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July 2024

Lisa Schumacher ~ Let Love Lead ~ One Day Retreat in Bay Area

Saturday, July 20, 2024 @ 10:30am - 4:30pm, IN-PERSON
Private country home Fairfax, CA

Within your heart is the perfect refuge of the pure light of Love. Here is where freedom is; it is your true nature. To give yourself to Love and to live for the Truth requires that your attention is aligned with the song of your heart. We will spend the day together, bowing to what is sacred within and celebrating the simplicity of staying true to what you love.

Lisa Schumacher: Lisa grew up in Colusa, CA, and attended college at San Luis Obispo in the 1980's. After she moved to Southern Oregon in the early 90s, a friend invited her to a video satsang with Gangaji. Upon hearing Gangaji say "Be your Natural Self", Lisa's heart caught on fire and she fell into a deep bow of surrender. That meeting revealed to her the absolute simplicity of the natural, living truth of Love, inseparable from who one is. Lisa moved to Bolinas in 1999 to be closer to Gangaji and the vibrant community around her. In 2006, Lisa was asked by Gangaji to meet with people and share Satsang. She has held meetings in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and North America. She's also a long-time student of Eli Jaxon-Bear, Gangaji's husband, and a founding teacher of the Eli's "Leela School of Awakening". Lisa is the author of "The Stone I Love", a book of poetry inspired by Gangaji, available on her website and for purchase at the gathering.

In Lisa's meetings, she invites you to sit close and inquire about your awakening, your spiritual questions, and the unfolding truth. The teaching is in the tradition of Gangaji, who is a student of Papaji, who had his awakening at the feet of Ramana Maharshi.

Lisa's website: satsangwithlisa.org

The meeting will be from 10:30am to 4:30pm, with a break for lunch.
Please bring your own lunch, or feel free to go into town to one of the restaurants or to Good Earth Natural Foods.

Pre-registration required, as space is limited.
Registration closes at 5 pm on July 19th
Sliding Scale: $60 to $120
No one turned away for lack of funds.

For inquiries contact LocalEvents@opencirclecenter.org
Location:
The meeting will be held at a private home in the Fairfax hills, with views of Mount Tam and hiking trails.
Address and directions will be provided upon registration.

If you have symptoms of a viral infection, or have had a recent
Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

We also have an Open Meeting with Lisa, July 18th, in Berkeley.

Find out more »

September 2024

Prayers for the Future ~ Satsang & Kirtan

Tuesday, September 10, 2024 @ 7:00pm

Satsang & Kirtan
with Adam Bauer & Christine Marie

Co-sponsored by Open Circle

Join us for an extraordinary gathering of heart, mind, and spirit as we come together for Prayers for the Future, a special satsang and kirtan featuring global chant artist Adam Bauer and yogini Christine Marie. This event is a call to unite in soulful chanting, deep reflection, and visionary summoning of a world we want to live into.

Highlights:

- Kirtan: Be together in the power of the chant led by Adam Bauer, a renowned kirtan artist who weaves together ancient mantras, soulful melodies, and heartfelt devotion to uplift and connect us all.

- Satsang: Dive into a space of inner exploration and wisdom sharing. Through guided meditation and contemplative dialogue, we wil connect with our clearest hearts to envision our highest possible future.

Come prepared to chant, listen, share, and co-create as we set our intentions and pray for a future that honors the highest potential of humanity and our planet.

Open to all who feel called to join in this sacred work of visioning and manifesting a future filled with light, harmony, and grace.

In community, in love, and in action.

Pre-registration required, as space is limited.
Donation Requested. Pay what you can.
RSVP by REGISTRATION HERE & DONATE AT DOOR WHEN YOU ARRIVE.

.

For inquiries contact LocalEvents@opencirclecenter.org
Location:
The meeting will be held at a private home in the Fairfax hills, with views of Mount Tam and hiking trails.
Address and directions will be provided upon registration.

