feel all the deep pain and hurt rather than numbing myself to honor the aliveness and preciousness of life itself, the many expressions and faces of love. Physical closeness, true intimacy and being raw and vulnerable, showing myself in my true colors have become my deepest yearning and is a continuous process of unfolding. I share a deep passion for embracing the human experience unconditionally and am constantly deepening my understanding and embodiment of accepting life just as it is, not negating or seeking to transcend parts of our humanness. I genuinely wish for all beings to be free, happy and recognize their Truth.
Through my own journey, the longing to share the teachings and modalities that have helped and supported me was born. And I have therefore been sharing in recent years my modalities with hundreds of students in group programs, by private mentoring and through writing. My offerings are rooted in ancient spiritual traditions and are coupled with somatic embodiment techniques, to bridge meditation techniques & ancient teachings with the needs of the modern body & mind. My teachings will help you to accept yourself where you are and relax into the direct, felt sense of what’s happening in your body, with your thoughts & emotions, and meet your experience without judgment or any goal to achieve. It is a journey of discovering the innate body-based wisdom much needed for modern minds: A bittersweet love story that isn't afraid of the dark. A path of returning back home to your body and remembering it as a temple of infinite wisdom.
My teachings are simple yet potent, accessible and of deep support for those immersed in a busy life, thriving for awakening. My teaching style is loving and joyful, yet fierce to pave the way for those who wish to truly taste the aliveness and richness of life. Key factors in my teachings are found in integrity and artistry. The past years have initiated me into the deep trenches, all the big and little aspects of love through experiences of heartbreak through sudden loss of loved ones due to death, endings of deep love relationships or intense natural disasters and have enabled me to practice the wound of love. Trusting, that the continuous integration of these experiences will gradually open me to even deeper levels of Truth and trust that this will enable me to share from an even deeper level of embodiment and integrity, grounding myself deeper in unconditional love, honoring the impermanence of life.
I am deeply committed to walking the talk and living by the Heart's & Soul's authority, embodying what I teach in my own life and close relationships. I am on a constant quest to find new ways to recognise the radiant love, which I also like to call the deep feminine wisdom, that is alive in each new moment, and how to fearlessly embody that Love in our own unique way.
It is especially important to me to make these practices and teachings accessible & applicable for leaders, innovators, business owners, moms & dads and visionaries with packed schedules.
TRAINING & EXPERIENCE
Completed Trainings:
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500 hrs (750 hr) Meditation & Hatha Yoga Teacher Training (Hridaya Yoga)
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500+ hrs Karma Yoga Immersion Course (three months long intensive immersion to bridge and merge spiritual teachings and principles with daily life, Hridaya Yoga, Mexico)
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365+ hrs Hridaya Hatha Yoga Modules 1-5 (Hridaya Yoga, one month long intensive traditional hatha yoga courses combining asana practice, pranayama, mudras, bandas, and meditation)
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200 hrs Hatha Yoga Teacher Training (Mahadevi Ashram)
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60+ hrs Compassionate Communication (Communication training based on Non-Violent Communication, Hridaya Yoga)
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60+ hrs Somatic Trauma Therapy (The Embody Lab)
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50+ hrs Women's Ayurveda & Tantra Immersion (Vichara Yoga)
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50+ hrs Feminine Wisdom & Authentic Tantra (Maya Luna)
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50+ hrs Shamanic Drumming (Vinod Quetzal)
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40+ hrs Core Healing (four day immersion dedicated to integrative and systemic trauma therapy)
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30+ hrs Dear Lover Training (program on feminine spiritual-sexual practice, David Deida)
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30+ hrs Enlightenment Intensive (three day Immersion dedicated to Self-Inquiry through dyads, Pachamama)
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30+ hrs Sexual Initiatress Training (Tantric Sexuality & Love Making, Arja Hendrikx)
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30+ hrs Conscious Relationship Training (Harville Hendrix)
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30+ hrs Cultivating Compassion (Hridaya Yoga, Mexico)
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20+ hrs Limitless Love (Sacred Intimacy, Relationships as a gateway to the Divine, Sofia Sundari)
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20+ hrs Sound Healing (Carlos Pacheco)
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20+ hrs Level 1: Integral Sound Healing With Tibetan Singing Bowls course (Academy of Sound Healing)
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20+ hrs Level 1: Introduction into integral Sound Healing (Academy of Sound Healing)
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20+ hrs Integral Sound Healing With Rhythm & Drums (Academy of Sound Healing)
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20+ hrs Conscious Relationship Training (Rising Women)
Ongoing initiation into the ancient Tantric teachings of the Mahavidya Ten Wisdom Goddesses (10 year process, started June 2022)
Teaching Experience:
Yoga & Meditation Teacher - Hridaya Yoga since 2018
Silent Meditation Retreat Facilitator - Hridaya Family (San Cristobal, Mexico), The Hermitage (Lake Atitlan, Guatemala), Katrin Piepenbreier since 2021
Karma Yoga Manager - Hridaya Yoga in 2019
Silent Meditation Retreat Manager - Hridaya Family July 2021 - December 2021
Women's Retreat Facilitator - Katrin Piepenbreier, since 2021
Personal Experience:
Over 280 days spent in Silent Meditation Retreats
Over 98 days spent in Kaya Kalpa Retreats (Dark Retreats)
Completed a 49-Day Silent Solitary Pratyabhijna Retreat
Completed a 49-Day Silent Solitary Pratyabhijna Retreat as Kaya Kalpa Retreat (Dark Retreat)
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.”
