Welcome.

What leads you to the secret in your heartis the power of your breath.

Since 2018, we've hosted breath seminars, camps and retreats across Türkiye.

We bring Anatolia's breath tradition into conversation with science. If you'd like to pause and hear your breath, our door is open.

Upcoming gatherings Where do I start?

Next gathering: Awakening Camp, Tarsus, 23‑25 October →

Two women breathing with eyes closed and hands on their chests on a sunny porch, a man behind them with palms together

Inhale 4 sExhale 6 s

A breath school with an open door

We are Kudret-i Nefes Akademisi, born in 2017 from an autumn conversation in Alaçam, Samsun. We bring together Anatolia's breath tradition, the heritage of Sufism and folk wisdom, and modern science. We practise breathing together in seminars, camps and retreats.

In nature, the title before your name loses its meaning, and so does your career.

From the academy's “Who We Are” text

A group of women smiling with arms raised on the terrace of a wooden house

A chalkboard on a wall: 16.04.2019, welcome to our garden of the heart, with the day's programme — Burcu Gönül Bahçem farm, 16 April 2019

2017

Founded

Cities we have gathered in

352

Pages in our book

Founding teachers

Knowledge of tradition

Together we explore the ancient knowledge of these lands, woven from breath, self and heart.

What it means here

We talk about the bond between breath (nefes) and self (nefs) in Sufism, and the stages of the self.
We reflect on the Hâcegân principle of hûş der dem: staying awake in every breath.
Through Baksı Dance we follow a tradition that reaches from Central Asia to Anatolia.

Gold and navy illuminated medallion on cream paper, with rumi and hatayi motifs

İlim

Knowledge of tradition

Together we explore the ancient knowledge of these lands, woven from breath, self and heart.

What it means here

We talk about the bond between breath (nefes) and self (nefs) in Sufism, and the stages of the self.
We reflect on the Hâcegân principle of hûş der dem: staying awake in every breath.
Through Baksı Dance we follow a tradition that reaches from Central Asia to Anatolia.

Bilim

Science

We don't settle for what we hear about breath; together we observe what happens in the body.

What it means here

We learn how air travels from the nose to the lungs, and how oxygen passes from the alveoli into the blood.
We place a hand below the ribs and feel the body move as we breathe in.
Rather than taking anything on trust, we look at the source and make our own observations.

Gönül

Heart

We carry what we learn into life, meeting ourselves and each other with more care and sincerity.

What it means here

We begin the day with eyes closed, asking ourselves: how am I, really?
In the circle we listen without judgement and make room for each other's feelings.
At breakfast, in breaks, conversations and games, we share the same table.

A smiling teacher in front of a slide that reads “It began with a breath: birth, life, death”

Side view of the diaphragm and lung, watercolour atlas plate — The diaphragm: as you breathe in, its dome lowers and the lungs fill.

A smiling group posing together on the grass in a garden with palm trees

What does a day with us look like?

Alongside the breathwork, there is time for conversation, breaks and simple moments together.

01 / 06

A welcome table

On the first day we welcome each other and the space with the “Welcome: Table of Knowledge, Science and Heart.”

Participants sitting in a circle on cushions in a carpeted room

How are you, really?

With your eyes closed, you ask yourself how you are right now; at the end of the day we return to the same question.

A teacher speaking to participants sitting in a circle in a wooden hall with large windows

One breath

In through the nose for four seconds, out through the mouth for six: three rounds, together.

InOut

A woman on a sunny porch breathing with arms open and head tilted back

Good morning

Each morning we greet the day together with “72 Breaths.”

Participants stretching on mats in a wooden hall overlooking a forest

Breath session

You put on an eye mask, keep your water close, lie on your back and join a Kudret-i Nefes session.

A teacher speaking in a wooden hall with a round window and forest views

Table and circle

After breakfast, breaks, conversation and games, we close the day hand in hand in the Circle of Unity.

A large group laughing together on a wooden bench outdoors

6 November 2017

A two-storey farmhouse with an arched doorway and a wooden veranda among palm trees

Two cats and a white dog resting on the farm path

A cushioned sitting corner under a wooden attic roof

A wooden sign on a tree: Nurhan Annemin Aşk Ormanı (My Mother Nurhan's Forest of Love)

The first day of the garden

Our story began on 6 November 2017 with five friends and an autumn conversation. Over warm soup and chestnuts in a summer house in Yakakent, Alaçam, we shared a dream: a farm with cats and dogs playing in the garden. The next morning, at the end of a tree-lined village road, we reached a huge garden gate. It seemed to say “welcome”, and the moment it opened, Pamuk, the farm dog, came to greet us.

Read the rest of the story →

Where should I start?

We begin with Seminar A, open to everyone and lasting three to four days. Seminars B and C follow, and after them you can join the Nefes Koçluğu breath coaching program.

Step 1

Seminar A

3 to 4 daysOpen to everyone

The first step for anyone wishing to explore breath, combining explanation with practice.

Step 2

Seminar B

3 modulesSeminar A

A continuation in three modules for those who have completed Seminar A.

Step 3

Seminar C

4 daysSeminars A and B

An advanced stage for participants who have completed Seminars A and B.

Step 4

Breath Coaching

ProgramSeminar path

A further step for those who want to learn the methods and guide others.

Explore the training path →

How we work with breath

72 Nefes (72 Breaths)

Eight techniques, seventy-two breaths. The seventy-third breath is offered to the universe as a contribution.

→

Yıldız Nefesi (Star Breath)

The first technique in the 72 Nefes sequence. Kudret-i Nefes sessions also begin with it.

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DDDD

Duyguyu Duyumsa, Dokun, Dillendir: sense the emotion, touch it, give it words. Four steps for attending to our relationship with emotion.

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Celcelutiye and Sufi Breath

A practice exploring Celcelutiye, traditionally attributed to Ali ibn Abi Talib, alongside Sufi understandings of breath.

→

Baksı Dance

A movement sequence accompanied by dombra and kopuz, rising from the ground to the head and returning to the ground.

→

Let's meet soon

23-25

October

Awakening Camp

Tarsus

Ashab-ı Kehf, the Seven Sleepers

All gatherings

14‑15 November

Rebirth Through Breath

İstanbul

Places where we breathe

Samsun,
Urla,
Alaçatı,
İstanbul,
Alanya,
Sapanca,
Tarsus,
Ankara,
Çorum

Kudret-i Nefes

In 2021, the academy's three founding teachers brought their shared path together in a book, published in Turkish. Its 352 pages explore breath, breathing exercises and guiding your own breath practice.

Demos Yayınları · 2021 · 352 pages

Havvanur Yılmaz Keleş
Yasemin Selamoğlu Daldal
Seyda Ok Aydoğan

View at publisher

A breath together

Pause for a moment. Breathe in for 4 seconds as the circle widens, out for 6 as it narrows. Let's take three rounds together.

This ring recalls the torus in our seminar glossary: a flow that moves out from the center and returns around the edge.

An arched garden gate covered in vines, mountains behind it

There's a place for you at our table

If you're curious about our breathwork, we can talk together about where to begin. Write to us and share your questions. We're here to listen.

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