If you have symptoms of a viral infection, or have had a recent
Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

Find out more »

John Prendergast ~ “How Do You Unenlighten Yourself?” ~ Bay Area Daylong Retreat

Saturday, September 21, 2024 @ 10:00am - 4:30pm, IN-PERSON
Private country home Fairfax, CA

Our true nature is inherently open, wakeful, and loving; however, it is veiled by our conscious and subconscious identification with conditioning. In this daylong gathering, we will pointedly explore how our core limiting beliefs and their corresponding subtle somatic contractions sustain the sense of being a separate self. The day will include guided and silent meditation, meditative inquiry, a talk, and experiential conversations.

John Prendergast, Ph.D is a spiritual teacher, retired psychotherapist, and retired Adjunct Professor of Psychology at CIIS, well known for his pioneering work in integrating non-dual wisdom and psychotherapy. He studied with the European sage Jean Klein for many years, as well as with Adyashanti, who gave him dharma transmission in 2023. He is the author of The Deep Heart (2019), In Touch (2015), and a new book, Your Deepest Ground: A Guide to Embodied Spirituality (March, 2025) from Sounds True.

www.listeningfromsilence.com
YouTube channel

The meeting will be from 10:00am to Noon and 2:00pm to 4:30pm, with a break for lunch.
Please bring your own lunch, or feel free to go into town to one of the restaurants or to Good Earth Natural Foods.

Pre-registration required, as space is limited.
Registration closes at 5 pm on Sept. 20th

Suggested donation: $75
(Any amount acceptable. No one turned away for lack of funds.)
PRE-REGISTER HERE & PAY AT DOOR WHEN YOU ARRIVE.
(Cash or Check only)
This event is Co-sponsored by Open Circle & the Schwartz Family Trust.
All proceeds, above covering event costs, will go to the
Schwartz Family Trust to support Rob Schwartz’s vision of retaining
his house and property to be available as an Open Circle retreat facility.

Event donations will go directly to the Schwartz Family Trust, rather than to Open Circle.
If you want to make larger donations for this project, you can do so at the event, or contact us
for more information on how to make larger donations (or loans, or otherwise support this project).

For inquiries contact LocalEvents@opencirclecenter.org

Location:
The meeting will be held at a private home in the Fairfax hills, with views of Mount Tam and hiking trails.
Address and directions will be provided upon registration.

If you have symptoms of a respiratory infection, or have had a recent
Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

Find out more »

Louise Kay ~ Embodied Awareness (In-Person & Livestream)

Thursday, September 26, 2024 @ 7:00pm~9:00pm
First Presbyterian Church of San Rafael (& Livestream), 1510 Fifth Avenue
San Rafael, CA & LIVESTREAM Worldwide, California United States
+ Google Map

Open Circle is hosting a series of events with Louise Kay in various locations ~
In-Person attendance & Livestream available:

Sebastopol, CA satsang: Sept. 22nd (2-4 pm)
Berkeley, CA satsangs Sept. 24th (7-9 pm)
San Rafael, CA satsang: Sept. 26th (7-9 pm)
Berkeley, CA satsangs Sept. 27th (7-9 pm)
DAYLONG...
Sept. 28th, Berkeley, CA (10:30am-4:30pm)

Click here to access more details & registration for ALL events.

Sept. 26th in San Rafael....

You're invited to join Louise Kay for a 2 hour meeting in Truth. During this event Louise will share her Embodied Awareness practice with you; a practice which supports the direct recognition of one's true nature through self-inquiry, as well as the integration of unprocessed energies and emotions held in the body. When employed with consistency this practice allows one to live in presence in an integrated way and to become a vessel through which higher consciousness can flow more freely, bringing joy to every aspect of life.

Alongside like-minded community you will be supported to surrender fully into the now, dis-identify from the conceptual self and open up to your true nature, pure consciousness, to discover an ever-present dimension of peace.

