Deepening Tranquility and Insight: A Silent Meditation Retreat

During this silent meditation retreat, we will focus on practices that calm the mind and awaken the heart to support the deepening of insight and inner freedom.

“​​One can’t gain profound insight without profound calm.” -Ayya Khema

A silent meditation retreat offers us the unique conditions to allow the mind and heart to settle more deeply, facilitating a renewed sense of connection with our own bodies, hearts, and minds.

The structure of this Insight Meditation retreat includes two guided meditations a day in a beautiful and tranquil setting as well as silent sitting and walking meditation practice and time in nature.

In the mornings we’ll work with settling and stabilizing the mind and in the afternoons, there will be a guided meditation focused on awakening the boundless heart and restoring a sense of calm and tranquility. Throughout our days together we’ll deepen continuity of mindfulness in community as we move between the silent sitting meditation periods and walking meditation or mindful movement.

Each day there will be a Dharma talk to support our embodied understanding as well as small group meetings with the teacher for personalized instruction and support, with time for rest and enjoying nature and all that Hollyhock has to offer. Our daily schedule will also support those who may wish to attend the optional yoga or tai chi classes at Hollyhock.

“I enjoyed the combination of teachings, guided meditations, and solo time. The retreat was also structured so well, with each day building on the next, strengthening our mindfulness muscle.” – Past participant

Please note: The registration fee does not include teacher compensation. This is a dãna-based retreat (see below for details).

A Note on Dãna

Dãna is an ancient Pali word meaning “giving” or “gift.” Dãna is at the heart of the 2,500 year old Buddhist tradition. Going back to the days of the Buddha, he and the monastic community offered the teachings freely to lay people, as a form of dãna. In turn the lay community, through their generosity, or dãna, ensured that their teachers’ basic needs for food, clothing, shelter and medicine were provided.

When the Buddha would give a public discourse, he usually began with teaching on the importance and the benefits of dãna. The act of giving itself is of immeasurable benefit to the giver; it opens up the heart, diminishes for a moment one’s self-absorption and places value on the well-being of others. The key is that the act of giving itself is the natural expression of a connected and loving heart.

The registration fee you pay to attend this retreat covers the basic retreat costs; none of your registration fee is payment to the teacher leading the retreats. Teachers offer the teachings with a spirit of generosity and trust that their lives and work will be supported by those who are receiving the life-giving teachings. This is a real expression of the truth of interdependence.

You may offer dãna to your teacher directly before, during or after the retreat.

Daily Schedule

A detailed schedule will be emailed to you about 30 days prior to your program. Click here to view a sample program schedule.