Our Sacred Land: Pixan Balam

Our community has recently come together to collectively buy 50 acres of sacred land in the jungles of Yucatan, Mexico, half an hour from the famed Chichen Itza. Named Pixan Balam (PEESH-un BALL-um), which means ‘Jaguar Spirit’ in Mayan, we are re-weaving a new ecovillage and way of life, living in rhythm with the spirits, nature, and our ancestral ways.

Our beautiful land near Yaxcaba features a thirty-foot ceremonial palapa for large gatherings, rituals, or teaching space. It houses four private cabanas, a communal kitchen, and a lounge. We have a natural water pool, sunning deck, and landscaped gardens with fruit trees all around.

There are trails throughout the fifty acres, that lead to the unexcavated Mayan pyramid we discovered, and the dry cenote with internal caves. We’re directly next door to the private pyramid site Ikil, and in ancient times would have been an extended part of this ceremonial site, and likely have additional unexplored ruins on the property.

We are honored and humbled to hold this powerful land as stewards in trust for the Maya people, who we weave with in deep relationship. We invite the ancient gods and spirits to return and live among us again in a sacred way, receiving our prayers and offerings.

We are excited to invite you to visit or stay with us in this sacred place, if the spirit of the jaguar calls to you.

We offer private cabana rentals, guided retreats, and are happy to talk with folks who might want to offer a retreat at Pixan Balam.

We’re not here to make money or exploit the land: we’re here to open a portal to the past and invite you to step through and honor it with us. All of your financial support helps us carry out our other educational missions, along with the creation of our model eco-village.

The Balanzu Way School is slowly becoming bi-national, grounded in both the Yucatan, and Portland, Oregon.

Retreats

Self-directed

If you’d like a solo spiritual retreat in such a powerful place, you can book our guest cabana, Casa Ixchel, to stay. We’ll provide accommodation, and for an additional fee, can arrange transport to and from Merida or the local Maya train stop, if you’re coming from Cancun. Meditate, pray, make offerings, or receive shamanic healing on site. Enjoy our trails and swimming pool to cool off, and we can help connect you to tours or other ways to get about if you’d like to go on your own.

Week-long Guided Group Retreat

We’ll arrange everything for you, from pick up to drop off and everything in between. Shamanic healing sessions, ceremony, transport to ancient sacred sites, and all food and accommodation included. Limited to six people.

Offering a Retreat

If you would like to give a retreat at Pixan Balam and use our full facilities, we’re happy to talk with you! We want this land to support healing, teaching, and ceremony that aligns with our vision.

There are additional housing options nearby in Pisté, next to Chichen Itza, if you’d like to plan a larger retreat with more guests than we can accommodate. We can additionally arrange daily transport to the land or other sacred sites.