Suggested Donation: $15 - $30
No one turned away for lack of funds.
No pre-registration for In-Person Attendance. Pay at door when you arrive.
In-person attendees can sign up for the recording at the event.

If you have covid-like symptoms, or have had a recent Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

Find out more »

November 2024

Adam Chacksfield ~ Awareness, Love, Desire ~ Bay Area Daylong Retreat

Saturday, November 9, 2024 @ 10:30am - 4:30pm, IN-PERSON
Private country home Fairfax, CA

We get to put down the burden of trying to be someone, or pushing ourselves along to some imagined destination. We’re already whole, and every part of us deserves love. We’re invited to allow the juicy flow of our authentic desire to enrich, inspire, and create our life. This immersion in the potent field of loving awareness will include explorations that organically deepen our connection to the vitality and energy of our desire.

Adam Chacksfield is devoted to empowering people to thrive inside awareness, love, and desire rather suffering inside shame and fear. He leads retreats and workshops in North America and Europe, and coaches individuals and couples. Adam is the creator of several courses including Falling Open, Erotic Embodiment & Intimacy, and Transforming Conflict into Deeper Intimacy. He started his spiritual teaching and coaching in 2010 with the support and encouragement of nondual teacher, Peter Fenner. Adam also trained with the Somatica Institute, and now offers experiential erotic embodiment and intimacy coaching using the Somatica Method.

More about Adam: www.adamchacksfield.com

The meeting will be from 10:30am to 4:30pm, with a break for lunch.
Bring your own lunch, or drive 5 minutes into town where there are restaurants, as well as the Good Earth Natural Foods Store that has a full hot and salad bar, plus deli.

Pre-registration required, as space is limited.
Registration closes at 5 pm on Nov. 8th
Sliding Scale: $60 to $120
No one turned away for lack of funds.

For inquiries contact LocalEvents@opencirclecenter.org
Location:
The meeting will be held at a private home in the Fairfax hills, with views of Mount Tam and hiking trails.
Address and directions will be provided upon registration.

If you have symptoms of a viral infection, or have had a recent
Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

Find out more »

POTLUCK DHARMA ~ with Joryu Myosei & Riyaz Motan

Saturday, November 23, 2024 @ 10:00am - 4:00pm, IN-PERSON
Private country home Fairfax, CA

You bring the Wisdom. We’ll bring the Food.

A fundraiser, co-sponsored by Open Circle, honoring Rob Schwartz and his vision to maintain his home and land as a retreat space for spiritual gatherings.

Featuring Dan Huebner as our special musical guest.

Registration closes end of day Sunday, Nov. 17th
Space is limited so register early to save your seat at our table.

About
Potluck Dharma

The idea for Potluck Dharma sprouted from the meals and wisdom shared at our own tables with family and friends. It has now grown into a seasonal gathering where participants are invited to bring their own wisdom, reflections, and experiences to the table, much like the assortment of dishes at a potluck meal.

The day is all about sharing – insights, wisdom, and stories – creating a laid-back yet profound forum to explore spiritual truths and life’s deeper questions. After a morning program of meditation, dharma talks, and discussion, we’ll gather in the afternoon with a delicious, farm-to-table, vegetarian meal that is included with registration, and equally important in feeding the soul. We’ll close with an herbal tisane, dessert, and a special musical guest.

Join us to connect and grow together, while supporting a worthy cause.

Please note that this event will be recorded and potentially shared. There will be video recording of the teachers during the morning session and discrete photography of the group throughout the day. No faces or names of participants will be included on video. Your participation in this event implies consent for us to use your image or your voice, so please share accordingly.

