The Mountain Hermitage
Two-week Retreat: Self – No Self & the Creative Process
Guiding Teacher: Marcia Rose with Movement Teacher Zuleikha & Writing Teacher Sean Murphy
November 8-22, 2010 at
San Geronimo Lodge in Taos, New Mexico
INTRODUCTION
This very special retreat offers a unique opportunity for experienced Dhamma students to engage in two weeks of practice grounded in the Vipassana teachings and practices with an orientation towards investigating Self – No Self in relation to the creative process. Along with sitting, walking, Dhamma talks, individual practice interviews and some group discussion, we will explore the flow of creative energy in relationship to “self-view” via movement, seeing/drawing, and writing. One need not have any experience with any of these creative modalities to participate in this retreat.
Marcia Rose is the Guiding Teacher for The Mountain Hermitage’s two-week Self No – Self and the Creative Process Retreat. She will be assisted by movement teacher Zuleikha and writing teacher Sean Murphy. The retreat will provide an opportunity to train with the guiding teacher and the assisting teachers in various creative modalities along with the development of a sustained mindfulness and concentration practice. This will contribute to a comprehensive deepening of practice and understanding.
- MOVEMENT: We will begin to discover ways that Self and No-Self show up as we explore letting go into the potential immediacy of moment to moment creative response through the vehicle of the body. It is an opportunity to release into physical experience and follow the visceral response of the moving body.
- SEEING/DRAWING: Seeing/Drawing is a way to achieve intimate touch with the visible world around us, and through it, with ourselves. Our practice will be to receive what is seen without interposing the ’self’, to allow the mind, the eye and the heart to simply reflect like a clear mirror. From this springs the ability to contact things directly and positively, letting the hand (and pencil) follow what the eye sees without the thought of ‘making’ a picture or ‘being’ creative. Our Seeing/Drawing will be the practice of contemplative awareness in relationship to a world that is fully alive. As we begin to draw, suddenly we begin to see. And as we begin to truly see, suddenly we are drawing in a way we may never have experienced before.
- WRITING: No-self is actually where all creation comes from. Words and thoughts arise as though from nowhere — and we can learn to trust the process, and let it inform our creative work. What happens when we let go of ourselves and let the writing arise from this empty space? That’s no-self. That’s our starting place… In practice this means we’ll work with guided meditations, sensory/ mindfulness exercises, and free-writing to touch that deep place in our creative process from which true inspiration springs.
Yogis are expected to maintain sustained and continuous practice during their time at The Mountain Hermitage. Teaching support will consist of six to eight evening Dhamma talks and four to six individual practice interviews during the two weeks. Before each Dhamma talk there will be a renewed yogi group commitment to the refuges and precepts. Yogis will undertake one hour of work meditation daily.
PREREQUISITES FOR THIS RETREAT
Applications for this retreat are required, and will be reviewed by the guiding teacher. Practitioners must have sat three or more 7-10 day retreats.
These retreats must have been led by a recognized teacher. Details of the qualifying retreats, including teachers’ names, dates, location and length of the retreat, must be documented on the application form.
ABOUT THE MOUNTAIN HERMITAGE
The Mountain Hermitage offers a uniquely supportive space of solitude and silence for qualified individuals who wish to participate in this unique retreat. Our foundation practice will be Vipassana, which may at times be supplemented by concentration or other awareness practices.
In order to benefit from this environment, applicants need to be at least somewhat self-sustaining in their practice and be comfortable in unbroken silence and solitude. All participants must be mentally stable and physically able to care for themselves. Everyone must have health insurance or be able to cover their expenses in case of illness or medical emergencies. Any special needs must be discussed and agreed to in advance, as the staff is very small and cannot accommodate high levels of support for any individual.
The retreat will be limited to 16 practitioners, so early application is suggested. It is asked that retreatants commit themselves fully to their stay. All business and family obligations should be taken care of prior to arrival so that practice can be uninterrupted.
