Events
Introduction to MBSR weekend
March 3 – 5, 2023
Drala Mountain Center
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) is a program of practical, scientifically-supported teachings to reduce stress, facilitate relaxation, and promote physical health and emotional well-being. Inspired by the work of Jon Kabat-Zinn, this retreat offers tools for engaging the demands of our lives, including illness, chronic pain, personal crisis, or the ongoing challenges of a “full catastrophe.” By relating directly with our bodies and emotions, we’ll discover the power of mindfulness to change our lives. Through sitting, walking, and body scan meditation practices- as well as mindful yoga- we will return to our lives better equipped to manage stress.
Recommended for stressed out people from all walks of life.
For more information and to register: INTRO to MBSR
Sitting in Beauty: A Silent Meditation Retreat
April 11 – 15, 2023
Drala Mountain Center
with Janet Solyntjes and Dawn King
Mindfulness and awareness training allows one to fully receive the unpredictable, extraordinary, and sometimes heartbreaking dance of life, as it appears within our own personal experience. The inclination of our heart’s longing for contentment and freedom reflects our innate beauty and wisdom. Opening to this present moment illuminates the vividness of reality, the tenderness of the heart, and the magic of being alive, and prepares us to meet the challenges of this life with awareness and love. It is through this path of opening and softening that we discover our own essential nature, our innate goodness, and the innate goodness of all humanity.
“Whatever exists in us is a natural situation. It is another dimension of natural beauty. People sometimes go to great lengths to appreciate nature by climbing mountains, going on safari to see giraffes and lions in Africa, or taking a cruise to Antarctica. It is much simpler and more immediate to appreciate the natural beauty of ourselves.” Mindfulness in Action, Chögyam Trungpa
The Sitting in Beauty retreat is an intensive 5-day silent meditation program that emphasizes the deep understanding and practice of mindfulness meditation in its most universal and secular expression. In this retreat we will explore the journey of opening and softening through periods of sitting and walking meditation practice, gentle movement exercises, and talks by senior teachers to deepen the understanding of the practice. Each afternoon there will be a period of time to rest or take a walk around the land of Shambhala Mountain Center.
While participants will be in silence for the majority of the retreat, there will also be an opportunity to meet with a teacher to discuss your meditation practice.
For more information and to register: Sitting in Beauty
The Heart of Mindfulness: A Silent Meditation Retreat
June 9 – 16, 2023
Drala Mountain Center
With Janet Solyntjes and Gaylon Ferguson
The Heart of Mindfulness Retreat is a 7-day silent meditation retreat that emphasizes the deep understanding and practice of mindfulness in its most universal expression while respecting and acknowledging its contemplative and spiritual roots.
This week-long silent retreat includes mindfulness meditation practice and instructions, talks by senior teachers, gentle yoga, and contemplative practices.
The retreat is open to all meditators who are looking for an enriching silent retreat experience. It is suitable for mindfulness teachers or aspiring teachers and fulfills the retreat prerequisite for attending many teacher training programs.
Registration opening soon!
Mindful Living: Teachings and Practices from Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
August 3–6, 2023
Drala Mountain Center
Inspired by the teachings of Jon Kabat-Zinn, this 3-day retreat offers both an introduction and a deepening experience of mindfulness, for being more fully present to our lives. Various tools for engaging the demands of our lives and for supporting inquiry into fundamental health and wholeness will be drawn from MBSR — the most universal expression of mindfulness.
Through embodied practices of stillness and movement — including sitting meditation, mindful yoga, mindful eating, and awareness in nature — the ongoing practice of being present to life will be further supported by periods of silence.
Registration coming soon!
Do Nothing: Learning to Live Your Life with Genuine Care
October 8–12, 2023
Drala Mountain Center
with Rob Dube and Janet Solyntjes
The Leading with Genuine Care Leadership Retreat (formerly the donothing Leadership Retreat) offers business leaders, entrepreneurs, and those seeking a more mindful life with the most rewarding challenge they may ever take — a leadership-focused mindfulness and meditation retreat.
Discover why meditation and mindfulness practices can positively impact your life. After slowing down, unplugging and looking within, you’ll grasp why presence and awareness is the greatest gift we can offer ourselves and others.
To find out more and to register: Leadership Retreat
Heart of Mindfulness: 7-day Silent Retreat
December 1 – 8, 2023
Drala Mountain Center
With Janet Solyntjes and Gaylon Ferguson
The Heart of Mindfulness Retreat is a 7-day silent meditation retreat that emphasizes the deep understanding and practice of mindfulness in its most universal expression while respecting and acknowledging its contemplative and spiritual roots.
This week-long silent retreat includes mindfulness meditation practice and instructions, talks by senior teachers, gentle yoga, and contemplative practices.
The retreat is open to all meditators who are looking for an enriching silent retreat experience. It is suitable for mindfulness teachers or aspiring teachers and fulfills the retreat prerequisite for attending many teacher training programs.
Registration opening soon!