Programs
Embrace, Expand, Enjoy: The Potent Marriage of Parts Work and Meditation (35 & Under)
Jogen Salzberg
“Do I contradict myself? Very well, then I contradict myself, I am large, I contain multitudes” - W. Whitman Many of us yearn for a vital transformation through our spiritual practices. And our sincerity inevitably brings forth significant challenges to sustaining our aspirations and continuing through the ups and downs. This retreat for practitioners aged […]
Deepening Your Practice: An Insight Meditation Retreat for Experienced Meditators
David Chernikoff
This retreat is for experienced meditators who want to deepen their practice and to listen to what the Thai meditation master Ajahn Chah called “the one who knows.” Ultimately, spiritual maturation involves learning to trust our own inner guidance and resting in the felt realization that we already have what we seek and we already […]
Gathering The Power To Be Open In This World Of Pain And Delight (Men's)
Jeff Collins
the path is whatever passes - no end in itself. the end is, grace - ease - healing, not saving. - Gary Snyder A monk went to see a master named Fayan and said, “My name is Huichao. I ask you, Master, what is Buddha?” Who knows what answer Huichao might have expected, but Fayan’s […]
Great Intimacy: A Meditation and Yoga Retreat
Jeff Collins and Gisela Konrad
“What is Buddha’s Way?” “Great intimacy.” “What is Yoga’s Way?” “Great intimacy.” What is this great intimacy? Soen Nakagawa Roshi wrote, “We are the flowers now blooming in this ever-blooming universe.” Out of nowhere, Life comes forth as you and me, instant by instant, and the great intimacy is the unmediated awareness of the living […]
Mindfulness and the Four Noble Truths
Dave Smith
Within the entire cosmos of Buddhist doctrine, across the many lineages and traditions, no single teaching carries as much weight as that of the Four Noble Truths. It is the most fundamental aspect of Dharma. As Buddhist practices continue to take root in American society and culture, much of the attention has been focused on […]
[AT HOME] Impermanence: A Vipassana and Metta Retreat (60 & over)
DaeJa Napier
As we grow older, as the body ages, we begin to have a more direct awareness of the truth of impermanence. Life begins to reflect the natural changes that occur with ageing, sickness, old age and death. During the process of aging, we are at risk of identifying with concepts and beliefs associated with inevitable […]
Bringing Wisdom, Inner Work, Empathy, and Skillful Responses to Conflicts
Donald Rothberg
In our times, conflicts (which we’ll define as differences in values, goals, views, or strategies and not necessarily involving hostility or aggression) seem increasingly pervasive – in relationships, communities, workplaces, political polarization, and social issues. Differences and conflicts can lead to reactivity – manifesting in avoidance, acting out, frustration, anger, blaming, and/or withdrawal. How do […]
Awareness, Wisdom, and the Heart’s Sure Release
Mark Nunberg
Buddhist awareness practices are skillful means that develop the mind’s natural capacity to open, recognize, and be intimate with the nature of things as they are. During this retreat we will learn to value this non-judging present moment awareness, stabilize it, and allow it to deepen wisdom and insight. This is the Buddha’s path for […]
Compassion Training for Difficult Times
Lama Kathy Wesley
We all have been on a journey these last few years - trying to cope with global conflicts, political upheavals, and pandemic, we are challenged at every turn and can find our spiritual resolve and patience wearing thin. But what if we had a spiritual method that actually thrived on adversity - that reminded us […]
Deep Spiritual Practice in a Chaotic World
Ronya Banks
As we get reports of parts of the human race engaging in painful acts against themselves and one another as the pace of our daily lives continues to speed up, many of us are left with an increasing sense of insecurity and doubt. This is the perfect time to turn towards our spiritual lives for […]
Volunteer Week
Volunteer weeks at Southern Dharma offer an opportunity to deepen practice, build Dharma community, and support the Center's operations and facilities through hands-on projects. Each day will include periods of group meditation instruction and practice, working meditation shifts, meals, free unstructured time, and optional socializing. We will observe partial silence (after 10pm through breakfast). No […]
Earth in Mind: Dharma, Deep Ecology and Land
Rupert Marques
The birds have vanished into the sky. And now the last cloud drains away. We sit together the mountain and I, Until only the mountain remains. - Li Po In our times we live with the possibility of ‘The Great Turning’, the possibility of reweaving the human narrative so that we may live in a […]
The Brilliant Weave of the Brahma Viharas and Emptiness
Lisa Ernst