TEACHERS
Marcia Rose lives in Taos, NM. She is the founding and guiding teacher of The Mountain Hermitage and founding teacher of Taos Mountain Sangha. She has been studying and practicing Buddhist teachings and meditation with Asian and Western teachers since 1970, primarily in the Theravada-Vipassana (Path of the Elders) tradition. Her own teaching reflects a clear influence from the Burmese Pa-Auk Forest Monastery and Mahasi Vipassana lineages. She has also studied and practiced in the Dzogchen Tibetan Buddhist tradition with Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche, and Tsoknyi Rinpoche. Marcia was resident teacher for staff at the Insight Meditation Society (IMS) in Barre, MA from 1991-1995. She continues teaching at IMS as an occasional visiting teacher and is also a regular visiting teacher at The Forest Refuge in Barre, MA. Marcia also teaches Concentration, Vipassana and Metta retreats in other U.S. and international venues, and is dedicated to offering these ancient and timeless teachings in ways that make them accessible and authentic for contemporary culture.
International performance artist and teacher Zuleikha inspires awareness of body, mind and spirit though her creation of movement technology based in traditional and contemporary dance, music, rhythmic language and mystical traditions of east and west. She offers one-woman performances and also collaborates with world musicians and poets. Zuleikha is the founder and director of the NPO, The Storydancer Project and is the recipient of the Humanitarian Award from Pediatric Nursing Journal for her work with women and children suffering from the trauma of war, disease, poverty, and loss of family. (www.storydancer.com)
Sean Murphy holds an MFA in Writing from the Naropa Institute, and teaches seminars in writing, meditation, and creativity for many organizations, including his own Big Sky Writing Workshops and the University of New Mexico in Taos. He is the author of One Bird, One Stone, a chronicle of Zen practice in America, as well as three novels. His debut, The Hope Valley Hubcap King, won the Hemingway Award for a First Novel. Sean has been a practitioner of Zen Buddhism for more than 20 years.
Besides the guiding teacher and the assisting teachers, the staff of this two-week Hermitage retreat will consist of a resident retreat manager (the point of contact in case of any difficulties) and a retreat cook. There will be three nutritious vegetarian meals per day.
THE RETREAT FACILITY
San Geronimo Lodge is situated among fruit trees along the banks of the Acequia Madre, and provides the privacy, quiet, and sense of harmony that is most conducive to intensive practice. There is a spacious room for the movement, drawing, and writing practices, a beautiful meditation hall, and indoor and outdoor walking areas.
The Mountain Hermitage will have exclusive use of San Geronimo Lodge during the two-week period of the Self – No Self retreat, and all retreatants will have their own room and bathroom. Each room is spacious enough to allow for both sitting and walking meditation for those who wish to spend some time practicing in a more secluded setting.
The creative practice room, meditation hall, indoor walking spaces, dining room, kitchen and bedrooms are all within one building. There is one wheelchair-accessible double bedroom to allow for an attendant, if needed.
DAILY SCHEDULE
The retreat schedule will consist of group events such as meals and Dhamma talks, along with periods of movement practice, seeing/drawing practice, and writing practice. The schedule will also include periods of sitting and walking. We will begin with two days of intensive sitting and walking practice. Between each three-day period of the creative modalities, there will be a full day of sitting and walking practice.
5:45 am Group sit with chanting
6:30 am Breakfast
7:30 am Work period
8:30 am Reflection – Sit
9:15 am Movement of Seeing-Drawing or Writing Session
10:45 am Sit
11:30 am Walk or individual practice interviews
12:15 pm Lunch
2:15 pm Sit
2:45 pm Movement or Seeing/Drawing or Writing Session
4:00 pm Sit
4:45 pm Walk or individual practice interviews
5:15 pm Tea/Light Supper
7:15 pm Dhamma talk or more movement, or drawing, or writing practice
9:00 pm Sit or walk
9:30 pm Rest/Sleep or continuing practice
FEES
Fees are on a sliding scale to allow you to pay according to your means. Our actual cost for the two weeks per retreatant is $975. A portion of our scholarship funds is being allocated for this retreat to allow us to continue to offer the mid and low ranges on the sliding scale. Please pay as much as you are able to allow others to attend who need to pay less. Any amount above $975 will be gratefully received and treated as a tax-deductible donation.
$875 (low) $975 (actual cost) $1,075 (benefactor)
Additional scholarship funds are available. Please fill out a scholarship application form and send it with your application form. Qualifying applicants must pay at least $425, or whatever they able to between that and the low end of the sliding scale. The Mountain Hermitage will gratefully receive donations to our scholarship fund to enable those in financial need to attend this retreat. Donations are tax-deductible and should be marked ‘Scholarship Fund’.
