Tibetan Meditations and Teachings
with Guest Teacher, Lama Willa Blythe Baker
Sky-Like Mind Retreat
Tibetan Meditations and Teachings
with Guest Teacher, Lama Willa Blythe Baker
Begin: Thursday, July 4, 2024, 5:30pm (Check-in from 3pm)
End: Sunday, July 7, 2024, noon
Location: Won Dharma Center (Click HERE for directions)
Contact: info@wondharmacenter.org / 518-851-2581
Register: Click HERE!
Registration is Now Open.
Many of us are drawn to meditation as a way to access inner peace, a refuge away from the chaos of the world, a place where our “monkey mind” no longer is in control. We learn that mindfulness can be a friend to this process, but that the activity of the mind, its restlessness and conceptuality is a distraction.
With such a meditation frame, meditation becomes a long effortful cultivation, a journey away from distraction towards focus and calm.
But there is another way to understand meditation. Even while we are cultivating new skills, we are also accessing innate capacities. We are reaching towards something that is already present: an awareness that is spacious and cognizant.
In this retreat, we will be slowing down and investigating this thing we call “the present-moment mind” to see what is innately present. When we do so, we begin to discover another way of meditating that is looser and more relaxed. We are not struggling anymore to rid the mind of thought. Rather, we are deepening in a relationship with the skylike qualities of our experience so that we can more gracefully hold this active and restless mind. When we do so, we discover that refuge is not a place away from the mind’s turmoil, but rather refuge is the skylike mind that holds it.
This retreat takes place in the beautiful surroundings of the Won Dharma Center, offering an ideal environment for deep contemplation and reflection, allowing your mind to unveil its inherent tranquility and wisdom. Join us in inviting a transformative journey into your life through this retreat, guiding you towards inner peace and self-discovery.
What Awaits You:
- Guided meditation sessions
- Dharma talks
- Serene nature walks along scenic trails, including a beautiful stream with cascading waterfalls
- Wholesome and nourishing vegetarian meals
- Noble Silence
Prerequisite:
All retreat participants are required to bring the book ‘The Wakeful Body,‘ written by Lama Willa Baker.
If possible, we encourage reading the book before the retreat. To find information about the book, please click HERE.
Retreat Fee
- Single room: $550
- 2-bed room: $370
- Camper: $270
- Commuter: $220 (For those who reside off-site)
Registration is NOW open.
Optional Items
The retreat fee at Won Dharma Center has been reduced to enable more individuals to benefit from our retreat experiences. Your additional donation helps us to keep prices low and provide scholarships. Please click either of the donation buttons below.
Additional Donation ($25)
Additional Donation ($50)
Additional Donation ($75)
Our cancellation and refund policy has been updated. You can find them at the bottom.
Payment Terms
All deposit and registration payments must be submitted either online using the built-in PayPal payment method or sending us a check. If you register more than 14 days before a retreat start date, you must pay at minimum a 50% registration fee. You can pay the remaining balance upon your arrival. If you register 14 days or less than 14 days before a retreat start date, you must pay the full registration fee at the time of registration. All retreat registrations include a non-refundable $100 deposit.
Your payment will include PayPal service fee of 3% for each transaction.
You can send us a check for your registration fee. Please make your check payable to Won Dharma Center and mail it to: Won Dharma Center 361 Route 23 Claverack, NY, 12513
Guiding Teacher: Lama Willa Blythe Baker
Willa Blythe Baker, Ph.D. is the Founder of Natural Dharma Fellowship in Boston, MA and it’s retreat center Wonderwell Mountain Refuge in Springfield, NH. She was authorized as a dharma teacher and lineage holder in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition (Kagyu, Nyingma and Shangpa Lineages) after twelve years of monastic training and two consecutive three-year retreats. In 2013, Willa completed a doctorate at Harvard University, and was Visiting Lecturer in Buddhist Ministry from 2013 to 2017.
Willa is author of several books including The Wakeful Body: Somatic Mindfulness as a Path to Freedom (Shambhala Publications, 2021), The Arts of Contemplative Care: Pioneering Voices in Buddhist Chaplaincy and Pastoral Work (Wisdom Publications, 2012), Everyday Dharma: Seven Weeks to Finding the Buddha in You (Quest Books, 2009), Essence of Ambrosia: A Guide to Buddhist Contemplations (Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 2005), and the upcoming book Appearances Unleashed: A Memior of Jigme Lingpa (Shambhala Publications, 2023).
Her articles and translations have appeared in Tricycle, Lion’s Roar, Buddhadharma, Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, Tibet Journal, and other periodicals and anthologies. She is a Contemplative Fellow of the Mind and Life Institute, an original member of The Council of the Uncertain Human Future, and an Advisor for One Earth Sangha.
At present, Willa writes and teaches students interested in cultivating a deep meditation practice in daily life. Her teaching interests include the wisdom of the body, eco-dharma, non-dual awareness, and compassion. Her primary translation interests are in the genres of poetry and autobiography.
Cancellation & Refund Policy
- All retreat registrations include a non-refundable $100 deposit.
- Won Dharma Center does not provide refunds of registration payments for cancellations made 14 days or less than 14 days before a retreat begins.
- For cancellations made more than 14 days before a retreat begins, Won Dharma Center retains the $100 non-refundable deposit as a cancellation fee.
- Refund requests for emergency cancellations made 14 days or less before a retreat begins must be submitted via email to info@WonDharmaCenter.org and must include an explanation of the emergency circumstances. Won Dharma Center reserves the right to approve or deny these requests. Emergency refunds are not eligible for refund of the $100 non-refundable deposit.
- Retreat Transfers: If you request to transfer from one retreat to another WDC retreat within a year (more than 14 days before the start of the retreat your are registered for) there will be an additional $25 transfer fee. This policy is valid for one year. In some situations a transfer may not be possible and normal cancellation procedures and fees will apply. Transfers are not possible 14 days or less than 14 days before the start of your retreat.
- No credit or refund is available if you cancel on the retreat arrival date, or if you leave the retreat early for any reason.