Festival Program

PROGRAM
Thursday, August 13, 2026

10.30
Opening with Dr. Urs Honauer (CH)
Host and initiator of the Bildungsfestival




10.45 am - 1 pm and 3 pm - 6.15 pm

Finding Solid Ground in Difficult Times –
Spiritual Paths to Security, Meaning, and Healing
Prof. Dr. Ruth Lanius (CAN)

8 pm - 9.30 pm


The Piano and Coherent Waves
Any Krusche and her Soul Diving Piano® Improvisations
Music by the Lake at Hotel Rigi

Friday, August 14, 2026

8.00 am - 9.00 am
Trauma-Sensitive Qi Gong
Paki E. Heisserer (CH)

10 am - 1 pm and 3 pm - 6.15 pm
Journey to Eternity
Exploring the steps of spiritual deepening
Marianne Bentzen (DK)

8 pm - 9.30 pm
    
From Aquarius to Zein
Open Air concert with the "Blue Boulevard"-Band
At the pavilion by the lake (near the boat landing in Weggis)

Saturday, August 15, 2026

8.00 am - 9.00 am
Trauma-Sensitive Qi Gong
Paki E. Heisserer (CH)

10 am - 1 pm  and 3 pm - 6.15 pm
The most beautiful emotion we can experience....
Dr. Peter A. Levine (USA)

8 pm - 9.30 pm

Concert “The World Is Sound”
with Andreas Vollenweider, Isabel Gehweiler, and Veronika Stalder
An evening that blends music and research, poetry and insight.
Location:
Pfarrkirche St. Maria, Rigiblickstrasse 3 in Weggis
sponsored by Luzern Tourismus

Sunday, August 16, 2026

8.00 am - 9.00 am
Trauma-Sensitive Qi Gong
Paki E. Heisserer (CH)

10 am - 1 pm and 2 pm - 3.30 pm
Panel and open space
with Marianne Bentzen, Ruth Lanius and Peter A. Levine
Facilitator: Dr. Urs Honauer

Program for the 1st festival day

10.30 am
Opening 
mit Dr. Urs Honauer (CH),
Host and initiator of the Bildungsfestival




10.45 am - 1 pm and 3 pm - 6.15 pm

Finding Solid Ground in Difficult Times –
Spiritual Paths to Security, Meaning, and Healing
Prof. Dr. Ruth Lanius (CAN)

Grounding—in the sense of being fully embodied in the here and now and connected to the ground—has multiple layers and meanings. On the one hand, it is a somatic and neurobiological process that strengthens embodiment while reducing dissociation; on the other hand, it is a profound experiential state in which people connect with a sense of purpose, meaning, and a special quality of belonging to the world. From this perspective, experienced grounding is the foundation for the central experience of being held—in one’s own body, in relationships, and within something much larger, something existential. People who experience existential—and thus also spiritual—security are also better able to accept vulnerability, move into living intimacy, and develop a passion for themselves and others. Bringing together scientific findings on grounding and spiritual resources such as rituals, contemplation, meditation, or connection with transcendent forces enables healing on many levels and leads to inner regulation, connectedness, and coherence. Ruth Lanius presents studies from her clinical work as a professor of psychiatry—such as how a severely traumatized person changes their breathing rhythm and heart rate by reciting a powerful mantra, thereby reducing internal arousal.

8 pm - 9.30 pm
The Piano and Coherent Waves
Any Krusche and her Soul Diving Piano® Improvisations

Music is a universal language that touches and connects people. Listening requires the cooperation of multiple brain regions to integrate rhythm and melody. The brain converts sounds into a neurological pattern—just as it does with all external stimuli. Music creates patterns that realign the soul, heart, and body, which has a deeply healing effect. On this evening, Any Krusche’s piano improvisations will guide you into a space where you can fully connect with yourself while also enjoying the surrounding atmosphere.
https://souldivingpiano.de/

Program for the 2nd festival day

8 am - 9 am
Trauma-Sensitive Qi Gong
Embodied Spirituality in the Light of Science 
Paki E. Heisserer (CH)

10 am - 1 pm and 3 pm - 6.15 pm
Journey to Eternity
Exploring the steps of spiritual deepening
Marianne Bentzen (DK)

