Note: Oren is sponsoring this retreat, but not teaching
Residential Silent Meditation Retreat
This 4-day, silent residential retreat will explore the practice of Insight Meditation, the direct practice of moment-to-moment mindfulness. This retreat provides a valuable opportunity to deepen the skills of awareness and to cultivate inner freedom. Participants will deepen their understanding and learn to find balance and freedom within the flow of change. DaRa Willams and devon hase will teach this retreat, and will offer guidance in developing an attitude of kindness, relaxation, and inquiry towards oneself, one’s experience, and life in general.
This retreat is open to all levels of experience and will include periods of sitting and walking meditation, Dharma talks, and small group practice discussion. See the welcome message below from devon, who is co-teaching this retreat.
NOTES: Oren will not be teaching this retreat this year due to family obligations. This retreat will take place at a Christian retreat center, which has significant religious iconography and images throughout the facility. We recognize that this may be challenging to some, due to the complexity of both personal experiences and collective history. We invite you to make a clear and informed decision about whether or not you feel comfortable and willing to participate at this retreat setting.
About Registration Fees: The cost to run this retreat is fixed at $500 per person. Your retreat registration fees cover room, board, and basic expenses for hosting the retreat. Scholarships are available pending donations to our scholarship fund. (Apply for a scholarship here). There will be an opportunity to offer a donation to the teachers. (You can read more about this practice here.)
COVID Safety: All participants will be required to take an antigen test the day of the retreat. (To reduce costs, please bring your own test). Vaccination is not required to attend this retreat. Masks are optional. Please read this document for more information on COVID protocols.
Retreat full - please join short waitlist
This retreat is currently full. We encourage you to join our SHORT waitlist. There are often cancellations, and it’s likely that you may still be able to join the retreat. Fill out the short form below to add your name to the waitlist.
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion:
To help create a diverse sangha, we are reaching out to different communities, holding spaces specifically for Black / Indigenous / POC participants, and trying a community-sourced scholarship fund to reduce financial barriers. To help create a more inclusive and diverse retreat environment:
We ask that those registering share personal, demographic information, which helps us to create a more diverse retreat;
We hold a certain number of places on this retreat for those who self-identify as Black, Indigenous, or Persons of Color. When the retreat fills, we give priority to those on the waitlist who self-identify as BIPOC;
We invite you to consider offering a contribution to our scholarship fund (whether you are attending the retreat or not), to support those with less access to resources to be able to attend.
Financial Support:
To request a scholarship, please complete the scholarship form here. We will review applications on May 1 and aim to notify applicants by May 7th. All applications received after May 1 will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Because there are fixed costs to run this retreat, scholarships are dependent on the availability of funds through donations.
About the Teachers
DaRa Williams
DaRa Williams has practiced Insight Meditation for more than 25 years. She completed the Spirit Rock/IMS/IRC Teacher Training, and serves on the Spirit Rock Teachers Council, and as an Associate Guiding Teacher at IMS. DaRa is a trainer and wellness coach, and has been a clinician and administrator in the mental health field for over 25 years. She is a certified Focusing Oriented Therapist and a practitioner and trainer of Aboriginal Focusing Oriented Complex Trauma Therapy.
Devon Hase
Devon Hase began intensive meditation training in 2000. After spending a decade teaching English and social studies in high school and college classrooms, she entered a two-year period of retreat. She has studied at monasteries in Nepal and India, and practices in the Insight and Vajrayana traditions. Currently, Devon teaches at the Insight Meditation Society, Spirit Rock, and throughout North America and Europe. Along with her life partner nico, she co-authored their first book, How Not to Be a Hot Mess: A Survival Guide for Modern Life, which offers six really good pieces of semi-Buddhist advice to keep you anchored and steady amidst the chaos of modern life. Devon loves long retreat and is passionate about creative ways to bring depth practice into the daily spin of things. She now lives together with nico in urban retreat in her hometown of Ashland, Oregon, splitting each week between teaching and practice.
Dr. Kimberly Grocher
Dr. Kimberly Grocher (PhD) provides psychotherapy, executive coaching, and consultation services in numerous settings in the Baltimore/Washington DC Metro area, South Florida, and New York City including inpatient and outpatient mental health/substance abuse facilities, sub-acute/long-term care, corporations and private practice. She completed yoga teacher training at Yoga Haven in Scarsdale, NY and she is a qualified Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) teacher, as well as a graduate of the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program facilitated by Tara Brach and Jack Kornfield. Her research focuses on mind-body therapies to improve health outcomes for Black women.
Frequently Asked Questions
I need to miss part of the retreat. Can I still attend?
No. Participants must attend the entire retreat from beginning to end.
What is your cancellation policy?
Space on this retreat is limited and our cancellation policy is determined by our contract with the venue. A full refund (less a $50 administrative fee) is available if you cancel 60 days or more in advance. If you cancel less than 60 days but more than 30 days, we will refund your tuition (less admin fees) if we are able to fill your spot. No refund is available if you cancel 30 days or less prior to the retreat. Thank you for understanding the limitations of this privately hosted retreat.
Are there pre-requisites? I’ve never attended a silent meditation. Is this appropriate for me?
There are no pre-requisites to attend this retreat and meditators of all levels/experience are welcome. That said, we generally recommend that you attend at least one or more meditation daylong retreats that emphasize continued sitting and walking meditation. This will give you a sense of both the challenges and rewards of putting aside all other activities and distractions and meditating for many hours a day.
I’ve never done a retreat before practice. Is this retreat appropriate?
Yes. This retreat will introduce you to the basics of Insight Meditation.
I can’t afford the registration fee. Do you provide scholarships?
The registration fees cover our cost for running the retreat, and are set by the venue. We deeply value making this retreat and these practices accessible to everyone regardless of financial means. If you are unable to afford the registration fee, please complete our scholarship application form here.
What are the donations? Why doesn’t my registration fee go to the teachers?
These teachings have been shared freely for generations. In keeping with the Buddhist tradition, we do not charge money for spiritual teachings. The registration fees cover only the basic expenses for running the retreat (room and board, incidental travel, etc.) Those who would like are welcome to offer an additional contribution to support the teachers directly at the end of the retreat. We will talk more about this practice at the retreat and be available to answer any questions you have.