Financial Support

Our mission is to make all of our programs accessible. Every fee-based offering has a limited number of pay-what-you-can spots available to support self-identified people of color, members of marginalized groups (queer people, transgender people, and  people with disabilities) and those in financial need (those for whom the cost to attend is not financially possible). 

These spots are offered on a first come, first served basis. Please pay at the highest level you can afford. In order for this support to be available, we rely on those who can afford to pay the full price to do so.

Find out if spots are available by clicking REGISTER NOW on the event you are interested in.

Safety 

We work to protect the safety of all students. We reserve the right to remove any student from any class, sitting group, retreat, or any event if the student is disruptive to the safe learning environment we maintain for all.

Cancellation & Refunds

We reserve the right to cancel a class or special event due to low enrollment or other circumstances which would make the event non-viable. If InsightLA cancels an event you’ve registered for, you will be offered a full refund. If an event has to be postponed for any reason, you will have the option to either receive a full refund or transfer your registration to the same event at the new, future date. If you cancel, we apply a 5% credit processing fee and the refunded amounts are listed below:

MBSR, MSC, & MBHC, Mindfulness for Beginners & Special Events

7 days – 95% Refund
<7 days – No Refunds – Credit given if requested or donation to InsightLA

Fee-Based Non-Residential Retreats (note: Donations are non-refundable)

>7 days – 95% Refund
<7 days – No Refunds – Credit given if requested or donation to InsightLA

Residential Retreats

> 8 weeks – amount paid less $100
4-8 weeks – amount paid less $175
2-4 weeks – amount paid less $300
< 2 weeks – No refund

Residential Retreats with Financial Support:

> 8 weeks – amount paid less $75
4-8 weeks – amount paid less $100
2-4 weeks – amount paid less $200
< 2 weeks – No refund

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  • Location Big Bear Retreat Center
  • Experience Levels Experienced, Introductory
  • Date Starts Friday, August 21, 2020
    Ends Tuesday, August 25, 2020

    4 nights
  • Ride Sharing Sign-Up

Refund and Event Policies

Relaxation is an innate ability, linked to every exhalation.  It is also a meditative skill that can be easy and enjoyable to learn. It leads to deeper understanding and an ability to rest and let go of distractions and distress.  

Our five-day retreat will be based on Buddhist teachings as presented in an accessible way by Dza Kilung Rinpoche, a Tibetan meditation master, in his 2015 book The Relaxed Mind.  We will begin with relaxation of our body. Day by day we will allow relaxation to move and spread throughout our whole being. Concentation arises naturally, unifying body, mind and heart. We can discover an easier, spacious, warmer way of living, as we rest in a secure refuge free from the whirling demands, distractions, and conflicts that dominate our times.

There will be sitting and walking meditations, Dharma talks and meetings with Beth and Lila, who were trained and directly authorized by Kilung Rinpoche to offer these teachings.  

All are welcome. 

RETREAT SCHEDULE: 4 nights, 5 days

Arrive 2-4pm Thursday, August 21st  

Depart 11:00am Tuesday, August 25th 

The daily rhythm of a retreat usually involves alternating periods of sitting and walking meditation, nature walks, meals and tea, as well as practice meetings, dharma talks and rest periods. The first sitting usually begins before breakfast. Each morning the teachers offer continuing meditation instructions for the day. The whole retreat is a succession of mindfulness training, breathing practices, deep awareness of the body and environment, meditations on the nature of feelings, and awareness of mind are from the Buddhist Insight Meditation tradition.

Sitting Meditation: Sitting meditation is at the heart of silent retreats. In sitting practice silence and stillness develop, concentration deepens, and awareness expands. The training of the heart brings kindness and compassion for all that arises. We come into presence and learn to find freedom in the midst of life as it truly is.

Walking Meditation: Walking gracefully and wisely on the earth is also a way to practice meditation. On retreat, periods of walking meditation alternate with periods of sitting meditation. Through walking practice we learn to sustain meditative awareness through movement. In walking meditation, we become aware in the midst of activity. Throughout the retreat we learn to cultivate a mindful awareness in all postures, sitting walking and lying down.

 Eating Meditation: An awareness of food, and the mindful understanding of the entire process of nourishment and eating is included in the practice at retreats. Retreatants are encouraged to bring the same calm, focused attention to eating as is brought to sitting and walking. Mindful eating is a wonderful context for the arising of insights. Every bite of food we eat contains, rain, sun, earth and the work of many, many beings.

Dharma Talks and guided meditations:  Each day, the teachers present a different set of teachings that are central to practicing mindfulness and compassion. These teaching can be applied to our own experience. Sometimes the talks focus on retreat practice, and sometimes they offer teachings for wise living in the world.

Pricing: The price of the retreat includes accommodation for 5 nights and all meals for the duration of the retreat.

Donations/Dana: Please note that the price of the retreat covers accommodation, food, facilities, and other InsightLA expenses.  To allow the teachers to continue their dharma work, support from the students is needed.  There will be an opportunity to contribute at the end of the retreat to the teachers.

Accommodations: Located just a 2.5 hour drive from Los Angeles, Big Bear Retreat Center is nestled in the ancient Juniper woodlands of the San Bernardino Mountains near the town of Big Bear, California. The tranquil property is immediately adjacent to the National Forest and offers access to roughly 1,300 acres of conserved lands.

The property consists of eleven separate buildings for dining, meditating, and sleeping. The single-story residence buildings include both single and double rooms. There is a mirror and a small clothes-hanging area in each room. Two bathrooms are located in each building.

Yogi Jobs: Participation in this retreat will involve a light working meditation to support the community experience.  When you arrive you will be assigned a daily task to complete with mindful attention.  Please let us know if you have any physical challenges that might impact your ability to perform certain tasks.  Please also bring long pants, closed toe shoes, and a shirt that you can change into in the event you are assigned a yogi job in the kitchen.

Meals: All meals will be vegetarian. Gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan options available. 

Work Retreatant Opportunity:  A work retreatant can attend the retreat for free in exchange for up to 5 hours of work a day and the rest of the time they can attend all activities of the retreat.  If you are interested please email melissamckay@insightla.org. 

Kate Lila Wheeler

Kate Lila Wheeler, who lives in Boston, has been meditating since 1977 and brings an amazing life journey to her teaching. She grew up in South America, was ordained as a nun in Burma by her teacher U Pandita, became U Pandita’s editor and an award winning writer herself, and has received Dzogchen transmission as... Read more

Beth Sternlieb

Beth is a Spirit Rock and Insight Mediation Society retreat teacher. She teaches the Dedicated to Dharma program at InsightLA and The Morning Community Sit. You can drop in through InsightLA.org and meet her there Monday – Friday mornings. Beth’s Teachers are Dza Kilung Rinpoche and Joseph Goldstein. Beth has been a co-investigator on several... Read more

Pricing Options
Shared Room (Base Cost) $900
Single Room (Base Cost) $1750

Financial Support

Our mission is to make all of our programs accessible. Every fee-based offering has a limited number of pay-what-you-can spots available to support members of marginalized groups (people of color, queer people, people with disabilities) and those in financial need (those for whom the cost to attend is not financially possible).

These spots are offered on a first come, first served basis. Please pay at the highest level you can afford. In order for this support to be available, we rely on those who can afford to pay the full price to do so.

Register Now

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