Featuring:

Joryu Myosei
Joryu Myosei is a spiritual guide, mindfulness, meditation, and inquiry teacher, licensed marriage and family therapist, and intuitive healer. She took a formal bodhisattva vow in 2011, dedicating her life to awakening for the benefit of all beings and her work to supporting awakening in others and its expression in daily life. Through retreats, spiritual gatherings, and one-to-one inquiry work with students, she invites all to experience their deepest knowing and to live authentic, fully engaged lives with joy and purpose.
joryumyosei.com

Riyaz Motan
Riyaz is a spiritual guide, teacher, and former marriage and family psychotherapist. His work interweaves Western psychology & Eastern wisdom traditions to help others find freedom from suffering to awaken to their essential wholeness. Through small intimate groups and day-long or multi-day retreats, he supports others in the journey of discovering who they truly are: to uncover who and what they are at essence, and to fully embody and express this in their lives and relationships.
riyazmotan.com

Dan Huebner
Dan Huebner has been playing Jazz for over 50 years, delighting audiences in a variety of settings and the retreat participants of Adyashanti and Rupert Spira in spiritual venues. HIs primary instruments are tenor and soprano saxophones and alto flute, with supporting instruments added into the flow. Dan is drawn to exploring improvised music from a context of the Presence of Being, discovering the nature and how’s of this process as it evolves. It’s never ending, making his performances always new, interesting, spontaneous adventures.

Find out more »

December 2024

John Prendergast ~ Being No One; Being Your Self ~ Bay Area Daylong Retreat

Saturday, December 7, 2024 @ 10:00am - 4:30pm, IN-PERSON
Private country home Fairfax, CA

The freer we are of our self-image and story and all of the emotional reactions and somatic contractions that go with this limited identity, the freer we are to simply be ourself – a living mystery not separate from the whole of life. Self-inquiry facilitates an unveiling, unlearning, spontaneous letting go, and discovery of our true nature. This meeting will include silent and guided meditations, a talk, dyadic self-inquiry, and intimate, powerful, experiential conversations.

John Prendergast, Ph.D is a spiritual teacher, retired psychotherapist, and retired Adjunct Professor of Psychology at CIIS, well known for his pioneering work in integrating non-dual wisdom and psychotherapy. He studied with the European sage Jean Klein for many years, as well as with Adyashanti, who gave him dharma transmission in 2023. He is the author of The Deep Heart (2019), In Touch (2015), and a new book, Your Deepest Ground: A Guide to Embodied Spirituality (March, 2025) from Sounds True.

www.listeningfromsilence.com
YouTube channel

The meeting will be from 10:00am to Noon and 2:00pm to 4:30pm, with a break for lunch.
Please bring your own lunch, or feel free to go into town to one of the restaurants or to Good Earth Natural Foods.

Pre-registration required, as space is limited.
Registration closes at 5 pm on Dec. 6th

Suggested donation: $75
(Any amount acceptable. No one turned away for lack of funds.)
PRE-REGISTER HERE & PAY AT DOOR WHEN YOU ARRIVE.
(Cash or Check only)
This event is Co-sponsored by Open Circle & the Schwartz Family Trust.
All proceeds, above covering event costs, will go to the
Schwartz Family Trust to support Rob Schwartz’s vision of
his property being available for Open Circle retreats and events.

Event donations will go directly to the Schwartz Family Trust, rather than to Open Circle.
If you want to contribute more for this project, you can do so at the event,
or contact us for more information (contributuons, loan, volunteer).

For inquiries contact LocalEvents@opencirclecenter.org

Location:
The meeting will be held at a private home in the Fairfax hills, with views of Mount Tam and hiking trails.
Address and directions will be provided upon registration.

If you have symptoms of a respiritory infection, or have had a recent
Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

Find out more »

January 2025

Pamela Wilson ~ Love Wisdom and Strength ~ Bay Area Daylong Retreat

Wednesday, January 1, 2025 @ 10:30am - 4:30pm, IN-PERSON
Private country home Fairfax, CA

Gathering together to nourish each other in rooting and spreading our transmission branches wide to benefit all Beings. Please join Pamela and your fellow sages to celebrate the New Year together, hosted by Open Circle Center.

