RETREATS
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Item description
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with Victoria Cary
For those who identify as LGBTQIA+. The Rainbow (LGBTQIA+) Sangha is a weekly gathering for self-identified practitioners within marginalized gender and sexuality groups such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, two-spirit, and gender non-conforming.
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with Victoria Cary & René Rivera
Join us for a six-night silent retreat in beloved community on the beautiful land of Vallecitos. For this 5th annual LGBTQIA+ Community you are invited into deep refuge in relationship to the land, dhamma, community and our capacity to awaken together. Guided by the wisdom of the land, we will cultivate our capacity to meet the conditions of this life by exploring some of the essential truths of existence the Buddha illuminated: the underlying unsatisfactoriness of life, things being inconstant flux, and the illusion of a permanent fixed self. We will explore these characteristics of our experience through a queer lens, and held in the bountiful care and compassion of the land.
We will offer Dhamma talks, still and walking meditation, guided exploration on the land, individual and small group discussion, and chanting. These practices will be offered mostly outdoors, in a container of silence and nurturing spaciousness, making the way for us to connect with ourselves, wild nature, and deepen our connection to community.
This retreat is appropriate to all practitioners new and experienced. We encourage BIPOC, Trans, Non-binary, and Gender Non-conforming participants. This is a retreat for the LGBTQIA+ community. If you do not identify as such, we are happy to help you find another Vallecitos retreat.
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With Victoria Cary and Pawan Bareja
In the midst of life’s constant demands, it’s easy to lose touch with what truly supports us and what frees our heart from being caught in suffering. This weeklong Insight retreat is an invitation to gently turn inward, guided by kind awareness and curiosity.
Together, we’ll explore the Buddha’s teachings that reconnect us with our innate resilience, strength, clarity, and peace. Rather than turning away from our experience, we’ll practice meeting it fully, uncovering the simple truth of living in harmony with the way things are.
Held in the nurturing land of Vallecitos, this silent retreat offers us a space to step out of the habit of constant doing and rediscover the quiet power of simply being—present, open, and grounded.
Guidance will be offered in Insight Meditation and the Brahma Viharas, supported through sitting, standing, walking, lying down, practices. The retreat also includes daily Dharma talks and individual or small group practice meetings. To support a quiet and contemplative environment, the retreat will be held in noble silence. This retreat is appropriate for beginners and advanced practitioners alike. Everyone is welcome!
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with Victoria Cary
This evening's offering will include a sitting meditation and a dharma talk with Victoria Cary in person and on Zoom, with Victoria present in the meditation hall. There are 2 ways to attend this offering:
1. To attend in person, there is no need to register—please simply show up! To support the shared container of practice, we encourage participants to stay for the entire program when possible. We understand that life circumstances sometimes require an early departure, and if so, we simply ask that you leave quietly after the meditation and before the talk to minimize any disruption.
2. To attend online, simply click here. If prompted for a passcode, please use 81301. Alternatively, if you do not have a computer, you may phone in by tapping here for smartphones +17193594580,,85358951031#. Or, if you are on a non-smartphone, dial 719-359-4580, then meeting ID: 853 5895 1031# and the # sign when asked for your participant ID.
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With Anushka Fernandopulle, Victoria Cary, Gullu Singh
The path of Insight Meditation, rooted in the Buddha’s early teachings, offers a time-tested way to cultivate resilience, clarity, and peace. In this retreat, we’ll bring these teachings to life—developing mindfulness, lovingkindness, and a deep investigation into the causes of suffering throughout the day. Held in silence and simplicity, the retreat environment supports the heart’s natural capacity to meet all experience with wisdom and compassion.
We’ll draw from stories and teachings of the early Buddhist tradition, connecting to a lineage of practitioners who have preserved these liberating practices for generations. Through a blend of guided and independent meditation, participants will be supported in developing a step-by-step deepening of awareness. This retreat is suitable for both newcomers and seasoned meditators seeking to refresh their foundation in Insight practice.
Assistant Teacher: Margrit Pittman-Polletta
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Designed for self-identified womxn of Black African Ancestry only
With Amana Brembry Johnson, Noliwe Alexander, Alisa Dennis, Victoria Cary
In the stillness of the heart, the mind finds rest and a deep and luminous wisdom begins to stir and open to a clarity that can guide us toward healing and inner freedom. In quietude it is possible to recognize and discard the trappings that lead towards confusion and turmoil. During this retreat, we will attune to the Seven Gates of Awakening. In mindful presence, we will practice investigation with curiosity, and balance wise energy with compassionate rest. As we learn to invite and infuse the heart with joy, the qualities of tranquility, concentration, and mental/emotional calm begin to follow.