The Buddha taught that we all have the capacity to abide in the four Brahma Viharas (the divine heart states). These are: Lovingkindness, Compassion, Sympathetic Joy, and Equanimity. If we look deeper, we will see the interplay of emptiness with the Brahma Viharas and how they support each other. Emptiness in Buddhism is the direct […]
[AT HOME] Jhanas, Dependent Origination, and Metta
Leigh Brasington and Rachael O’Brien
Applications are now closed. This retreat will emphasize the application of both the Jhanas (Meditative Absorptions) and Metta (Lovingkindness) as part of a regular sitting practice. The Jhanas are a method of meditation taught in the Theravadan Buddhist tradition. Metta is the first and foundational practice of the four wholesome mind states known as the […]
A Path for Our Times: An Insight Dialogue Retreat
Phyllis Hicks and Nolitha Tsengiwe
When we come into a relationship of acceptance with the immediacy of what's happening, we have supportive conditions for expansion, for loosening identification, and for transforming tension and reactivity into understanding. In this retreat we will investigate how being fully present with habits of turning away from the unpleasant and unwanted clears the way for […]
Lojong: Training in the Awakened Mind
Dr. Hun Lye
"Mahayana Lojong in Seven Points" is a profound set of instructions collected by the Tibetan master Geshe Chekawa in the early 12th century. The heart of Lojong is the training in Bodhicitta - the "Awakened Mind" that embodies wisdom and compassion inseparably and perfectly. While seated meditation is valued – as in all Buddhist traditions […]
Buddhism and Recovery
Kevin Griffin and Greg Pergament
Join us for a unique meditation retreat combining traditional Buddhist practices with recovery and Twelve Step work. Primarily conducted in silence, the retreat focuses on mindfulness meditation and heart practices, with additional interactive exercises, lectures, and meetings exploring ways that Buddhism, recovery, and the Steps can complement each other. The emphasis will be on bringing […]
Zen Mind / Body Zen: The Undoing of Doing
Teijo Munnich and Meredith McIntosh
This retreat for experienced and beginning meditators, is based on the teachings of both Zen Master Dogen and F.M. Alexander. These two deep practices echo one another in embracing body/mind harmony. In our busy lives, even in our meditation practice, we are often not aware of the way we use our bodies. F.M. Alexander recognized how […]
Metta and Awakened Awareness: Developing Loving Awareness: A Retreat for Experienced Practitioners
Donald Rothberg
In this retreat, we will cultivate and increasingly integrate two fundamental practices that help us to access the depths of our being. In the first half of the retreat, we will practice metta or lovingkindness, the steadfast cultivation of the intention of kindness and warmth as our orientation in meditation and in daily activities. In […]
Self-Guided Retreat
Donald Rothberg
Join other experienced practitioners for self-guided practice in Noble Silence, with the support of a resident teacher (Donald Rothberg). Participants must have taken part in at least two 5-day silent meditation retreats (or one 10-day retreat) and have experience with regular, self-supported daily meditation practice. Retreatants are invited to join up to five regularly scheduled […]
Taking Refuge: A Vipassana and Brahma Vihara Retreat
DaeJa Napier
Make an island of yourself, make yourself your refuge; there is no other refuge. Make truth your island, make truth your refuge; there is no other refuge. – Buddha Vipassana, “seeing things as they really are", functions as a mirror reflecting the heart's deepest longing to be free of suffering and its causes. With vipassana […]
Engaging with Compassion and Mindfulness During Difficult Times (LGBTQIA+)
Fresh "Lev" White and Eve Decker
This retreat welcomes all self-identified LGBTQIA+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, intersex, asexual, and beyond) persons for an opportunity to engage in supportive practices that encourage nurturing, healing and connection to self and others. We will utilize teachings from the Buddhist Eightfold Path to guide us towards accessing compassion, self-compassion, clarity, and equanimity. We will […]
Thai Forest Lineage Retreat
John Orr
There have been many Eastern teachers responsible for helping to bring the Dharma to the West. One of those is the Thai Buddhist master, Ajahn Chah, who lived in the 20th century and had a great influence on a whole generation of US-born teachers and practitioners. Ajahn Chah practiced and taught in the Thai forest […]
With Awareness Comes Choice
David McKay
We suffer from that which we cannot see. We each have been trained to accept automated processes of thought within our minds, and the self-defeating 'reality' which these thought patterns create. The result is that we suffer in separation from our authentic nature. Someone who is 'unconscious', who identifies with these thought patterns and cannot […]