April 2019
We’re pleased to announce that the 2020 schedule of teachers at IMS’s Forest Refuge is now available. We are currently accepting applications for a personal retreat next year at this tranquil center for longer-term practice.
Some 2020 highlights include:
- During January, Sayadaw U Jagara and Shaila Catherine will support retreatants in investigating how a correct observation of our manifold experiences gives rise to wisdom and courage. Priority will be given to anyone applying for the full month of January or longer.
- Throughout May, Rodney Smith and Narayan Liebenson will lead The Magnanimous Heart. As awareness is freed from the bonds of our personal narrative and mental projections, we can cultivate a fearless presence that holds the entirety of life within the magnanimous heart. Priority will be given to those applying for the entire month of May or longer. A lottery will be conducted for stays during this time.
- Then in June, Sayadaw U Vivekananda will offer Satipaṭṭhāna meditation in the Burmese tradition of the Ven. Mahasi Sayadaw. Retreatants will focus on developing continuous mindfulness in sitting, walking and general activities. Priority will be given to anyone applying for the full month of June or longer. A lottery will be conducted.
- In September, Guy Armstrong and Sally Armstrong will teach The Still Heart of Awareness, a course to strengthen our understanding and experience of the nature of awareness. A minimum stay for the full month of September is required. A lottery will also be conducted.
- A number of highly qualified teachers will be in residence during remaining months.
The Forest Refuge is a practice community where stays can range from seven nights to a year or more. With teacher guidance and support, experienced insight meditators can settle into greater depths of practice, strengthening meditative faith and self-reliance.
Financial assistance options are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
As part of our efforts toward greater diversity and inclusion, IMS now reserves a portion of all spaces for people of color. Read details here. In addition, thanks to generous donations, funding is again available to support a number of experienced people of color meditators who wish to sit at the Forest Refuge in 2020.