Our time together will begin with intentional community building and unfold into periods of silent sitting and walking, meditation instruction, daily embodied movement, Dharma talks, and meetings with teachers. Together, we will listen deeply, steady the heart, and open to the possibility of awakening—even in a world that trembles.
This retreat is silent except for teacher-led Q&A, small groups, or other practice meetings.
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With Victoria Cary, Tara Mulay, Devin Berry
The Buddha taught that whatever the mind frequently inclines toward becomes the tendency of the heart. This teaching highlights the vital role of cultivating mental habits that support our well-being, deepen our practice, and open the way to liberating insight. Among these qualities are saddhā (faith), viriya (energy/courage), sati (mindfulness), passaddhi (tranquility), and upekkhā (equanimity). These beautiful factors not only steady the heart and mind, but also serve as essential conditions for clarity, and wisdom.
Held in noble silence, the retreat provides a steady and supportive space for deep investigation and sustained inner stillness. Daily practice will include Dharma talks, opportunities for questions, and meetings with teachers. This retreat is open to both experienced practitioners and those who are newer to the path.
This retreat is silent except for teacher-led Q&A, small groups, or other practice meetings.
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With Mark Coleman, Victoria Cary, Kirsten Rudestam
Like the Buddha, people for millennia have sought refuge, clarity, and wisdom in nature. On this silent, outdoor retreat set in the serenity of the hills and meadows at Spirit Rock, we explore potent awareness and sensory-based meditations that open us to insight, interconnection, and peace.
With receptive, embodied mindfulness, we’ll attune to nature’s quiet teachings on change, letting go, and the deep interdependence of all life. As we listen closely, nature reveals not only joy and wonder, but also our innate capacity for resilience and compassionate action.
During our time together, there will be nature-based stillness and movement practice, Dharma talks, and group meetings, as well as time to explore the beauty of nature with contemplative presence in community. Be prepared for unexpected delight, mystery, silence, and illumination.
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With Anushka Fernandopulle, John Martin, Victoria Cary
Explore Buddhist practices and teachings of liberation in our LGBTQIA+ and GNC (Gender Non-Conforming) community. Together, we will practice mindfulness and heart-fulness, embracing all of our experience with loving awareness and deep acceptance. There will be an emphasis on cultivating a continuity of awareness in all activities (sitting, stillness, standing, walking, movement, eating) with a relaxed and gentle presence. Through these practices, we will explore what true refuge means for us individually and for our community.
Suitable for both beginners and experienced practitioners, this retreat is silent except for teacher-led Q&A, small groups, or other practice meetings.
Assistant Teacher:Mario Castillo
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With Victoria Cary, Erin Treat, Bob Stahl and Lienchi Tran
This silent meditation retreat is grounded in the early Buddhist tradition and connects us to a living lineage that has preserved these liberating practices from the time of the Buddha. The Buddha offered clear instructions for liberation through insight, and together we will cultivate mindfulness and clear knowledge through direct attention to the body, and mind. The emphasis throughout the retreat is on learning and applying these teachings through kind sustained attention rather than theory.
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With Victoria Cary
The Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Sangha is a bi-weekly gathering of self-identified BIPOC practitioners who meditate together and explore the teachings of the Buddha in the light of personal experience.
Each bi-weekly session offers a short talk, guided meditation, and/or a silent sit for 30 - 40 minutes. Some gatherings add a 10 - 15 minute question and response period to help support the practice.
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Registration Coming Soon
with Victoria Cary
For those who identify as LGBTQIA+. The Rainbow (LGBTQIA+) Sangha is a weekly gathering for self-identified practitioners within marginalized gender and sexuality groups such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, two-spirit, and gender non-conforming.
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Registration Opens Soon
With Chas DiCapua and Victoria Cary. Assisted by Gina LaRoche.
Movement by Éowyn Ahlstrom.
The teachings of the Buddha remind us that when we meet our direct experience with kind and friendly awareness, we open the door to rest deeply right where we are. Through practice, we learn to offer loving attention to what is present—just as it is.
As we bring this tender awareness to the body, our attention naturally expands to include the entire somatic field, including both the physical body and the heart-mind (citta). We learn to move through our inner landscape with gentle presence, softening the body and meeting what arises with kindness and curiosity.
This retreat will offer a supportive rhythm of sitting and walking meditation, dharma talks, meetings with teachers, and space for questions and reflection. An optional daily period of mindful movement will be offered by Éowyn Ahlstrom. All are welcome.