Moo - Common Living for Monastics

We had the Monastic Retreats in Alversjö 4 or 5 times in the past years. During this we broke some concrete in the sheep barn, took out heavy iron fences, finished the Gazebo behind the Villa, started a permanent garden and cleaned up a landfill in the nature reserve. We also enjoyed good food and some of us a hot bath during full moon in the cold evenings.

Originally planned to set up rooms for "monks and nuns" in the sheep barn, there was a decisions made that we rather support the infrastructure project in the lower wooden barn. In the upcoming retreats you can decide if you want to help sanding and painting drywalls, tile the bathrooms and the kitchen, or if you want to keep the Secret Garden and the Square free of weed and water the plants from now and then. In early spring of 2026 we will also start to clean and renovate the little plot and and house called Torslund.

There is a way of living that is slower than the world we know.

Not an escape from it, but a turning toward what is essential.

We are exploring the possibility of forming a small, intentional community in rural Sweden dedicated to a shared rhythm of life: silence, simple work, study, and presence.

Common Life means choosing to live together under a shared rhythm of silence, work, study, and care, so that inner grounding, responsibility, and truthfulness can grow over time. 

Common Life is not a retreat, a workshop, or a spiritual experience designed for personal consumption. It is not a belief system, a therapy space, or a place to collect insights. It does not center on a leader, a doctrine, or a promise of transformation.

Common Life does not offer escape from the world, but preparation for meeting it with greater steadiness, responsibility, and care.

Those who come would live together for a limited time, following a clear daily structure. The aim is not self-improvement or spiritual experience, but formation: learning to steady attention, to live with less distraction, and to act with greater responsibility.

No doctrine is required. No ideology is offered. No leader is to be followed. What is asked is seriousness — a willingness to commit to simplicity, to shared practice, and to the discipline of daily life.

This form of life is inspired by old monastic traditions, not to recreate the past, but to recover something enduring:

- that freedom grows where life is ordered,

- that truth requires stillness,

- and that community can be a school for becoming human.

This is not for everyone.

- It may be for those who feel the need to slow down radically,

- who can live simply and work with their hands,

- who can sit in silence without distraction,

- and who seek grounding rather than certainty.

The place, structure, and details are still emerging. What matters first is not buildings or rules, but people who recognize the call.

If something in you becomes quiet while reading this, you are welcome to reach out — not to apply, but to begin a conversation.

If you want to find out more about the idea of the Common Life check out this document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/18n-C2HThdKkUPtpp1gLErk-D9fkZdcKQOIidY9EuEPk/edit#