The practitioner fully agrees to and respects, in their entirety, the following conditions for the use of the cabin for a dark retreat.
Basic rules for a dark retreat
1. I am of legal age and have full legal capacity, nothing prevents me from staying in the dark in a garden cabin without windows, and I have decided on my dark retreat voluntarily, of my own free will.
2. All the information I have provided is true.
3. I do not suffer from any form of mental illness, such as claustrophobia, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or others, that would prevent me from staying in the dark.
If I have ever suffered from such an illness, I am enclosing a certificate from my attending doctor confirming that I may undertake a dark retreat.
4. I do not suffer from any illness, nor am I being treated with any medication, that would prevent me from staying in the dark.
5. I have studied the website www.lecba-tmou.cz and I am familiar with the details of a dark retreat through the website and/or through a personal conversation.
6. I know that a dark retreat takes place in complete darkness. I decide when my dark retreat begins by switching off the light, and I can switch the light back on or leave the garden cabin at any time.
7. I undertake to end my dark retreat immediately should any mental, psychological or physical problems arise, or for any other reason that calls for the dark retreat to be ended.
8. I am not under the influence of narcotic or psychotropic substances, and I undertake not to take any before the stay, during the rental period, or immediately after it ends.
9. I understand that ending my stay early does not entitle me to a refund of the voluntary contribution, not even a proportional part of it.
10. I agree that I bear 100% responsibility for my conduct and my dark retreat, and that no claims for compensation, whether moral or financial, may be made against the Guide for any damage to items I bring in or leave behind, or for any consequences or harm, whether physical or psychological, that may arise from my voluntary stay in the dark in the garden cabin.
11. I understand that my dark retreat date is confirmed only once the deposit has been paid.
Cancellation rules for dark retreats
We aim for the most balanced relationship possible between you, the practitioners, and us, the guides, in the sense that when someone books a dark retreat, they also turn up and don’t block the place for others.
Sometimes situations arise where you cannot come to a dark retreat for which you have paid a deposit or which was booked with a gift voucher.
Although we try to deal with each such situation individually, please understand that there are far more practitioners in need who want to go into the dark than there are cabins for them.
If you cannot come, please let us know as soon as possible. We always offer the date to others, and if it is taken, you can choose another, later date, or we will refund the money you have already paid.
Please understand that if you are due to arrive on Saturday at 4 pm and you write to us at noon saying you have started a new job, can’t come and want the booking fee back, the cabin stays empty 🙁
So rather than letting the booking fee or gift voucher lapse, we ask you to deal with being unable to come as early as possible, so that the cabin can be filled, and we will agree on moving the date or refunding your money.
Payment and cancellation terms:
A date is firmly booked once the full amount per person and week has been paid within a week of booking, or at least the deposit has been paid to our account using the payment details we send you by email.
The balance of the full amount must be sent to our account no later than 30 days before the start of the dark retreat.
The balance can be paid through a monthly instalment plan; the first payment usually follows by the end of the month in which the dark retreat took place.
If we do not receive the instalment plan or the balance in our account at least 30 days before the start of the stay in the dark, we pass the date on to others in need and the deposit already paid is forfeited.
Thank you for your understanding, and we wish you a pleasant dark retreat
Operators of the dark retreats:
Světlo ve tmě s.r.o.
Lomec 61, 28601 Úmonín – pošta Čáslav, IČ: 05955891
File number: C 273699, kept at the Municipal Court in Prague
Člověk ve tmě s.r.o.
Chudenická 1059/30, Hostivař, 102 00 Praha 10, IČ: 21298823
File number: C 399717, kept at the Municipal Court in Prague
Světlo a tma s.r.o.
Příkop 843/4, Zábrdovice, 602 00 Brno, IČ: 21298611
File number: C 138289, kept at the Regional Court in Brno
info@lecba-tmou.cz
+420 608 08 33 33, +420 774 444 477
!!! Please note !!!
A dark retreat is purely and simply a stay in the dark, nothing more, nothing less. The phrases “léčba tmou” (healing by darkness) and “darkness therapy” are established terms both in the Czech Republic and abroad. “Darkness therapy” is used, for example, by the University of Ostrava, which carried out research into dark retreats with us. In other languages you may come across terms such as Chamber REST, Dark retreat, Dunkeltherapie, or Léčba tmou as a translation of the Tibetan word for the Buddhist practice of a dark retreat, “yangtik”, or in Holger Kalweit’s book Dunkeltherapie, which uses the words “healing by darkness”.
It is therefore not a treatment method or therapy in the medical sense. We do not operate a medical facility, nor do we provide therapy; we only run dark retreats. If you are not sure whether you should undertake a dark retreat, always consult your doctor!