Past Retreats Offered:
ONLINE PROGRAM
Holistic Spirituality: How to Speak to Anyone with Truth and Kindness
Oren Jay Sofer
Half-Day Online Workshop
Saturday, April 25, 2020
The path of awakening taught by the Buddha includes a wide range of practices to calm the body and mind, to heal the heart, and to respond to need with wisdom and compassion. Silent meditation is only one form of training. In our time together, we will use the foundation of inner practice to build a holistic approach to transformation and engaged action.
How can we use our spiritual practice as a resource to respond to the challenges of our times with strength and love? How do we bring qualities of integrity, truth, and kindness into our relationships and conversations, staying true to our values while creating conditions for real dialogue?
In this half-day online workshop, we explored an integrated approach to bringing mindfulness and care to our communication. The tools shared are a combination of the core guidelines for Wise Speech offered by the Buddhist tradition, as well as the contemporary discipline of Nonviolent Communication. Together, these practices form a powerful foundation for insight, compassion, and skill so that our conversations can create meaningful change.
Oren Jay Sofer, a member of the Spirit Rock Teachers Council, teaches meditation and communication retreats and workshops nationally. He is a Certified Trainer of Nonviolent Communication and a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner for the healing of trauma. Oren also holds a degree in Comparative Religion from Columbia University and is the founder of Next Step Dharma. He is the author of Say What You Mean: A Mindful Approach to Nonviolent Communication, and coauthor of Teaching Mindfulness to Empower Adolescents.
THE FACTORS OF AWAKENING AND REWARD BASED LEARNING
A Morning Dharma Talk With Judson Brewer
Recording of Judson Brewer’s Talk
Saturday, February 29
THE ART OF NOT CLINGING
A Day Long With Shaila Catherine
Saturday, January 20, 2020
The Art of Not Clinging is a daylong program that will highlight the subtle dynamics of clinging and not-clinging as we practice the art of letting go. The Buddha described four kinds of clinging: 1) clinging to sensual pleasures, 2) to views and opinions, 3) to rituals and observances, and 4) to the concept of self. Meditators may use these four categories to focus their investigation of attachment. Practices of generosity, contentment, relaxation, mindfulness, and concentration support the experience and expression of not-clinging. The day will include sitting and walking meditation and teachings. It is appropriate for both new and experienced practitioners.
Shaila Catherine is the founder of Bodhi Courses, an online Dhamma classroom, and Insight Meditation South Bay, a center for mindfulness, compassion, and wisdom in Silicon Valley, California.
Shaila began meditating in 1980, and has accumulated more than nine years of silent retreat experience. She has practiced with Western and Asian teachers, and devoted several years to studying with masters in India, Nepal, and Thailand. From 2006-2014 Shaila trained in both samadhi and vipassana under the direction of Venerable Pa-Auk Sayadaw of Myanmar.
Shaila began teaching in 1996. She leads retreats worldwide, and offers online courses.
2019
December 14: Doreen Schweizer, Calming Down and Seeing Clearly
September 28: Peg Meyer and Lee Steppacher, Taking Your Practice Outside
August 10: Ajahn Jayanto, Finding Our Real Home
June 29: A Day of Silent Reflection
May 11: Manny Mansbach, Mindful and Brave: Discovering Courage and Fearlessness in an Age of Heightened Anxiety
March 10: Alexis Santos, When Awareness Becomes Natural: Lessons I Learned from Sayadaw U Tejaniya and Beyond
2018
December 8: Doreen Schweizer, Tis the Season: Joy . . . Its Place in the Ethical and Meditation Practices of the Early Buddhist Insight Tradition A Daylong Retreat with Doreen Schweizer
October 14: Lee Steppacher, Awake in the Wild
September 22: Ajahn Jayanto
May 19: A Day of Silent Reflection
March 10: Rae Hausman, Learning the Skills of Resiliency
January 13: Manny Mansbach, What Would the Buddha Say?: Developing Skillful Speech for Life’s Challenging Conversations
2017
December 9: Doreen Schweizer, Gladdening the Heart
October 14: Lee Steppacher, Awake in Nature: A Daylong Retreat with Lee Steppacher
September 9: Ajahn Jayanto, Buddhism as an Ethical Path
March 26: Shaila Catherine, Developing Right Concentration
January 28: Manny Mansbach, Five Spiritual Powers
2016
November 19: Andrew Olendzki, Untangling Self: A Buddhist Investigation of Who We Really Are
September 10: Ajahn Jayanto
January 24: Shaila Catherine, Liberating Attitudes
2015
December 5: Doreen Schweizer, Practicing Tranquility in a Busy Season
September 26: Ajahn Jayanto, So this is how it is, right here.
June 14: Peg Meyer and Landon Hall, Everyday Mindfulness
March 13-15: Doreen Schweizer, Who Are We? Softening the Edges of Self with Mindfulness and Kindness [Weekend retreat at Wonderwell, Springfield, NH]
2014
December 13: Ajahn Jayanto, Transforming Our Relationship to Difficulty
October 3-5: Leigh Brasington, The Beautiful Mind: Deepening Concentration Through Jhana Practice [Weekend retreat at Wonderwell, Springfield, NH]
February 28-March 2: Doreen Schweizer, Sustaining Mindfulness: Establishing Clear Awareness and Compassion as the Foundation of Our Lives [Weekend retreat at Wonderwell, Springfield, NH]
2013
April: Winnie Nazarko, The Cultivation of Kindness and Wisdom
2012
March: Chas DiCapua, Awakening Within Your Relationships