Marianne will begin by exploring the distinction between religion and spirituality, creating a foundation of shared understanding. She will then guide us through the developmental stages of embodied spiritual experience. Her perspective draws from the compassionate wisdom of the Tibetan Dzogchen tradition and the contemplative depths of the Christian esoteric tradition, offering a map of the inner journey. Throughout our time together, we’ll acknowledge that spiritual practice, while profound, is not a substitute for therapeutic healing. It does not address early trauma or attachment wounds. Yet, when approached with care, it can become a deep and abiding resource through offering strength, perspective, and a sense of connection that supports the healing process.
Marianne will offer guided meditations related to several of these stages, inviting personal experience and inner quiet.

8 pm - 9.30 pm

From Aquarius to Zein
Open Air concert with the "Blue Boulevard"-Band
At the pavilion by the lake (near the boat landing in Weggis)

The four members of Blauer Boulevard have been infected with the music bug since childhood. For them, music is life. There is nothing they love more than coming together to sway to rhythms, melodies, and sounds. They draw on both profound and catchy songs from a wide variety of cultures, musically bridging worlds that are geopolitically divided. The concert with the band BLUE BOULEVARD is a journey through the soundscapes of Switzerland, Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Great Britain, and even entire continents such as Africa, North, and South America. And it is an invitation to move your body to the rhythm—whether dancing or sitting—during this open-air evening—and to help shape the soundscape by singing along during the choral interludes.

Program for the 3rd festival day

8 am - 9 am
Trauma-Sensitive Qi Gong
Paki E. Heisserer (CH)

10 am - 1 pm and 3 pm - 6.15 pm
"The most beautiful emotion we can experience is the mystical…
It is the power of all true art and science."--- Albert Einstein
Dr. Peter A. Levine (USA)

In this poignant quote, the great physicist speaks about the intrinsic unity of science and spirituality. It manifests itself as the unique quality of being curious and capable of wonder, as Einstein also wrote. And it is essential for a meaningful life. As a major source of inspiration for Dr. Peter A. Levine, he also emphasized that his discoveries were not fueled solely by the intellect, but equally by his body through muscular tremors, vibrations, tingling, and waves of warmth.

Building on Einstein’s perspective, the founder of SOMATIC EXPERIENCING (SE) places this inspiring relationship at the center of this day—both from the perspective of hard science and that of various spiritual traditions. In doing so, he shares Einstein’s view and believes that true science requires embodied experience and that through it, we humans can connect profoundly with the entire cosmos.

8 pm - 9.30 pm

Concert “The World Is Sound” 
with Andreas Vollenweider, Isabel Gehweiler, and Veronika Stalder
An evening that blends music and research, poetry and insight. 

What is music -
and what is it that can music do?

For more than 45 years, Andreas Vollenweider has been captivating audiences around the world. Over 20 million albums sold featuring his distinctive sound, streaming figures on a similar scale, a Grammy Award, and numerous other accolades attest to his significance in the music world. To this day, his concerts at the world’s most prestigious venues sell out shortly after they are announced. The reason for this impact is difficult to explain rationally. A review in The New York Times perhaps captures the essence of this fascination: “His music is like the folk music of an undiscovered tribe in an undiscovered country on an undiscovered continent.” It recognizes in his work a “deeply positive otherworldliness”—and perhaps therein lies the secret of its impact.

Location:
Pfarrkirche St. Maria, Rigiblickstrasse 3 in Weggis
sponsored by Luzern Tourismus

Program for the 4th day of the festival

8 am - 9 am
Trauma-Sensitive Qi Gong
Paki E. Heisserer (CH)

10 am - 1 pm and 2 pm - 3.30 pm
Panel and open space
with Marianne Bentzen, Ruth Lanius and Peter A. Levine
Facilitator: Dr. Urs Honauer

On the fourth day we will look at how the different approaches and perspectives of the four speakers can be combined with each other. This happens in the spirit of the Open Space idea with complementary ideas and also by means of practical and playful discovery between the lecturers and the audience. The fourth day of the festival is always a day of surprise and integration - and an important completion of the three approaches to the title theme. The aim is to network knowledge that has already been presented or brought in in order to pass it on with a visionary attitude.