Silent Solstice Digital Detox - A Meditation & Healing Reset, Lake Orta, Italy

The Silent Solstice Digital Detox is a meditation and healing reset held at Lake Orta, Italy, in the weeks around the winter solstice. It is a silent meditation retreat for people who want to put down their screens and spend several quiet days in practice. It is led by Evangelos Diavolitsis and Nishta Matarese of Four Ways to Freedom.

What to Expect

The retreat combines silence, a break from digital devices and meditation, with healing as its stated aim. The solstice, the darkest point of the year, gives the days their theme: a natural moment to turn inward and let things settle.

Four Ways to Freedom describes its approach as non-dogmatic, creative and experiential. Its work offers practical, embodied tools rather than doctrine, and it teaches the principles of Dharma in modern language. Their wider programs draw on mindfulness, movement, art and what they call mystery, so participants can expect practice that engages the body as well as the mind.

About Four Ways to Freedom

Four Ways to Freedom is a personal development and spiritual framework founded by Evangelos Diavolitsis and Nishta Matarese. It weaves together four pathways: mindfulness, money, movement and mystery. The work brings the path of awakening together with meditation, movement, art and business.

Evangelos describes himself as a playful and forthright Dharma teacher, movement facilitator and coach. He was raised in a Greek-Canadian household and earned a degree in Urban Planning, then left his first week on the job, drawn instead to psychology and existential questions. For over 25 years he has trained under Qapel and Catherine Sensei of the Tibetan Buddhist Namgyal Lineage. He is also a certified 5Rhythms teacher.

Nishta Matarese co-founded the framework and co-leads its offerings alongside Evangelos.

The Setting

Lake Orta is a lakeside destination in Italy, and the retreat takes place there in the deep of winter. A silent retreat by the water suits the purpose of the week: few distractions, early dark and plenty of space for stillness.

Before You Go

This is a digital detox, so expect to set aside your phone and other devices for the duration. The retreat is part of a series of workshops and residential retreats offered by Four Ways to Freedom in Europe, and it is a good fit if you are drawn to a non-dogmatic, embodied approach to meditation. The teaching language is English.