Pamela Wilson evokes through dialogue, inquiry and her very presence the qualities of unconditional love and radical acceptance. She is celebrated for her ability to open the heart and create a space in which long-cherished struggles and notions about one’s identity relax. Featured in the book Ordinary Women, Extraordinary Wisdom, Pamela is at her best in heart-felt dialogue, so please bring your questions!

More about Pamela: www.pamelasatsang.com

The meeting will be from 10:30am to 4:30pm, with a break for lunch.
Bring your own lunch, or drive 5 minutes into town where there are restaurants, as well as the Good Earth Natural Foods Store that has a full hot and salad bar, plus deli.

Pre-registration required, as space is limited.
Registration closes at midnight on Dec. 31st
Sliding Scale: $60 to $120
No one turned away for lack of funds.

For inquiries contact LocalEvents@opencirclecenter.org
Location:
The meeting will be held at a private home in the Fairfax hills, with views of Mount Tam and hiking trails.
Address and directions will be provided upon registration.

If you have symptoms of a viral infection, or have had a recent
Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

Find out more »

Jeannie Zandi ~ Love’s Wild Heart: When Human Meets Divine (In-Person & Livestream)

Wednesday, January 15, 2025 @ 7:00pm-9:00pm (Pacific Time)
First Presbyterian Church of San Rafael (& Livestream), 1510 Fifth Avenue
San Rafael, CA & LIVESTREAM Worldwide, California United States

A Year to Love: Claiming What You're Really Here For and Living It
January 2025 Bay Area Events with Jeannie Zandi

Join spiritual teacher Jeannie Zandi for a series of Bay Area gatherings (in-person and livestream) exploring how to unite our humanity and divinity, becoming love's instrument in an aching world. This is an invitation to make 2025 the year you live what you're here for.

Attend any or all in this series of In-Person events.
Each session is complete and meaningful on its own.
Livestream also available for Jan. 13th to 16th events.

January 12: Sebastopol, CA ~ Awakening Your Heart's Essential Power

The Heart's Revolution: Three Nights of Radical Presence, in Berkeley, CA
January 13: Berkeley, CA ~ Melting the Walls Around the Heart
January 14: Berkeley, CA ~ Standing in Love's Fire
January 16: Berkeley, CA ~ Being Love's Instrument in the World

January 15: San Rafael, CA ~ Love's Wild Heart: When Human Meets Divine

Jan 18th & 19th: In-Person RETREAT in Sausalito, CA ~ Earth and Sky: The Dance of Being Human

Click here to access details & registration for ALL events in series.

"Love's Wild Heart: When Human Meets Divine"
January 15th, 7-9pm

First Presbyterian Church of San Rafael, CA (Chapel)

In this evening of meditation, teaching and exchange, Jeannie invites us to discover what becomes possible when we fully embrace both our humanity and our divinity. What if 2025 was the year you stopped running from your humanness and discovered it as the very gateway to your essence? As the familiar structures of our world shake and shift, we're called to embody a love that can hold it all–our messiness and our majesty, our limitations and our limitlessness. We'll explore practical ways to heal the ancient split between humanness and divinity, discovering how our very humanity, fully embraced, reveals itself as love's perfect instrument. This is the time we've been preparing for–to live as the marriage of heaven and earth, right here, right now.

The world doesn't need more spiritual bypassing or human perfection - it needs your whole heart, where human and divine unite in love's endless dance. Let 2025 be the year you come all the way home to who you really are.

Jeannie Zandi is a spiritual teacher who supports people to integrate awakening into every aspect of human experience and to bring their heart's offering to life. Known for her potent blend of spiritual mastery and grounded humanness, she creates transformational spaces with fierce tenderness, irreverent wisdom, and unwavering presence, inspiring students to embody their deepest truth in everyday life.

Her gift for inviting people into resting, rooted presence evokes a deep meeting with oneself and reality. Her disarming humor and directness invite us beyond mere intellectual understanding into direct experience. Through silent and guided meditation, spontaneous talks, and authentic dialogue, Jeannie hosts a space of clarity and warmth where the richness of experience can be explored safely and innermost questions met fully.

