Maribel Castaño
Creator of Templo Femenino
I was born in Colombia and, over the course of my life, I have lived and worked in different places, among them the United States, Madrid and Barcelona. Today I am lucky to live on the beautiful island of Mallorca, surrounded by sea and nature.
I am curious, creative, self-taught and, above all, a woman passionate about discovering and understanding everything to do with our experience as women.
In 2002 I met the person I consider my soulmate. His presence in my life awakened a deep restlessness in me and pushed me to begin a path of searching, discovery and experimentation that, over the years, would completely transform the way I understand life and myself.
In 2007 I felt it was time to leave my professional career behind and open myself to something new. I travelled to India to study Yoga, and there my teacher gave me the spiritual name of Shakti, which means feminine energy. That journey marked a before and an after in my life and was the beginning of a path of deeper connection with myself.
Since then, I have been exploring different paths and experiences that have helped me better understand the spiritual dimension of life and, especially, the cycles of a woman. I have meditated in Vipassana silent retreats, taken part in vision quests, ceremonies with sacred plants and temazcales, and accompanied different processes of transformation. Each of these experiences has brought me a little closer to nature, to inner listening and to the wisdom of our own cycles.
I am also co-author of the book Mamamorphosis, written together with 200 other conscious mothers, an experience that allowed me to share and learn from many other women on the path of motherhood.
Over time I discovered one of my great passions: women’s rites of passage. Menarche, motherhood, birth, menopause… moments of transformation that for a long time we have lived individually and that, however, can become much more beautiful experiences when we share and celebrate them together.
From there Templo Femenino was born: a space to recover the importance of these moments, create new customs and accompany one another, women and families, from a close, conscious and loving place.
I am a mother of two children, who are, without a doubt, my great teachers and two of the most important engines of my life. Motherhood has also been one of my greatest schools and has deeply transformed the way I understand women, their cycles and the relationship between generations.
My training has been built through different paths. I have been a Hatha Yoga teacher since 2007, trained in India at Sivananda Yoga Vedanta. In 2008 I was initiated into the first degree of Reiki within the Usui Shiki Ryoho tradition. I also completed the 13-month in-person training The Journey of the Cyclical Woman, aimed at women who accompany other women in their connection with the feminine.
I am a Guardian of the Womb and I facilitate workshops, ceremonies and circles of women and girls, especially around the great moments of transformation in our lives.
Today I feel that all this journey — what I have learned, lived, questioned and also experienced as a woman and as a mother — converges in Templo Femenino.
And there is something that still moves me especially: giving visibility to the feminine experience. That is why I am also passionate about telling stories through photographs, videos and documentaries that help us speak about women with more naturalness, depth and truth.
Because I believe that every stage of our life deserves to be recognized, shared and celebrated.
The Templo Femenino
Why did I create Templo Femenino?
Women sustain and care for life in many different ways. We accompany those who come into this world, and we help shape the way they see, feel and relate to others. In a time of so much change, I feel we also need to nurture the awareness with which we conceive, give birth, raise our children and move through our own transformations. Templo Femenino was born from this desire: to offer a space where we can remember the wisdom of feminine energy, listen to our cycles and honor our gifts. We do this through rites of passage, ceremonies, workshops, circles and stories that help us experience these moments with greater presence, meaning and love.
What is Templo Femenino?
Templo Femenino is a sacred space for gathering, learning and celebration. A place where we honor Mother Earth and feminine energy in all its expressions and stages. Here we can remember our gifts, understand the wisdom of our cycles and accompany one another through life’s great rites of passage: first menstruation, motherhood, birth, menopause and the many other transformations that deserve to be seen and celebrated. It is also a space for the families we are creating and for everyone who wishes to experience these moments from a more conscious, loving and authentic place.
The importance of ritual and ceremony
A ritual is a conscious pause in the midst of life. A moment to listen to what we are experiencing, give it a place and connect with our essence, with our community and with something greater than ourselves. Ceremonies can help us heal what has been wounded, give thanks for what we have lived and step into a new chapter with presence. For centuries, our ancestors marked life’s great transitions in symbolic and sacred ways. Today, we can reclaim that wisdom and create rituals that speak our language and belong to our time. Because when a transformation is acknowledged, shared and celebrated, it is no longer a solitary passage—it becomes a meaningful experience.
“It is an experience that every woman, at such a magical moment in her life, should have. Celebrating this rite of passage with your beloved women (family of blood and of soul) fills you with the strength and deep power that appears when women come together.”
Raquel Hinojo · on the Maternity Ceremony