― Marianne Williamson
What others say…
Kate, 37, Interior Designer, USA
"As a long time meditator, I have gone through periods where the juice was lost from my practice. I met Katrin during one of these periods and it has truly changed the course of my self-understanding in spirituality — and also, in life — many of us live in our heads, mentally fixating on outcomes and desires to the point of exhaustion. Katrin helps her students loosen the grip of the mind, instead directing us towards the wisdom of the body. Through meditations, movements, breathwork and ritual, Katrin has awakened me to the vast intelligence of my physical being.
In addition to her workshops, I’ve also had the pleasure of attending a 10-day silent retreat with Katrin. She brought unique practices and rituals that not only diversified the long days of meditation, but allowed me to go even deeper into the states of conscious I was cultivating on my meditation cushion. Ritual can have major transformational and alchemical effects on a spiritual person — and Katrin is undoubtedly one of my favorite ritual facilitators of all time. With her unpretentious wisdom and nurturing demeanor, Katrin brings creativity to the ritual structure, offering prompts, movements and gorgeous environments to help her students move deeply into the practice.
What I love about Katrin is her desire to empower students to heal themselves. Upon returning to my everyday life back in New York, I have now become more aware of when stress is accumulating in my body. Katrin has given me practices I can do on my own to locate the stress, to shake it off and to come home to my true being, the one that lies beneath the activity caused by the mind."
Nathalie, 46, Thai Yoga Massage Therapist & Yoga Teacher, Switzerland
“Katrin is an amazing teacher! I have spent a beautiful 10 days Silent Retreat with her. She holds the space with so much love, attention and intimacy. I especially loved her somatic classes, felt so safe and free to express myself, to be myself, to let go and express and explore my emotions and body.
Katrin also organised a mindblowing New Years Ritual full of poesy, inner connexion and movement. A several hours ritual with cacao, rose petals, fire and lovely music. My best New Year ever!
She is very professional and her soft and warm voice will help you go on a deeper lever in meditation and connect to your essence. Highly recommend lovely sister Katrin!"
David, 42, Entrepreneur,
Austria
"Over New Years Eve I spent a 10-day silent retreat under the guidance of Katrin and I am so happy and grateful for this experience. When I try to put it into words, I notice that I think to myself: this all sounds too good and superlative to be true. But that's how it was for me.
Katrin teaches not only through methods and formal teachings but through the immediate effect of her presence, grounded connection and clarity. Her methodological portfolio, her richness of knowledge and her accessible and exciting way of teaching is remarkable in itself: a variety of guidance and instructions in meditative experience, yoga styles, mystical poetry, yogic background knowledge meet contemporary and organic approaches like embodiment work and psychological therapeutic understanding.
Katrin embodies what she conveys and teaches and her solidity based on many years of conscientious practice and self-experience is an immediate teaching device. Her language is crystal clear and direct. At the same time she is modest, calm and friendly."
I attended a silent retreat with Katrin. The silent retreat was a wonderful mix of silence, meditation, yoga, embodiment exercises and inputs on all life topics. This offer is unique for me so far. I have attended Vipassana retreats before and I have missed the inclusion of body movement. In addition, the retreat was designed to open the heart. For this we have learned great meditations and practices. Katrin is such a wonderful heartfelt person with a great charisma. She made me feel very comfortable. In addition, she responded to me very individually and picked me up well. Thank you Katrin for this wonderful silent retreat.
Kathi, 30, Psychologist, Germany
