Embodied Resistance: Healing Trauma in the Midst of Oppression
A Training with Ashira Darwish in Barcelona
May 11- 15, 2026
Quick Navigation
Event Date:
11/05/2026
to
15/05/2026
Registration End Date:
08/05/2026
Event Location:
Permaculture Barcelona Hub
Event Type:
In Person
Working with Continuous Trauma, Colonisation, and Collective Survival
Some trauma ends.
Some trauma does not.
Across many parts of the world people are living inside continuous trauma. Colonisation, displacement, war, systemic violence. The nervous system never receives the message that the danger has passed.
Traditional therapy was not designed for this reality.
This immersive training explores how healing work must change when trauma is political, intergenerational, and ongoing.
Through embodied practice, neuroscience, spiritual wisdom, and liberation psychology, participants learn how to support individuals and communities living under sustained pressure without pathologizing their survival.
This is not a lecture based training.
It is a body based transmission.
Each day begins with Ashira Active Meditation, a powerful somatic practice that stabilizes the nervous system and restores strength to the spine and breath.
Across five days and four nights we will explore:
• Continuous trauma and the colonised nervous system
• Liberation psychology and internalised oppression
• Intergenerational trauma and ancestral memory
• Ancestors meditation for releasing inherited burden
• Organ transmutation practices for emotional regulation
• Islamic teachings on sabr, niyya, and embodied sumud
• Sufi whirling as nervous system integration
• Neuroscience of chronic threat and hypervigilance
• Practical frameworks for supporting survivors of ongoing violence
Participants will not only learn theory but practice facilitating these tools in real time.
This training is designed for:
– therapists
– healers
– community leaders
– activists
– somatic practitioners
– people working with populations affected by war, displacement, and systemic violence
– anyone seeking deeper understanding of how the body carries history.
Why this training?
The participant group is intentionally small to maintain a safe and regulated environment.
Maximum 18 participants.
What Participants Receive:
– Four days of embodied training
– Daily Ashira Active Meditation practice
– Tools for working with continuous trauma
– Practical somatic facilitation skills
– Optional practitioner certification
– Meals are shared each day to support community integration
– Delicious food prepared by our cooking team from Palestine, Syria and Venezuela
Where
We are thrilled to welcome you to the Permaculture Barcelona Hub located in the Poblenou neighborhood of Barcelona. The Embodied Resistance training will be one of our first. Watch a video about the Hub on the right, and see some early photos of the Hub in the current process of renovation and read more by clicking HERE.
Facilitator - Ashira Darwish
Ashira Darwish is a Palestinian somatic practitioner, educator, and founder of Catharsis Holistic Healing. Her work explores the intersection of trauma, colonization, and embodied liberation, integrating neuroscience informed somatic practices with ancestral wisdom, Islamic teachings, and liberation psychology.
Drawing from decades of activism, storytelling, and healing work across communities affected by war, displacement, and systemic violence, Ashira developed Ashira Active Meditation, a body based practice designed to regulate the nervous system, restore agency, and strengthen the spine and breath under conditions of continuous trauma.
Her approach weaves together somatic movement, intergenerational trauma work, organ-based emotional regulation practices, and spiritual frameworks including sabr, niyya, and embodied sumud.
Ashira teaches internationally, offering training, retreats, and community healing spaces for therapists, activists, and practitioners seeking tools to support individuals and communities living under ongoing political and collective stress.
Ashira was featured prominently in the powerful documentary “Where Olive Trees Weep” (see trailer above and interview along with Dr. Gabor Maté below).
When
May 11 – 15, 2026
Arrival: Monday, May 11 @ 17h CET
Departure: Friday, May 15 @ 11h after a closing breakfast celebration
Fees
We offer a sliding scale for this course, and ask participants to offer what they can pay for this engaging training. Those who can afford to pay more on the higher end of the scale will help those who can only pay less, as well as funding scholarships for Palestinian participants.
The sliding scale recognises the differences in economic reality depending on what country a participant comes from, as well as their individual circumstances, so this is a practical way that people with more resources can act in solidarity.
Solidarity Price – €450
You are welcome to choose this price if you have a low income or are unemployed, receive public assistance, do not have access to funds, etc.
If you are able to offer more for this quality program, please go back and choose one of the other prices.
Standard Price – €650
This price reflects the real cost of running the course. Choose this price if you cannot afford the Supporter or Patron pricing.
Supporter Price – €850
Please choose this price if you are able to afford it.
Patron of the Training – €1,050
By becoming a patron you are supporting opportunities for Palestinian participants and low income students. Thank you!
Payment Plan
You can choose to pay in two installments by paying a €200 deposit now and pay the rest in cash upon arrival to the training.
Note about fees: Accommodation and local public transport costs are separate. We can advise on local accommodation options, or you can organise your own.
Note about food: while we will try to cater to all diets, the Permaculture Barcelona Hub welcomes ethical omnivores and vegetarians, so the meals we share may not be appropriate for strict vegans.
Refund Policy
30+ days before start of training: 75% Refund
15–29 days before start of training: 50% Refund
Less than 14 days before start of training: No Refund