I found this guy when I typed Sweat Lodges into Google UK. I mailed him for information and got this back...
Thanks for your email and your inquiry into the lodges. We have a permanent lodge at Braziers Park, Ipsden Oxfordshire (just north of Reading) and hold a lodge monthly.
Attached is our information sheet, giving some background on ourselves and the sweat lodge. Hopefully it helps in answering most of your questions. Also seperately we will send you an email invitation.
Of course if you need more information or have other questions, please to contact us, we would be happy to assist.
Trust we will have the pleasure of you joining our circle in the near future.
Warmest Regards
Mike & Tilly
Attached was a Word.Doc which is copied below....
Sweat Lodge Leader:
Mike Chirobokow - Na’ To’ Win’ Niso (Sacred Warrior Coming Down) is a pipe carrier and for over 20 years has lived, studied and learned amongst various North American Indian tribes primarily the Cree and the Blackfoot Indians. Connecting and working with the Blackfoot tribe he became the first non-native to become a Sundance leader.
Working With:
Tilly Flynn-Lawson – is a practicing naturopathic therapist specialising in Reiki, Crystals, Dowsing, Essences, Herbalism, Stress Release, Counselling and Meditation and has participated in many lodges.
Introduction:
The sweat lodge is an old traditional native ceremony that is still in practice amongst various North American Indian tribal nations. The practice of sweating has historically been performed amongst many cultures, including in Europe, but the ceremonies and ritual practices have been forgotten and disappeared with time.
Native North American Indians are very modest and do not practice new age sweating (nude). The sweat lodge is similar to a sauna in that there is heat and moisture. That’s where the similarities stop and the uniqueness and the benefits of the lodge begin. An atmosphere is created which is often referred to as ‘being in the womb of Mother Earth’; it is a place of safety, giving, sharing, receiving, releasing, cleansing and healing. Done with ceremony and ritual, it becomes a place where we connect with ourselves, each other and our Earth Mother. Through this contact we come to a better understanding of our place in the universe, our relationship to all things. It is a place of awareness, of re-energizing, of re-focusing and a multitude of other dynamics experienced individually and collectively.
Many North American and Central American Indian tribes have traditionally used the sweat lodge for purification, cleansing and healing of mind, body, emotions and spirit. Spiritual sweating cleanses the mind, body, emotions and spirit, contributing to a healthier individual. Through the use of traditional rituals and forms, it assists the individual in achieving balance and peace within themselves as well as with others and their environment. Those who participate in the sweat lodge find themselves rejuvenated and re-energised coming out feeling whole.
Today many are searching for their roots and trying to find the connections between themselves, each other and the world around them. Knowing that our ancestors once had a special relationship with the earth, we look to find that relationship again, to re-connect. This has led individuals to explore various traditions around the world, with a sharing of knowledge between peoples.
Through a combination of silence, singing, drumming, praying, and sharing from the heart, sweat lodges become the other heart of a community. The sweat lodge experience is a truly holistic experience.
Entering into the lodge with an open mind, the individual is then prepared for cleansing of negative emotions, healing of physical ailments, clearing of mental concerns and releasing of spiritual blockages.
A properly run sweat lodge ceremony held in the traditional ways of the Native North American Indians is when the sweat lodge leader has trained, studied and worked for many years under the guidance of elders/medicine men or women (as in most spiritual traditions there is a training which an individual goes through in order to be qualified). Through ritual and ceremony the sweat lodge leader will guide the participants through different dimensions according to individual needs. No two people are the same, each individual comes into the sweat lodge with a different need or perspective and each will come away with a different experience.
The sweat lodge preparation starts early in the day with smudging (cleansing) and preparing the fire. Participants are encouraged to attend early 10.00 to help with preparations, join in the fire lighting ceremony 11.00 or to be there by 13.00 for greetings and introductions. We enter into the sweat lodge shortly after and finish sometime in the evening.
Lakota elder Black Elk tells us: "The sweat lodge utilizes all powers of the universe: earth, and things that grow from the earth, water, fire and air."
All My Relations
Cost per sweat £35. For booking information and further instructions, please contact:
sweatlodge@mailbox.co.uk
The next dates are Sept 24th and October 22nd, address is Braziers Park, Ipsden, Wallingford, Oxfordshire. The telephone no is 01753 831141
