Piia has been a member of the Estonian Tantra Festival organizing team for several years. We decided to talk to her about volunteering, so that others who have thought about volunteering at the festival could get an idea of what it’s all about, what opportunities there are for volunteers to contribute and get in on the festival’s buzz. 

Below is a fascinating interview with Piia about volunteering!

TF: How many times have you volunteered at the festival?

Piia: I’ve been involved with different festivals for decades because I love volunteering and being part of the event creation! It’s a great way to experience the behind-the-scenes of a festival, to get in touch with the creation process and the teachers who come to share their experience. To contribute in terms of energy, so that the festival we create will be awesome!

TF: How did you get to the Estonian Tantra Festival team?

Piia: Three years ago, I saw a call for applications on Facebook and sent off my application and completely forgot about it. I was supposed to go to a festival in Paris to dance, but since it was expensive to go there at the time, I decided to stay away from it, and on the very same day I got an email saying I’ve been chosen to volunteer! Life sorted itself out! 

As I really like the subject of space holding, I quietly kept my fingers crossed, and it so happened that I was selected for the Stage Managers team! Space is very important to me because you are right in there. A lot depends on space holding together with the technical team during the festival – the way the teachers feel that everything is already taken care of for them and they don’t have to think about other things – the teacher can just come in and concentrate on what they came to do.

The following year, I was asked to lead a team of stage managers! So now I have been the team leader for two years and I will be the team leader in 2025 too.

It’s cool to lead a small team because it’s in turn about holding space for the people in the team. And because everything is a whole, as you know, it moves in a chain reaction in every sense.

It’s all about pre-tuning and sharing the mindset of why something is important. Once this is clear, we can enjoy creating a festival together.

TF: Why do we organise the Estonian Tantra Festival together with volunteers?

Piia: Every year, the festival is created to unite people together from heart connection! I’m a bit of an idealist and I believe that in a few generations, especially when I look at my 16 year old son’s expressions, there will be a change: we will stop living in fear, stop competing and start working together.

It is 12.12 today and there are talks about opening the portals – we don’t know how it is in reality – it is a very happy place to experience this change. Because even though there are hundreds of people at the festival – everyone can open up in their authenticity, which is the most important thing! That’s why we are organising this festival, to create an environment where people can find the feeling that this change is possible! And through different tantric practices to look more into oneself.

TF: What was your biggest realization during last year’s Tantra Festival?

Piia: Having studied holistic regression therapy at the Holistic Institute and psychology at the University of Tartu, my biggest realisation last year was that digging into old wounds and giving long explanations for layers doesn’t really work. That’s why Freud said that there are so many sub-personalities within us and you have to negotiate with all of them, and when you finally come to an agreement with all of them, you’ve been doing this work for decades and decades in a row. 

I came to the conclusion that it doesn’t have to be that way. I clearly experienced the existence of the Elixir of Love! When we give a universal feeling of love to our wound, it heals. We don’t need to explain it, to reopen it, because if we tear the wound open, it will not heal. But if you put the Elixir on it, it will heal and we can move on. That was a big realization for me last year! There was so much of that energy of love at last year’s festival that it became obvious then! 

TF: Did this experience come to you through practice?

Piia: This experience came to me right after a practice which I didn’t go to, where women were living out the pain of the women and the sisters with enormous anger, screaming, crying, acting it out. And after that came a workshop by Shashi Soluna where we opened up with women through dance, movement, touch and love. Participating there, I realised that we were doing the same thing that was done in the previous workshop, but we were doing it through Love, and healing was done through Love.

TF: What are your daily practices to take care of yourself?

Piia: For me, the biggest transformative thing is doing daily presence practices. Mindfulness and self-monitoring, trying to be as honest as possible with myself, which is actually the hardest thing. 

I’ve divided three levels of honesty for myself:

The first level is to be completely honest about what I think and feel about things – this is also difficult, because as human beings we think, what will others think if I say something, maybe I don’t fit in. The issue of being scared is unfortunately within us. 

The second level – I’ll be honest about what I’ve done and what I’ve thought. Really talking it out to the other person, admitting that’s the case with me.

The third and most difficult – is to be honest with myself! To see through the stories you tell yourself. To see through that cognitive dissonance where we tell ourselves things to make things more beautiful and look past what we don’t see in ourselves. This is the highest level, also the hardest to learn. And that’s what I try to do every day, be honest about everything. 

TF: What have you learned from the presence practices?

Piia: I have learnt that there is no point in taking anything personally. It’s what drives us as human beings, but there’s really nothing personal! Everyone lives in their own world and looks through their own filters and they are totally entitled to that too!

TF: Do you have any examples to bring?

