The Art of Co-Devotional Love (E)
Johann Urb & Rachel Pringle Urb
Rachel and Johann have a combined 45 years of expertise and practice in Human Development, Ancient and Neo Tantric Embodiment, Kriya Yoga, Trauma Work, NLP, Somatic Healing, and Co-Devotional Relating. Allow them to introduce you to a life and love filled with deep passionate freedom and fulfillment, built through co-devotional creation and self-responsibility.
With a wealth of knowledge and experience in the fields of tantra and conscious loving, embodied wisdom through being in their own Sacred Union for 11+ years – Johann and Rachel will guide you as you unlock the potential of your own psyche, harnessing your true presence and power in conscious relating.
Helping you cultivate, harness and focus your genius in your life and your relationships, in a way that you have perhaps dreamed of, but never thought was possible.
It is possible — and we are here to help you fulfill your deepest love!
Rachel Pringle and Johann Urb have been together for 11+ years in a thriving relationship. They are renowned experts in tantra, human development, and conscious relationships. Together, Rachel and Johann offer "The Art of Co-Devotional Love," a workshop designed to help couples harness the potency of sacred intimacy and co-create a life of passionate connection and profound love. This session blends ancient and modern tantric teachings, providing tools and rituals that support deep relational and personal transformation. Participants learn to communicate effectively, create erotic tension, and build an unshakeable foundation of trust and safety, ensuring that their love continues to evolve and flourish.
"You are the ones you have been waiting for. Become the creator of your reality, choose to respond with curiosity, devotion to love and connection, and not be a victim of circumstance. This is the most rewarding experience to truly be who you want to be."
Summary
- Co devotional communication and rituals help deepen connection in all relationships, emphasizing authenticity and vulnerability. - Breathing exercises and body awareness practices can quickly shift emotional states and promote inner safety. - Owning feelings and expressing them as partial truths ("a part of me feels...") diffuses conflict and fosters understanding. - Appreciating partners daily and expressing gratitude balances negativity bias and strengthens relationships. - Slowing down communication, active listening, and calling "sacred timeouts" prevent reactive patterns and promote compassionate resolution.
Article
The transformative power of co-devotional love: a path to deeper relationships
Rachel Pringle Urb and Johann Urb share practices for navigating conflict, vulnerability and connection at Heal Play Love Festival
At the Heal Play Love Festival in Kemptthal, Switzerland, relationship experts Rachel Pringle Urb and Johann Urb offered attendees a masterclass in what they call "co-devotional love" – a practice rooted in radical responsibility, vulnerability and the belief that every relationship challenge contains seeds of growth.
The couple, who have navigated twelve and a half years of partnership including infidelity, betrayal and reconciliation, brought both personal experience and professional expertise to their presentation. Their combined 45 years of practice in human development, tantra, trauma work and somatic healing informed their teaching on Friday, 5 September 2025.
Reframing relationship challenges as opportunities
Central to their philosophy is a fundamental shift in perspective: viewing difficulties not as obstacles but as catalysts for transformation. "Everything that happens to us really happens for us," Rachel explained. "When we're out of our comfort zone, we learn, shift, and rebuild ourselves."
This reframing extends to the most painful moments in relationships. Rather than avoiding discomfort, the Urbs advocate leaning into it with curiosity and compassion. They call this "expressing the three percent" – the difficult truths we typically suppress to maintain harmony.
The couple emphasized that growth rarely occurs within comfort zones. By choosing temporary discomfort over long-term resentment, partners can transform conflicts into portals for deeper connection.
Breathwork as a state-shifting tool
Before diving into communication techniques, Johann led attendees through a "pyramid breath" ritual designed to regulate the nervous system and shift emotional states. The practice combined conscious breathing, pelvic floor activation and deliberate tension release.
"Even just a few minutes can absolutely change your state," Johann noted. "No excuses, even if you have a busy life – five minutes is all it takes."
The breathwork sequence included slow, undulating breaths followed by rapid breathing, breath holds and full-body shaking to release stored tension. Participants were encouraged to make sounds during the release phase, acknowledging that vocal expression helps discharge emotional energy.
The language of ownership and responsibility
At the heart of co-devotional communication lies what the Urbs call "radical responsibility" – taking 100% ownership of one's emotional experience rather than blaming a partner.
