Samasati Sanctuary is a retreat center just outside of Asheville that is owned and stewarded by us as a couple.
“We have long had a vision of creating a sacred space where people can come to return Home to themselves and remember the sacred within. When we found the land here, we knew that Life wanted this too. It is our great honor to share this beautiful “peace” of paradise.”
~ Rajyo and Vinit Allen
OUR MISSION
To provide a beautiful venue for retreats and events that inspire a deep sense of connection with one’s soul, with community, and with nature.
About Samasati Sanctuary
RAJYO ALLEN,
CO-DIRECTOR
Rajyo Allen is a spiritual leader and soul mentor with extensive experience as both a student and teacher in the psycho-spiritual realm. Her diverse background allows her to offer a rich blend of tools that facilitate uniquely transformative experiences. Rajyo is a published author, trauma healer, somatic therapist, and a seasoned yoga and meditation teacher. Over the past 3 decades, she has led retreats, workshops, and leadership trainings internationally.
Rajyo created and co-directed two pioneering organizations: CelebrationofBeing.com in the UK and CorExperience.com in the US. Her work, known as the Alchemy of Awakening, is designed to help individuals awaken to a deeper sense of Soulfulness and spiritual maturity, which is particularly vital during these transformative times in history.
Her deepest passion lies in helping people lead more embodied, heart-centered, and authentic lives while reintegrating a sense of the Sacred into the modern world. Rajyo offers a range of events and retreats for both individuals and groups, aiming to facilitate profound healing and spiritual growth.
For more details on Rajyo’s offerings, please visit www.alchemyofawakening.net.
VINIT ALLEN
CO-DIRECTOR
Vinit is passionate about nature and the arts. He is a musician and singer, and can often be found hiking or running on a trail in the mountains.
He is a co-founder of Planet Earth Arts, with the mission of using the arts to inspire the transformative change needed for social equity and environmental restoration: planeteartharts.org
He was Executive Director for 15 years of Sustainable World Coalition, a sustainability education nonprofit organization in California. Their flagship summary publication is the Sustainable World Sourcebook. They produced four years of the Spring of Sustainability interview series with the Shift Network, producing hundreds of podcasts with luminaries that included Van Jones, Joanna Macy, John Robbins, Bill McKibben, Vandana Shiva, and many others.
His vision for Samasati Sanctuary is that it be a transformative field where people can come back home to themselves and activate their highest potential, and he’s thrilled that this is what it has become.
MICHAEL SIGMANN,
OPERATIONS MANAGER
Michael Sigmann’s work in the field of personal growth and mindfulness began in the aftermath of the AIDS crisis in San Francisco, where he founded the Men’s Inner Journey, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the spiritual health and well-being of gay men. Since then, he has traversed the nation, delivering talks and facilitating workshops and retreats for members of the LGBTQ community. His educational pursuits include Fine Art at the Center for Creative Studies in Detroit, Philosophy, Cosmology & Consciousness at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco, Individual & Group Facilitation at the Inner Journey Seminars in Marin County, and Self-Realization at the Oneness University in Andhra Pradesh, India.
When Michael came to Asheville in 2023, he was immediately drawn to land at Samasati, which is where he spends most of his time gardening. Michael is also part of the Direct Care Team at the Center for Conscious Living and Dying where he is in training to become a Death Doula.
SHANNON WARD
GUEST RELATIONS
Shannon Ward is a state-licensed massage therapist, reiki master, and vocal/sound healer who has mixed her creative and healing modalities for over 25 years to produce and co-facilitate workshops that offer a safe space for people to remember who they are and connect and integrate their authentic self-expression and well-being.
She has been an interdisciplinary artist throughout her life. She went to university on a musical theater scholarship and began her professional journey on stage in musicals, television, and industrial film as well as voicing several animated characters for a Sony Video game. She is also a singer/songwriter and has been part of the performance/co-facilitation team for the Breakthrough Workshop for the past 21 years. As the creator of Fiercely Peaceful, her mission is to create and play in curious, intentional, and inclusive communities that focus on service through healing /creative collaborations in music, art, and events to promote and integrate social equity, transformation, and joy.
She has lived in California since 91’, but was drawn to Asheville and landed at Samasati in February with an immediate sense of connection to the collaborative familial community that Rajyo, Vinit, and the land itself offer. She is now part of the team and as holder of the Guest Relations position, Shannon has the privilege of adding her offerings and service to the experience of this extraordinary community.
“The deep care and consciousness that Rajyo, Vinit, and the staff at Samasati is the reason we had such a successful retreat. Feeling the love infused into every aspect of the home and land really lifted us up so that we could all go deeper. I can’t wait to come back again to this sacred sanctuary.
— Leesie Mapps, Twin Flames process facilitator