Piia: This summer, I met a guy and we became good friends. He danced kizomba like me, but we had never danced together. There are different styles of kizomba dancing (urban and traditional), I like the traditional style more. And I had some dance videos of myself and then I showed them to him. And because we have a very honest communication, that’s how it is, that’s how you tell the other one. I asked him, as someone important to me, if he liked the way I dance. And he said to me: “No.” I was so grateful to him, because I realized at that moment that it meant nothing to me. It doesn’t mean anything about my dancing because I like the way I dance! I’m doing it the way I like to do it, it’s just that his answer told me that he likes different types of dancing. And there wasn’t any place where I should be hurt. When the other person says no, they are saying something about themselves, not me. And so it is with all things! 

TF: Have you discovered something new?

Piia: Yes, I’ve discovered! The most beautiful person is a smiling person!

You don’t need to do anything else to be beautiful (laughs), just smile and everything is done!

TF: What are the different teams that selected volunteers can join?

Piia: There are different teams and topics that a volunteer can help with:

• “Take Care” Team to keep people’s bellies full and the venue clean.
• Festival Design Team, who will do the work of decorating the festival venue before and after the festival.
• Communications and Marketing Team, who will also do their part before the festival by managing content creation and social media, capturing video and images of teachers and performers.
• Festival Info Team, who registers participants and provides information during the festival.
• Festival Transportation Team, who drives and transports people and things that need transport.
• Festival Translators Team who translates Estonian-English-Estonian, as this is an international festival.
• The Sauna Team, who takes care of heating and maintaining the saunas.
• Technical and Construction Team, who will also do the work before and after the festival, setting up the decorations, building the sauna area and other minor construction and installation works.
• Stage Managers Team, who through their presence create the festival atmosphere and set up the room before the workshop, supply the teacher with what he/she needs, keep the silence and the doors shut; so that the room is well kept.

TF: Are space holders soul angels? 

Piia: No, the space holders are separate from the soul angels. They are the people that if during the workshop, the spiritual processes are going on, you can go to the soul angel and they will support you. 

In a small way we are also the soul holders, if someone needs a hug or to be held or to call someone else to help, in any case we notice it as well. 

TF: Why volunteer for the Estonian Tantra Festival?

Piia: Because it’s awesome! And fun! The Estonian Tantra Festival is a great place where you can challenge yourself. It’s worth volunteering if you are interested in the behind the scenes of organising events and want to be part of it. And if it’s important to you that you can be part of creating something great!

TF: How much can you volunteer for workshops?

Piia: It depends on the team, how much your team needs to do during the festival. As a volunteer at Stage Managers Team holding the space, there are a limited number of us and we work on a schedule. There is one workshop during the day where you can participate and the rest of the time you work. But the evening parties are usually free and then we can participate fully. Otherwise, participation is free for volunteers, with a symbolic fee for catering.

TF: So maybe volunteering is a great way for those who want to watch, contribute and decide if this is something that’s for them?

Piia: You still have to have the right mindset and you have to like self-development and tantra. A sacred space cannot be created by somebody who looks down from the sidelines with a stern face, watching what these mad people are doing, then he is not creating the energetic space and the warm energy from the heart that we want to create.

TF: What personality traits support volunteering?

Piia: The ability to work cooperatively, independence, resilience, a service-oriented mindset, a desire to be there for others, and of course a cheerful spirit!

TF: Have you had any tense moments at the festival?

Piia: They have been about people. Last year some people we really needed were late or didn’t show up. Then it was a big challenge because we had to replace them unexpectedly. And it was important to have one man to hold the space in the men’s workshop. Women can’t hold the space in a men’s workshop because it breaks up the energy of the men. But then, fortunately, we found these men within the team to do the space holding part of the men’s workshop. It’s always a team effort. The important thing is that we can rely on each other. 

TF: What values should a volunteer have?

Piia: Friendliness. Being selfless. A smart selfishness. Honesty. Ability to work in a team. Valuing shared creativity.

TF: Is there an age limit for the festival?

Piia: Good question. We welcome volunteers from the age of 18 to the festival.

TF: Or age limit cap?

Piia: I don’t think so! Everyone is welcome! Diversity is so beautiful. 

TF: Are there any events for volunteers?

Piia: There will be one volunteer meetup about a month before the festival. This is actually the first place where you as a team leader get to know how seriously a volunteer takes their role. The ones who don’t show up, there have been more difficult situations with them afterwards too. It’s a team-building place to be. 

The day before, all the volunteers already come to the festival site and help set up the festival. Food, sauna and good company are guaranteed. 

At the end of the festival, there will be a wrap-up on Sunday, with food, sauna and good times together as a team.

TF: What has the Estonian Tantra Festival given you personally?

Piia: All the great experiences, lovely new acquaintances, warm characters.

The team has also been stable over the years, plus some new faces.

TF: See you at the anniversary festival this summer!

Piia: Yeah, I’m looking forward to seeing who’s coming to volunteer on the Stage Managers Team this year.