"Ownership takes away victimhood," Rachel explained. "When we own our moments, we empower connection and disarm conflicts."
This practice involves subtle but powerful linguistic shifts. Instead of declaring "I'm angry," partners learn to say "a part of me is angry." This language acknowledges emotional complexity while creating distance from overwhelming feelings.
Taking this further, one might say: "I'm witnessing a part of me that is creating a story that you don't love me." This framing invites both partners to examine the narrative together as teammates rather than adversaries.
Replacing 'but' with 'and'
Another transformative language shift the couple teaches involves eliminating the word "but" and replacing it with "and" when expressing conflicting feelings.
"Instead of 'but,' use 'and' to hold space for love and anger simultaneously, so both parts count in your relationship," Rachel advised.
This seemingly small change allows both emotions to coexist without one negating the other. "I love you, and a part of me is really pissed at you right now" honours complexity in a way that "I love you, but I'm pissed" cannot.
Understanding triggers and stories
Many emotional reactions in adult relationships stem from childhood wounds and past experiences. The Urbs encourage partners to explore the stories beneath their triggers.
When someone shares vulnerability by linking current reactions to past wounds, it invites compassion rather than defensiveness. This approach recognizes that core wounds often involve feeling "too much" (frequently experienced by women) or "not enough" (commonly experienced by men).
By owning these feelings rather than projecting them onto partners, individuals reclaim power and create space for genuine connection.
The practice of sacred timeouts
When conflicts escalate into unproductive cycles, the Urbs recommend calling a "sacred timeout" – a deliberate pause that includes expressing three gratitudes to each other before resuming discussion.
This practice interrupts reactive patterns and activates the parasympathetic nervous system, creating physiological safety that allows for more constructive conversation. The gratitude component counters our natural negativity bias, which the couple identifies as a significant threat to long-term relationship satisfaction.
"Appreciation needs to be a daily practice," Johann emphasized. "We naturally have a negativity bias. To keep love alive, consciously create a positivity bias by constantly appreciating your partner, yourself and life. What you pay attention to expands."
Vulnerability as courage
Throughout their presentation, the Urbs repeatedly framed vulnerability not as weakness but as the ultimate form of courage.
"Vulnerability is courage, the ultimate courage," Rachel stated. "Revealing yourself with ownership gives you power and fosters connection."
This redefinition is particularly important for individuals with avoidant attachment patterns, who may have learned to equate emotional expression with danger. The couple encouraged small "micro-steps" towards vulnerability as a way to gradually rewire capacity for connection.
Embodied communication
The Urbs emphasized that effective communication extends beyond words to include body language, tonality and energetic presence. Partners unconsciously mirror each other's nervous system states, so remaining physically open and grounded during difficult conversations matters enormously.
They encouraged participants to practice active listening that attends not just to words but to underlying emotions. When a partner withdraws, for instance, this behaviour may signal fear or past hurt rather than disinterest.
The fears, desires and loves ritual
To conclude their session, Rachel and Johann guided participants through a partnered exercise designed to build intimacy through structured vulnerability.
Pairs took turns sharing fears ("a part of me is scared of..."), desires ("a part of me wants...") and loves (appreciation for the partner or oneself) in 45-second intervals while the listener remained silent and attentive.
This ritual creates safe space for expression without advice-giving or problem-solving – practices the Urbs identify as common barriers to genuine emotional connection.
A new relationship language
The couple acknowledged that these tools represent learning a new language that requires daily practice to become fluent. They framed relationship work not as eliminating conflict but as developing more skilful ways of navigating inevitable contractions.
"Don't expect never to fight or experience difficulty," Rachel advised. "Instead, focus on how you repair afterwards. Every contraction is a portal to expansion and growth."
By viewing themselves and their partners through the lens of "who do I want to become?" rather than remaining stuck in victimhood, individuals can consciously choose responses aligned with their values rather than reactive patterns.
The Urbs' approach offers a framework for transforming relationships through embodied practices, conscious language and the courageous choice to remain present through discomfort. Their message resonated clearly: deep connection and lasting love are possible, but require commitment to growth, ownership and the daily practice of appreciation.
Part of Heal Play Love Festival