Date: April 20, 2019; 10:00am – 4:30pm
Sliding Scale: $75 – 200. Code WN2D19.

Description:
“Oh wondrous creatures. By what strange miracle do you so often not smile?” Hafiz

Treat yourself to a relaxing day of sitting and walking mindfulness meditation interspersed with the poetry and humor of the ages. The day will include guided meditations on the evolutionary origin of our body and emotions, reflections on aging and impermanence, and an exploration of the tricky delusions of mind and the mystery of consciousness itself. Throughout the day, we will hear from poets and crazy wisdom masters, from Lao Tzu and Rumi to Mark Twain and Lily Tomlin, giving us some perspective on this strange, impossible life we are leading. You may not get enlightened, but you are likely to have a few laughs and acquire a healthy dose of inspiration. Come on along!

“There ain’t no answer. There ain’t going to be any answer. There never has been an answer. That’s the answer.”
Gertrude Stein

“Read not the Times. Read the Eternities.” Henry David Thoreau

Dates: July 20 – July 21, 2019; 10:00am – 4:30pm.
Sliding Scale: $150 – 400. Code VF1M19.

Description:
Our time together will be spent exploring the sure heart’s release. We’ll look at cultivating different flavors of love, and working with what gets in the way.

This path of awakening leads us towards the wisdom of how to more fully inhabit our lives. As our understanding deepens, we learn how to care for our whole selves and how to live life with a wiser and undefended heart.

The weekend will include practicing mindfulness in many ways, whether it’s sitting, walking, Q&A, or sharing together.

Dates: Monday, August 5, 3:00pm – Sunday, August 11, 11:30am; 6 nights
Sliding Scale: $1600 – $700, PLUS a donation to the teacher(s) and retreat staff. Code 274R19.
Download application here to submit via fax, email, or postal mail.

Please note: All Young Adult rates and Scholarship funds have been allocated for this retreat.

If you are interested and need financial assistance, we may have a work exchange available.

Open to young adults ages 18 – 32

Retreat Description:
Come practice silent mindfulness and insight meditation for a week within a group of your peers. Give yourself a break from constant over-stimulation and external demands to create a time for greater inner calm, spaciousness, and presence. We will explore radical self awareness and deeper embodiment through the ancient practices of guided and silent sitting, walking, and heart meditations, qigong, practice meetings with teachers, and dharma talks. Over the course of the week, we will extend these practices until the entire day is one of steady, continuous awareness. On the last day of the retreat we practice coming in and out of silence to learn conscious connection with the community around us. This is a fully silent retreat, and we will ask you to turn off and put away all electronic devices.

Financial assistance is available for all Spirit Rock residential retreats. Our scholarship rate is $40/night and available for all those with financial hardship with special funds allocated to People of Color (POC), folks with serious medical conditions, and young adults (age 18-26). Scholarship funding is offered on a first-come, first-serve basis. Scholarships are budgeted per retreat and because they are in high demand, can run out quickly. We encourage you to register for a retreat as close as possible to the registration opening date (lotteries are an exception).

A unique scholarship opportunity — the Hemera Contemplative Fellowship! If you are 18 years of age or older with a commitment to service — serving others through your profession — you should consider reviewing the eligibility for this Fellowship. In general, this Fellowship is for those who are full-time in the listed eligible professions and are new to silent residential retreat practice. Follow this link for more detailed information: Hemera Contemplative Fellowships. ONE scholarship allowed per person, per calendar year.

Dates: Monday, August 12, 3:00pm – Saturday, August 17, 11:30am; 5 nights
Sliding Scale: $1300 – $600, PLUS a donation to the teacher(s) and retreat staff. Code 276R19.

We are very sorry, this retreat is FULL. Please submit an application if you are interested in being on the wait list. We do have cancellations, so the longer you’re able to wait, the better your chances of getting in.

If you are interested and need financial assistance, we may have a work exchange available.

Retreat Description:
Life is intense: pleasure and pain, joy and sorrow, change everywhere, all the time. To open to this with mindfulness for even a moment is a big deal. We underestimate the courage, tenderness, and love called forth by life. In our retreat, we will practice opening the heart to our experience – to make peace with the human condition. As our hearts are transformed, the motivation to alleviate suffering in the world crystallizes and the circle of empathy widens.

Financial assistance is available for all Spirit Rock residential retreats. Our scholarship rate is $40/night and available for all those with financial hardship with special funds allocated to People of Color (POC), folks with serious medical conditions, and young adults (age 18-26). Scholarship funding is offered on a first-come, first-serve basis. Scholarships are budgeted per retreat and because they are in high demand, can run out quickly. We encourage you to register for a retreat as close as possible to the registration opening date (lotteries are an exception).

