Aquakontakt and JANZU Aquatic Movement Meditation
Floating – Deep Relaxation in Gentle Warm Water
In my everyday relationships and during my Pilates classes, I constantly observe how we are conditioned to live in a state of tension. Daily tasks and challenges keep us under continuous stress, causing our tissues to remain contracted and tight. We feel anxious, and often we cannot even sleep properly.
Imagine stress as wearing a diving suit that is a few sizes too small, or a tightly laced corset, or very tight jeans all day long. Now imagine running around an island, playing with your child, or enjoying a dance class while wearing this outfit… If you can barely breathe, none of this will go well. You won’t be efficient, and sooner or later you will strain yourself, get injured, or fall ill.
Now imagine stepping out of that tight outfit. Your chest and abdomen immediately expand with relief, you can finally breathe, you sigh deeply. Life suddenly feels lighter, doesn’t it?
Alongside my somatic Pilates sessions, I can now support you in stress management and deep relaxation in the water as well, through aquatic movement meditation.
Currently, I work with two techniques in the water:
I learned the Aquakontakt® method from Benedek Aldea, which intuitively combines elements and approaches of Shiatsu and Watsu.
I studied JANZU with Ivan González, who has been practicing aquatic movement meditation in Mexico for over 25 years and teaches it worldwide. JANZU is the healing art of movement meditation practiced in warm water, where the body relaxes and the soul remembers.
The healing effect of Aquatic Movement Meditation primarily arises through a state of consciousness where thinking slows down, combined with freely flowing, weightless, liberating movement. It is a form of dynamic meditation, allowing you to connect with the parasympathetic nervous system and with deeper dimensions beyond verbal expression.
In floating, the pressure of the outer world dissolves. You step out of the mind’s grip and finally allow yourself to truly rest.
As you flow in gentle warm water, the boundary between body and water disappears. In weightlessness, you may experience unity and peace. Body and soul soften and rest in the water’s tender, supportive embrace. Stress and muscular tension release, and the balance of connective tissue structures improves.
As you immerse yourself in physical, bodily—somatic—experience through sensation, you finally arrive fully in your body. A clear state of awareness emerges, free from accumulated stress and worries. Within the flow, you may experience who you are between thoughts—in silence and peace.
Simply put, you can enter a meditative state even if you have never meditated before, or if you believe “meditation is not for me.” You arrive in the here and now, the present moment. You are no longer stuck in the past or anxious about the future. You simply are.
Aquatic Movement Meditation deepens the connection between body and mind, enhancing body awareness and harmonizing movement patterns. The quality of your touch changes. Intuition and rational thinking begin to align.
This deep experience and inner journey leads you back to your true Self and opens the door to an inner world last experienced in the womb. Human life originates from water—we develop in amniotic fluid, and our bodies are composed of nearly 70% water. Through movement meditation in water, you reconnect with your natural environment and your fluid essence.
“Water has memory; within it carries our thoughts and prayers.”
— Masaru Emoto
Between you and me, held in the embrace of water, everything is born in the present moment. Sometimes I may simply hold you at the surface of the water and we breathe together. Sometimes I may guide you through movement, stretches and give you some massage. You may choose to submerge using a nose clip, or remain with your face above the water. Your body may ask for slow, subtle movements—or perhaps for more dynamic, contact-dance-like immersions.
There is no right or wrong. Everything is perfect just as it is in the moment. Each session unfolds differently, as the experience carries you deeper into your inner world.
Floating in weightlessness is a multidimensional movement experience with calming and healing effects in both the short and long term. It can lead you into a state where tensions stored in tissues, emotional blocks, and traumas begin to dissolve, and your energy balances. Cellular self-healing processes may be activated. By the end of the session, you will feel lighter, freer, and more at ease within yourself.
Practical Information:
The Aquatic Movement Meditation session lasts approximately 50–55 minutes. The session begins with a short conversation, during which I explain what will happen in the water, and you have the opportunity to share your current state for that day. After the floating experience, there is about 5–10 minutes available—if you wish—to share and discuss your experiences.
I recommend setting aside at least 1.5 hours of “me-time” for yourself.
Price: 20,000 HUF (the price does not include the bath entry fee and/or the pool rental fee, which may vary depending on the location).
Locations:
The movement meditation sessions are currently available at two locations in Budapest.
- Public bath in District XIII: in a 34°C outdoor thermal pool. The large outdoor thermal pool provides plenty of space for free movement and flow, allowing you to deepen into your inner processes in a safe energetic space, away from other bathers. In the morning hours, we are often almost alone.
In case of strong wind or heavy rain, we will look for an alternative indoor pool. If this is not possible, the session will be rescheduled.
Available: Tuesday, Thursday, and occasionally Saturday mornings.
- Private pool in District III:
The private pool is located indoors, and the water is chlorine-free, disinfected using active oxygen and UV light.
Available times: Sunday from 14:30, and Monday mornings, midday.
Useful Information:
You do not need to know how to swim to participate. Your face can remain above the water throughout the session, and there is also the option to flow with your face in the water, fully immersed—this will be discussed during the short conversation before the session.
What to bring:
It is best to wear swimwear that allows you to move comfortably, does not squeeze or dig into your skin, feels secure, and stays in place on your body.
It’s important to know that we lose fluids in the water, so I strongly recommend bringing a bottle of water. If your ears are sensitive, bring waterproof earplugs. Please also bring slippers and a towel or bathrobe.
In cooler or cold weather, you may want to bring a hat to wear before and after the session.
Eating:
Please have your last meal approximately 1.5–2 hours before the session, and avoid coffee and soft drinks beforehand. You may drink water, but in moderation.
Booking:
Before booking, please read the contraindications below.
For booking, please contact me through the form at the bottom of this page or through the Booking menu.
I look forward to seeing you in the water.
"Water is the softest thing, yet it can penetrate mountains and earth.
This shows clearly the principle of softness overcoming hardness."
Lao Tzu
Below you will find a list of contraindications of Movement Meditation in warm water.
Please read carefully and only apply if the following do not apply to you!
Thank you for your understanding.
Contraindications: Taking psychoactive drugs (strong sedatives, strong painkillers, antidepressants), existing psychiatric treatment, use of any kind of drugs (all C-list drugs), difficulty in fitting into society, uncontrollable smoking and/or alcohol consumption, epilepsy, nerve weakness, major open wounds, infectious diseases, suicidal tendencies, behavioral disorders, fever or elevated body temperature, heart failure, respiratory failure, if vital capacity is less than 1500 cm3, serious urological infections, incontinence, menstruation without protection, infectious diseases, reasons for excluding contact with water for the ear, any medical contraindications that do not allow prolonged exposure to warm water, persistent, uncontrollable cough, influenza, chronic inflammation of the upper respiratory tract, recent medical surgery or intervention, sensitivity to chlorine, lack of cough reflex, joint inflammation in the cervical spine, dizziness.
You can request a booking for Aquatic Movement Meditation directly via the form below: