April 2024
CANCELED Lynn Marie Lumiere, MFT ~ Being Present with What Is: Deepen Your Ability to be Still in the Midst of Challenges ~ Weekend Retreat
A Weekend Retreat: Saturday and Sunday, April 20-21, 2024:
9:00 am – 12:00 pm Pacific Time, each day
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Recording will be emailed to participants after each meeting.
You're welcome to join even if you can't attend all the live sessions.
Life is full of challenges. This is how we evolve and awaken. What is important is how we meet them.
The key to being with challenges in a way that allows for more freedom and transformation is to stop, be still, and feel our discomfort without avoiding or engaging it. This is possible because we all have a built-in ability to do this. It is natural to us; we’ve just forgotten how. We can re-discover this ability and see that no matter what is arising, it is not wrong. It is just what is, and inner support and guidance is always available. Lynn Marie will offer her assistance with the somatic, emotional and psychological issues that are interfering with your capacity to be present.
You are encouraged to attend the 3-hour sessions for this retreat live so you can benefit from sharing your experience and processing with Lynn Marie. However, you are also welcome to attend at your convenience by listening to the recording.
Lynn Marie Lumiere is a seasoned psychotherapist, Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, spiritual mentor, and author. She offers a rare blend of embodied spiritual wisdom with a skilled therapeutic approach that facilitates healing of psychological trauma/wounding and the embodiment of awakening. Her depth of experience, rooted in her own healing and awakening journey, spans decades of expertly guiding individuals in the resolution of their trauma and into connection with their true nature. She is the author of Awakened Relating: A Guide to Embodying More Love in Relationships.
For more information see: www.lynnmarielumiere.com
Sliding Scale: $60 to $90
Some Partial Scholarships Available
Please Register Early if you can.
The Heart of Freedom ~ A Weekend with Unmani
April 27 & 28, 2024
9:00am – 12:00pm, Pacific Time, each day
Time Zone Converter
Recording will be emailed to participants after each meeting.
You're welcome to join even if you can't attend the live sessions.
In exploring Non-Duality we discover the Freedom beyond our human experience. We wake up to the knowing that we are always aware of it all. We rise out of the mud and mess of our lives, and take a bird's eye view of our humanity. But this is only half of the picture. We then need to dive back into the mud and dirt, into the pain and rawness of the ordinary experience of being a human with our feet on the ground in the world, and discover how this Freedom is actually lived. This is what living as the Heart is all about.
True Freedom is not limited to an concept of freedom, or the freedom from any kind of imprisonment. Freedom is also not only a free feeling. The Heart is also not only about having a loving feeling in our chests, or behaving in a loving way. In fact Freedom and the Heart are one and the same. When we question who we really are, in the deepest sense, beyond all the beliefs and assumptions of what we think, we discover the Silence beyond all experience of silence. We discover the Freedom beyond all experience of freedom. We discover Boundlessness beyond all experience of boundaries. This is our true Heart.
In this weekend together, we will explore how this Heart of Freedom is actually lived in our daily experience. We will investigate what we really know to be true when we no longer blindly believe our thoughts. We will discover that in not-knowing in thought, there is the wide open Freedom of who we really are. We start to resonate more and more with the frequency of this inner knowing in not knowing, and it starts to integrate more and more into our lives. Together we explore the beliefs and identities that have seemed to have imprisoned us, with the power to control our behaviour and responses in our interactions with others. In knowing that you are not what you think, then when thoughts arise, you can see them in greater clarity and lightness. This brings so much freedom and ease in our lives. Then there is so much more space to tune into the Compassion and Unconditional Love that is always here, and this enables our lives to be lived more courageously with an open Heart.
In this weekend, Unmani will hold guided meditations, she will speak on the theme, and there will be plenty of opportunity to ask questions and have dialogues with Unmani. Unmani works in a way that is very intimate, using any personal sharing as an invitation to the Love that we are beyond it all. Everyone is welcome. No previous knowledge or background is necessary.
About Unmani
Meeting with Unmani is meeting with yourself in the most real and alive way. Unmani is originally from the UK, but has lived in many countries around the world. Since she was a child, Unmani didn't identify with being a separate individual, but assumed there was something wrong with her, until she came across the expression of Satsang and nonduality. Truth has always been her passion. Unmani had teachers including Osho, Dolano, Nathan Gill, Tony Parsons, Gangaji and several other amazing people who are not considered 'teachers'.
In 2013 she met her husband, the wonderful musician, and courageous lover of life, Robert Hanuman. In 2015 their son, Sky, was born. On 3rd January 2018, Robert Hanuman died suddenly from a heart attack while they were in India. Robert Hanuman's presence deeply influenced Unmani's teaching, and in the time they were together it evolved into a more human expression of the courage to live the paradox of the Absolute, living as this human. Robert put Unmani's words to his beautiful classical guitar music and Unmani still plays his songs at her meetings.
Unmani has been holding meetings and retreats all over the world for since 2003, and in this time people have been deeply touched by her work: She meets each person exactly where they are at, and in whatever they need at the time, while at the same time holding them in the truth of who they really are beyond it all. This combination, and paradox, of the personal and impersonal, brings so much depth, openness and healing to people's lives. They wake up to who they really are, and discover how this is lived and integrated into their daily lives.
Unmani has written 3 books 'I am Life itself', 'Die to Love' and 'The Courage to Come Alive'. Unmani holds regular meetings and retreats several times a year as well as monthly webinars on different themes.
For more information about Unmani's work go to: www.die-to-love.com
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Unmani
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/unmani
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unmani_hyde/
Sliding Scale: $50 to $80
Some Partial Scholarships Available
Please Register Early if you can.
May 2024
Jeannie Zandi ~ Dancing around the Center
Join Jeannie to explore the integrity of resting in the center of your being and allowing your life to be an expression of that.
Jeannie’s gift for inviting people to join her in resting and rooted presence evokes a deep meeting with oneself and reality. Within that, Jeannie’s humor and iconoclasm serve to bring people into an understanding that is beyond the intellectual. Through silent and guided meditation, spontaneous talks and exchange with participants, Jeannie will host a space of clarity and warmth where the richness of relating can be explored safely and your innermost questions met fully.
Jeannie Zandi is the director of Living as Love, a nonprofit organization dedicated to seeding a culture of the Heart on the planet, inspiring, teaching and supporting people to live from their essence as Love. A year before the birth of her daughter, Jeannie was plunged into a dark night of the soul that culminated in a radical shift of consciousness. She is known for her fearless clarity, tender mercy toward humanness, and a juicy, poetic and often humorous style that draws from Advaita Vedanta, Sufism, Christian mysticism and the ongoing revelation of fully engaged living.
Suggested donation: $15 to $40
No one turned away for lack of funds.
Please register early if you can.
The event will be recorded and emailed to participants within a week.
To check your local time, use a tool such as: Time Zone Converter
Ellen Emmet ~ Venturing Into the Unlit Corners of the Now
2-Part Retreat: May 18 & 19, 2024
We start at 10:00 am Pacific Time / 6:00 pm UK time /
7:00 pm Central European Time.
Time Zone Converter
Recording will be emailed to participants after each meeting.
You’re welcome to join even if you can’t attend all the live sessions.
There are times in each of our lives when a bitter wind blows our spiritual torch out. It may be called depression, grief, trauma, illness, the end of a relationship, a sense that we are no longer in alignment with our deepest self.
Here we are, standing at the threshold of our being, knowing that nothing we have used to light the way forward will work.
During this weekend we will venture together, away from the certitudes held by the mind and into the dark wilderness of the body. We will listen inwardly to our felt experience. Perhaps we will face and taste the unconscious layers of defense that portent to protect us yet keep us in a cell of false security.
Perhaps we will touch the vulnerability and strength of Life as she cycles and connects us to the great garland of creation.
Ellen will draw on her experience of Kashmir nondual yoga, the Jungian ideas especially as expressed by Marion Woodman, Authentic Movement, and whatever else may arise from the field of our gathering. There will be time for sharing in a safe container.
About Ellen:
Ellen’s deepest intuition was confirmed when she met her teacher in the non-dual tradition, Francis Lucille. Hearing his words, she recognised the eternal, limitless and universal nature of our shared reality. Over the years, this understanding has continued to unfold and to touch all levels of experience.
At the very same time, Ellen has never ceased to delve into the depths of her human experience, seen and unseen, thirsting for a wholeness and connectedness which appeared to be lost or obscured. This unstoppable quest brought her to therapy, Jungian workshops (and later Jungian analysis), Dream Work, Authentic Movement and creative writing.
More and more, she senses that each of our lives is a journey of revelation and integration, including its darker crossings, through which the face of truth can shine uniquely and anew, wedding us to our direct experience and connecting us to the great family of creation.
To find out more about Ellen and her offering, visit www.ellenemmet.com
Sliding Scale: $40 to $80
Some Partial Scholarships Available
Please register early if you can.
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Find out more »June 2024
Pamela Wilson ~ The Deep Blue of Substratum ~ 4 Part Online Retreat
June 3rd, 6th, 10th & 13th, 2024
10:00 am – 12:00 pm, Pacific Daylight Time (PDT)
Time Zone Converter
Recording will be emailed to participants after each meeting.
You're welcome to join even if you can't attend all the live sessions.
Each one of us is the ocean, though we are reticent to sink into the dark blue peace below the waves. There’s no need to tame the waves, they’re also intelligent presence and will balance themselves when we’re resting down under. Let’s live from the depths of being rather than opposing or trying to manage the waves. More fun to root down and stretch out inside holding everything lightly and respectfully.
Please join Pamela and your fellow sages in living from substratum and flow.
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
Sliding Scale: $80 to $120
Some Partial Scholarships Available
Please Register Early if you can.
Mukti ~ Prior to Problems: Sanctuary and Source
A key aim of spirituality is to be in the world, but not of it. This can present as being engaged in the human world, while greatly being informed by Source, the creative and sustaining realm of spirit.
When things feel “off,” or indeed are, within one’s self or the world, a common tendency is to feel disempowered and to relate to life as fundamentally problematic. Meanwhile, the practitioner who orients to liberated consciousness aligns with transformative spirit. Such spirit expresses immeasurable intelligence and possibilities, which can be brought to bear on life’s challenges, dilemmas, and decisions. Moreover, one’s attunement to peace and quietude in spirit can shift problem-centered ways of perceiving to perceptions centered in curiosity, creativity, and resolution.
The blessing of seeing through the limitation of egoic states that generate and dwell in the burdened paradigm of “problem,” is that this seeing can initiate a turn toward illimitable spirit.
Mukti’s presentation will be devoted to investigating doorways to spirit and will point to the undivided state and its power to harmonize, heal, resolve, and rectify. Her presentation will be followed by a Q&A session, in which audience members can join her in furthering the investigations of her presentation.
Mukti, whose name is translated as “liberation,” is the head teacher and administrator of Open Gate Sangha, where she has taught in the lineage of Adyashanti since 2004. Her teaching methods are founded in meditation, self-inquiry, and body awareness. Mukti expresses a power of stillness, as well as feminine nurturing and a refreshing down-to-earth humanity. For teaching excerpts, audio downloads, qi gong videos, and a calendar of Mukti’s current programs, visit: www.muktisource.org
Suggested donation: $15 to $40
No one turned away for lack of funds.
Please register early if you can.
The event will be recorded and emailed to participants within a week.
To check your local time, use a tool such as: Time Zone Converter
Unmani ~ What is the Awakened State?
Beyond all states that come and go, there is the knowing of them all. The Awareness of whatever is here. This is who you really are as Life itself, always awake, and always aware. This is all very well, however, in your human experience, you might not always feel or acknowledge this knowing that is always awake. You might experience being caught up in your mind, emotions or the dramas of life, and then this Awakening is simply a beautiful and spiritual intellectual concept that is very far from your own experience.
If you have had some kind of awakening recognition, you might experience a kind of flip-flopping in and out of the clear seeing of the Oneness of your true nature, and then being again caught up in the dramas of the apparent separate 'me'. This can be very painful as you experience the strong contrast between these two states of being.
In this Meeting with Unmani, we will discuss what the Awakened State is, and any confusions around this. We will also look at the various misconceptions about Awakening in general. We will then explore how Awakening can be lived in our human lives with all the ups and downs and challenges, as well as the fast pace of our modern human lives.
Unmani gives practical pointers and support on how to live in and as Awakening. Join the 'live' session to be able to ask questions, and investigate your direct experience with Unmani.
About Unmani
Meeting with Unmani is meeting with yourself in the most real and alive way. Unmani is originally from the UK, but has lived in many countries around the world. Since she was a child, Unmani didn't identify with being a separate individual, but assumed there was something wrong with her, until she came across the expression of Satsang and nonduality. Truth has always been her passion. Unmani had teachers including Osho, Dolano, Nathan Gill, Tony Parsons, Gangaji and several other amazing people who are not considered 'teachers'.
In 2013 she met her husband, the wonderful musician, and courageous lover of life, Robert Hanuman. In 2015 their son, Sky, was born. On 3rd January 2018, Robert Hanuman died suddenly from a heart attack while they were in India. Robert Hanuman's presence deeply influenced Unmani's teaching, and in the time they were together it evolved into a more human expression of the courage to live the paradox of the Absolute, living as this human. Robert put Unmani's words to his beautiful classical guitar music and Unmani still plays his songs at her meetings.
Unmani has been holding meetings and retreats all over the world for since 2003, and in this time people have been deeply touched by her work: She meets each person exactly where they are at, and in whatever they need at the time, while at the same time holding them in the truth of who they really are beyond it all. This combination, and paradox, of the personal and impersonal, brings so much depth, openness and healing to people's lives. They wake up to who they really are, and discover how this is lived and integrated into their daily lives.
Unmani has written 3 books 'I am Life itself', 'Die to Love' and 'The Courage to Come Alive'. Unmani holds regular meetings and retreats several times a year as well as monthly webinars on different themes.
For more information about Unmani's work go to: www.die-to-love.com
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Unmani
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/unmani
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unmani_hyde/
Robert Hanuman's music can be downloaded on iTunes here: https://music.apple.com/nl/artist/robert-hanuman/1329878840?l=en
Suggested donation: $15 to $40
No one turned away for lack of funds.
Please register early if you can.
The event will be recorded and emailed to participants within a week.
To check your local time, use a tool such as: Time Zone Converter
Silent Group Meditation (Free, No Guidance)
Join us for a silent group meditation. Do your own practice quietly in the company of others. Let’s be present, together. .... more details
Mon.: 8:00am – 8:30am (PT) and Wed.: 9:00am – 9:30am (PT)
Ongoing drop-in group – attend as often as you like.
Weekly, with rare exceptions. Verify dates on Full Calendar.
Dorothy Hunt ~ Mystery and Manifestation
Although given many names, there is an unnameable Mystery that cannot be spoken. It reveals itself most deeply in Silence. There are also the “ten thousand things”—life in its ever-changing manifestations. When we experience that both Mystery and manifestations arise from the same source, we are invited to the freedom, depth, and aliveness that come from not dividing essence from what is here now. We are invited into the intimate and ever-present mystery that is illuminating our every experience, loving its own expressions, giving worth and beauty to the wholeness of Being, including our uniquely human and precious place within it.
Please join Open Circle and Dorothy Hunt for this 2-hour satsang exploring Mystery and manifestation through guided meditation, silent sitting, and dialogue.
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
Suggested donation: $15 to $40
No one turned away for lack of funds.
Please register early if you can.
The event will be recorded and emailed to participants within a week.
To check your local time, use a tool such as: Time Zone Converter
Jeannie Zandi ~ Women, Spirit & the Body (women only)
Join Jeannie for a special call for women exploring the theme of spirituality and the body.
Jeannie’s gift for inviting people to join her in resting and rooted presence evokes a deep meeting with oneself and reality. Within that, Jeannie’s humor and iconoclasm serve to bring people into an understanding that is beyond the intellectual. Through silent and guided meditation, spontaneous talks and exchange with participants, Jeannie will host a space of clarity and warmth where the richness of relating can be explored safely and your innermost questions met fully.
Jeannie Zandi is the director of Living as Love, a nonprofit organization dedicated to seeding a culture of the Heart on the planet, inspiring, teaching and supporting people to live from their essence as Love. A year before the birth of her daughter, Jeannie was plunged into a dark night of the soul that culminated in a radical shift of consciousness. She is known for her fearless clarity, tender mercy toward humanness, and a juicy, poetic and often humorous style that draws from Advaita Vedanta, Sufism, Christian mysticism and the ongoing revelation of fully engaged living.
Suggested donation: $15 to $40
No one turned away for lack of funds.
Please register early if you can.
The event will be recorded and emailed to participants within a week.
To check your local time, use a tool such as: Time Zone Converter