A unique scholarship opportunity — the Hemera Contemplative Fellowship! If you are 18 years of age or older with a commitment to service — serving others through your profession — you should consider reviewing the eligibility for this Fellowship. In general, this Fellowship is for those who are full-time in the listed eligible professions and are new to silent residential retreat practice. Follow this link for more detailed information: Hemera Contemplative Fellowships. ONE scholarship allowed per person, per calendar year.

Dates: Monday, September 16, 3:00pm – Sunday, September 22, 11:30am; 6 nights
Sliding Scale: $1600 – $700, PLUS a donation to the teacher(s) and retreat staff. Code 287R19.
Will open for registration on 5/15/2019.

Please Note: Parts of this retreat will be held outdoors surrounded by nature, depending upon weather conditions. If held indoors, this retreat will be held in the Upper Walking Hall and has limited access; please read the details related to this below.*

Retreat Description:
During this silent retreat, we will practice the art and discipline of mindfulness meditation, with our collective intention being to train our minds and open our hearts. A significant feature of this retreat is that we will be doing some of our practice outside under ancient oak trees, letting the wisdom of nature help support us along on our path.

Throughout the retreat, we will make creative use of classic Buddhist meditation practices to explore the evolutionary origin of our body and emotions; engage in traditional Buddhist reflections on death and dying; examine our nature “as” nature; and all the while explore the tricky delusions of mind and the mystery of consciousness itself. In the process, we expect to find relief from our personal drama and a new sense of delight and meaning in our lives.
The retreat will include poetry and a little “crazy wisdom” as well.
The retreat is suitable for both beginning and experienced meditation students.

Recommended reading for this retreat is Wes Nisker’s book Buddha’s Nature.

Financial assistance is available for all Spirit Rock residential retreats. Our scholarship rate is $40/night and available for all those with financial hardship with special funds allocated to People of Color (POC), folks with serious medical conditions, and young adults (age 18-26). Scholarship funding is offered on a first-come, first-serve basis. Scholarships are budgeted per retreat and because they are in high demand, can run out quickly. We encourage you to register for a retreat as close as possible to the registration opening date (lotteries are an exception).

Location: Outdoors, or if bad weather, Upper Walking Hall. This retreat is designed as a smaller and more intimate retreat. It will mostly be held outdoors but should bad weather visit us, we will have an indoor location – the upper Walking Hall. We want you to know that this upper walking hall is located at the top of a flight of stairs adjacent to the main meditation hall. It is not accessible by wheelchair or scooter. If you have mobility limitations such that you cannot climb a flight of stairs (or hike a moderate distance) this retreat is not appropriate for you. Please call the registration department for more details BEFORE you register for this retreat if you have concerns related to accessibility to the upper Walking Hall or the short hike to the daily outdoor meditation location.

Dates: Monday, December 9, 3:00pm – Sunday, December 15, 11:30am; 6 nights
Sliding Scale: $1600 – 700, PLUS a donation to the teacher(s) and retreat staff. Code 316R19.
CE credits NOT available
Will open for registration on 8/7/2019.

Retreat Description:
This silent retreat will focus on cultivating the quality of loving kindness (metta in Pali), infusing our hearts, minds and bodies with a strong caring wisdom. Mindful presence and loving kindness are essential to living a spiritual life. Awareness as developed through mindfulness practice leads to clarity, insight and understanding. Loving kindness practices open the heart, allow a kind embrace of ourselves, and connect us intimately with all of life. The fusion of these qualities helps us to respond more compassionately to the challenges that we encounter in ourselves and in the world.

Qigong is a practice of aligning breath, movement, and awareness for exercise, healing, and meditation. With roots in Chinese medicine, martial arts, and philosophy, qigong is traditionally viewed as a practice to cultivate and balance (chi) or what has been translated as ‘intrinsic life energy.’ It recognizes, cultivates and nourishes the ‘energy’ aspect of our being. Qigong perfectly complements traditional sitting meditation practice and has a long and well-established history connected to contemplative traditions. On this retreat the loving kindness practices will be supported by periods of guided instruction as well as Qigong meditation, and regular meetings with the teachers. All are welcome to attend!

Financial assistance is available for all Spirit Rock residential retreats. Our scholarship rate is $40/night and available for all those with financial hardship with special funds allocated to People of Color (POC), folks with serious medical conditions, and young adults (age 18-26). Scholarship funding is offered on a first-come, first-serve basis. Scholarships are budgeted per retreat and because they are in high demand, can run out quickly. We encourage you to register for a retreat as close as possible to the registration opening date (lotteries are an exception).

A unique scholarship opportunity — the Hemera Contemplative Fellowship! If you are 18 years of age or older with a commitment to service — serving others through your profession — you should consider reviewing the eligibility for this Fellowship. In general, this Fellowship is for those who are full-time in the listed eligible professions and are new to silent residential retreat practice. Follow this link for more detailed information: Hemera Contemplative Fellowships. ONE scholarship allowed per person, per calendar year.