Non-Residential Weekend Insight Meditation Retreat

Grief, Love, and Goodness on the Path In our dharma practice, we cultivate well-being through the development of insight, compassion and letting go. But what is the process at the ground level through which these qualities develop? During this retreat, well consider how well-being is developed through a process of grieving. We grieve our personal losses, the loss of illusions, the reality of suffering, the ungovernability life and the truth of our mortality. These acts of grieving are nevertheless productive and generate a deeper, fuller love for ourselves and others. In doing this work, we are not released into a turbulent and destabilizing world but instead let go into a heart full of confidence. There will be time for lecture, meditation practice, and group dialogue. All are welcome. Matthew Brensilver, PhD, is a member of the Guiding Teachers Executive Committee and the Teachers Council at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. He previously served as Program Director for Mindful Schools and for more than a decade, was a core teacher at Against the Stream Buddhist Meditation Society. He lectures at UCLAs Mindful Awareness Research Center about the intersections between mindfulness and mental health. Before committing to teach meditation full-time, he spent years doing research on addiction pharmacotherapy at the UCLA Center for Behavioral and Addiction Medicine and is interested in the unfolding dialogue between dharma and science. Matthew is the co-author of two forthcoming books on meditation. Dana: This retreat is offered on a dana or donation basis. The registration fee covers only our direct expenses for teacher travel, facilities rental, and supplies for the retreat. There will be an opportunity to offer dana to Matthew for his teaching at the retreat. Teachers depend on the generosity of students for their livelihood and ability to continue teaching. Please be generous.