2023 DAY-LONG BIPOC ONLINE RETREAT

Day-long Black & Indigenous People of Color ONLINE Retreat

“Indigenous Presence”

Decolonizing Ourselves of Greed, Hatred, Delusion

image by Andrea Smith of Andrea Smith Gallery (andreasmithgallery.com)

with Bonnie Duran & Carol Cano

December 2, 2023

9:00 am – 4:00 pm (PT*)

*PT = Pacific Time (please check for your corresponding time zone)

INTRODUCTION

Many Indigenous, Black and other people of color have experienced intergenerational and present-day trauma from the effects of settler colonialism. The stress of living within the dominant culture can threaten our physical and psychological well-being.

The teachers have experienced this trauma and have found healing and wholeness through the Buddhist practice of Mindfulness infused with Lovingkindness (Metta) meditation. Metta and Mindfulness practices support our connection to ourselves, our ancestors, and to life itself.

Meditation practices cultivate calm and insight. This helps us move through this world with greater wisdom and compassion and to begin to heal ourselves, as well as past and future generations.

The day will begin with instruction and end with talks and some discussion about the teachings. This retreat is offered for Indigenous, Black and other peoples of color from North and South America, and worldwide.

Please feel free to pass this invitation on to BIPOC meditators you know who might be interested in this opportunity. We would be so honored if you would join us and an online community of other practitioners for this retreat.

Please contact Kathy at the Hermitage office (hermitage@mountainhermitage.org) if you have questions about this retreat.

Printable forms are at the bottom of this page.

PREREQUISITES FOR THIS RETREAT

We invite Black & Indigenous People of Color practitioners of all levels. You will need to complete a registration form for the retreat.

TEACHERS

Bonnie Duran met the Dharma in 1982 when she sat a month at Kopan Monastery in Nepal and learned Vipassana in Bodh Gaya India. Since then, she has taken teachings from many western teachers including Marcia Rose, Joseph Goldstein, and Jack Kornfield, as well as Thai, Burmese, and Tibetan Monastic teachers. Bonnie is a graduate of the Insight Meditation Society (IMS)/Spirit Rock Meditation Center (SRMC) retreat teacher-training program. She is now a core-teacher of the SRMC Dedicated Practitioners Program and is on the SRMC Guiding Teachers Council. Bonnie teaches retreats at IMS, Spirit Rock and in other communities, and is also involved in Native American spiritual practices and traditions. Bonnie was introduced to the Jodo Shinshu Buddhist tradition through her partner and is now happily studying and practicing in that tradition as well.

She is a contributor to Hilda Gutiérrez Baldoquin book, Dharma, Color and Culture: New Voices in Western Buddhism and has written for the Harvard Divinity Bulletin, Tricycle, and the Turning Wheel.

Dr. Duran is a Professor Emeritus in the Schools of Social Work and Public Health at the University of Washington and is also faculty at the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute. Her academic work is primarily with Tribal, Urban Indian and International Indigenous communities.

Carol Cano, M.A., began her practice over 30 years ago at Wat Kow Tahm in Thailand and has actively engaged in building communities and teaching Dharma internationally. Carol is Founder and Executive Director of Braided Wisdom, a BIPOC led cross-cultural mindfulness organization. She is a graduate of the 2017-2020 Spirit Rock Meditation Center’s Teacher Training program and a teacher at Spirit Rock often. She is a core teacher and a former board member of East Bay Meditation Center. Carol co-founded Philippine Insight Meditation Community in the Philippines.

Her unique teachings are deeply grounded in Basque, Native American and Buddhist influences that braid the Dharma along indigenous wisdom and Earth-based practices. Her psychology background gives her a unique view into the human condition, which helps her hold community in a compassionate and confident manner. Carol reminds us to keep grounded in our hearts as we uphold spiritual ideals and encourages us to remain balanced within the demands of modern life. Please learn more at https://www.carolcano.com/ and connect with us @BraidedWisdom on Instagram and Facebook.

FEES

In order to assist with various administrative costs, we ask that you pay a modest registration fee of $20 – $45 (sliding scale.) This being said, no one will be turned away from participating in this very special offering. There is no fee for monastics. Any amount paid over $30 (actual cost) is a tax-deductible donation. Please send your registration fee with your registration form. This fee is non-refundable. In the event of specific, unusual emergency circumstances, this can be discussed with The Mountain Hermitage Office Manager after the retreat is concluded.

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.

If you would like to pay by credit card, please contact Kathy at the Mountain Hermitage office: hermitage@mountainhermitage.org

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

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 are held to be beyond any price and have been offered freely since the time of the Buddha. This retreat is offered in that same spirit.

The early teachers received no payment for their instruction. In Buddhist countries, traditionally, it has always been understood that the lay community, through their voluntary generosity (their dana), provide physical support – the basic needs of food, clothing, shelter and medicine – for the monks and nuns. In turn they were/are offered guidance and teachings in their own practice by this monastic sangha.

This practice of Dana has been a very significant pillar in keeping the Dhamma (teachings) alive. The generosity of the laity towards the practical support of the monastic community since ancient times, is what has kept the Dhamma spreading through the world. Western teachers have continued this tradition of offering the teachings freely. In our culture, where no real training exists in living generously, it is a new practice for us in both offering and receiving the Dhamma.

Dana is not only a practical matter; it also plays a crucial role in the spiritual life of a Dhamma practicioner. Generosity is the first of the ten paramis, or qualities of character, to be perfected in spiritual life. The very act of giving is of immeasurable benefit to the giver, for it opens the heart, lessens self-absorption, and serves the well-being of others.

The Mountain Hermitage fees for this retreat only cover basic expenses and operating costs. The teachers offer the Buddha Dhamma without any set fee, and depend on the generosity of their students for the support of their daily life needs. Giving to the teachers, 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 and/or future scholarships.

REGISTRATION

Anyone interested in attending this day-long retreat must have read this document. Then, complete the Registration Form and Waiver of Liability, attach your registration fee, and mail to: The Mountain Hermitage, PO Box 807, Ranchos de Taos, NM 87557. The deadline for registration is November 25, 2023.

You can also download the Word versions of the registration form and the liability waiver, fill it out on your computer, and then email it to: hermitage@mountainhermitage.org If you would like to pay your registration fee online, please contact Kathy at hermitage@mountainhermitage.org.

Incomplete registrations, including those without sufficient payment, will be returned for completion.

Each registration form will be carefully reviewed by the teachers. All registration forms are processed by date received. We will respond within two weeks from receipt of your registration form.