DANA
The retreat fees only cover basic expenses and operating costs. The teacher(s) offer the Buddha Dhamma without any set fee, and totally depend on DANA – on the generosity of their students and benefactors – for the support of their daily life needs.
DANA, an ancient Pali word meaning generosity, giving, or gift, is central to the 2,600-year-old tradition of Buddhism. The teachings of the Buddha have been offered freely since the time of the Buddha. There was and is no way to put a price on the teachings of the truth – they are valuable beyond any fee one could set.
At the end of the retreat, envelopes will be provided for you to offer Dana to the teachers. Giving to the teacher from the heart, whatever feels appropriate, is the practice of Dana. You may also wish to offer dana to the staff or to the Hermitage itself to support operating expenses or future scholarships.
Another way to support the Hermitage is to donate all or part of the cost of a meal during the retreat.
USE OF FEES
Your fees for the Self – No Self & the Creative Process Retreat will be used to pay for: rental of the San Geronimo Lodge and attached expenses; other general retreat expenses; a retreat cook; a small stipend for the retreat manager; a small parsonage to the teachers to help cover ongoing home expenses for the duration of the retreat; teacher transportation.
DEPOSIT
Please send your deposit with your application. The deposit is: $350
The deposit will not be banked until your registration is confirmed and will be applied to the total fee for those accepted to attend. The deposit will be returned in full to those not accepted, or to those who are on a waiting list at the time that the retreat begins.
PAYMENTS
The full deposit must accompany your application, even if you are requesting scholarship funds. No monies will be banked until you are accepted on the retreat.
The balance of the retreat fee is due when you arrive for the retreat, or you can mail the balance to us in advance. If possible, we appreciate you paying the full fee (deposit plus balance) at the time of application or on acceptance, as this improves our efficiency. However this is not necessary.
Please pay by check or money order in US funds, drawn on a US bank. We cannot accept foreign cash or bank drafts, but we can accept international money orders in US dollars.
Checks/money orders should be made payable to THE MOUNTAIN HERMITAGE.
CANCELLATION POLICY
Cancellation fees apply to all confirmed registrations.
Cancellations received on or before August 31, 2010: your deposit will be returned minus a $75 cancellation fee.
Cancellations received between August 31 and September 22, 2010: your deposit will be returned minus a $150 cancellation fee.
Cancellations received between September 22 and October 22, 2010: your deposit will be returned minus a $250 cancellation fee.
Cancellations received on or after October 22, 2010, including non-attendance at the retreat: your deposit cannot be refunded. If you have already paid the balance, then that balance will be refunded minus the $350 cancellation fee/deposit. CANCELLATION FEES WILL BE APPLIED TO THE MOUNTAIN HERMITAGE SCHOLARSHIP FUND (after the cost of the retreat is covered).
In the event of specific, unusual emergency circumstances, the cancellation policy can be discussed with The Mountain Hermitage Administrative Assistant after the retreat is concluded.
If you attend the retreat but for some reason decide on your own to leave early, the deposit and balance you have paid cannot be refunded to you.
APPLICATION
Anyone interested in attending the retreat must read this document and the separate Practice Guidelines document. Then, complete the Application form and Waiver of Liability, attach your deposit, and mail to: The Mountain Hermitage, PO Box 807, Ranchos de Taos, NM 87557.
Applications and deposits are requested by August 31, 2010. Late applications will be considered on a space available basis. Applications will be accepted only by mail, not by phone, fax, or e-mail, because they must be accompanied by the appropriate deposit. Incomplete registrations, including those without sufficient deposit, will be returned for completion.
Each application will be carefully reviewed. In some cases, a personal or phone interview will be conducted with the guiding teacher prior to determination of suitability for this type of practice. All applications are processed by date received. We will respond within four weeks from receipt of your application.
If your application is not accepted for this retreat, your deposit will be returned.
WAIT LIST
Places are limited to 16 practitioners, so early application is advised. Once the retreat is full, you will be notified and placed on a wait list, and we will contact you if a place opens up. If it does not, then your deposit will be returned.
If you are placed on the wait list and you then cancel your registration before a space has become available, your deposit will be returned.
If you are placed on a wait list and are unable to attend the retreat, please let us know immediately. As long as your name remains on a list, we assume you wish to attend. If a space becomes available, we will automatically confirm your registration. Once you are confirmed for a retreat, you are liable for applicable cancellation fees if you subsequently cancel.