At the heart of her teaching is the recognition that life itself is the ground through which we are purified as vessels for divine expression. She guides students to embrace every moment—from mundane to challenging—as fuel for awakening, transforming daily life into a practice of embodied truth. Her work bridges the mystical with the practical, moving beyond abstract concepts into fully embodied awakening. Jeannie calls students to mature into capable, authentic expressions of love and truth, serving the whole with wisdom and courage. This devotional path invites alignment with the divine, where life's challenges become opportunities to manifest love in action

www.jeanniezandi.com

For January 15th
Suggested donation: $15 to $30

No one turned away for lack of funds.
Pre-registration for In-Person attandance closes at Midnight on Jan. 14 (the night before event)
Pre-registration is encouraged, but you can also just show up & pay at door. Come & join us!

OR


If you register for Recording access by event date, link to access it will be sent to you within a week.
If you register for Recording access AFTER event date, please forward your confirmation email to web@opencirclecenter.org to notify us that you registered after event date.

For inquiries contact LocalEvents@opencirclecenter.org

If you have symptoms of a respiratory infection, or have had a recent
Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

Find out more »

February 2025

Dorothy Hunt ~ Flowing with Love’s River ~ Bay Area Daylong Retreat

Sunday, February 9, 2025 @ 10:30am - 4:30pm, IN-PERSON
Private country home Fairfax, CA

A road might end at a single house,
but it’s not love’s road.
Love is a river
. . . .
--Rumi

Known or unknown, there is a river of Love flowing in the heart. It may appear as longing, seeking, laughing, weeping, birth, life, and death. Its current can turn our attention inward, burn our illusions, and return us Home. Sometimes it overflows the banks of pain and pleasure and delivers gratitude for even the most challenging moments. Its movement can be felt when we are touched by some small act of kindness. At times, we might run away, hiding from love, fearful of our vulnerability in the face of its power. Or we might try to demand love, or argue with love, not knowing we will lose. This river flows to the ocean of our essence, where our separation dissolves in its silent depths.

Please join Dorothy Hunt for an exploration of Love’s presence and spontaneous movement in our lives. This daylong will include guided meditation, silent sitting, satsang, poetry and discussion. Perhaps we may discover, in the words of Nisargadatta, that “Awareness is love in action” here and now--the awake Mystery that knows no “other,” and loves us unconditionally. To discover this love is to BE love.

Dorothy Hunt currently serves as Spiritual Director of Moon Mountain Sangha, teaching at the request and in the spiritual lineage of Adyashanti. The flavor of her teaching blends Advaita and Zen with a deep welcoming of the human expressions of the Mystery. Dorothy is the founder of the San Francisco Center for Meditation and Psychotherapy, and practiced psychotherapy from 1967 until her retirement in 2020.  She is the author of Only This!, Leaves from Moon Mountain, and Ending the Search: From Spiritual Ambition to the Heart of Awareness. In addition, she is a contributing author to two books on Nondual Wisdom and Psychotherapy, and the editor of Love: A Fruit Always in Season.

Presently, Dorothy offers satsang and retreats via Zoom, and dokusan by phone. For more information, please visit www.dorothyhunt.org

The meeting will be from 10:30am to 4:30pm, with a break for lunch.
Bring your own lunch, or drive 5 minutes into town where there are restaurants, as well as the Good Earth Natural Foods Store that has a full hot and salad bar, plus deli.

Pre-registration required, as space is limited.
Registration closes at midnight on Feb. 8
Sliding Scale: $60 to $120
No one turned away for lack of funds.

For inquiries contact LocalEvents@opencirclecenter.org
Location:
The meeting will be held at a private home in the Fairfax hills, with views of Mount Tam and hiking trails. Address and directions will be provided upon registration.

If you have symptoms of a viral infection, or have had a recent
Covid exposure or positive test, please stay home out of consideration for others.

Find out more »
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