Moving Into Meditation: Mindful Yoga and Embodied Dharma

This six-night silent meditation retreat at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California, brings mindful yoga and Dharma practice together. Led by Anne Cushman, Leslie Booker, Djuna Devereaux and Rolf Gates, it is a yoga retreat in the Insight Meditation tradition, for practitioners who already have some meditation experience and want to explore stillness and movement as one practice.

The retreat asks how we can stay rooted like a mighty oak when winds howl through the branches, and how our hearts can hold a changing life the way the sky holds the weather. The teachers offer practices from the Dharma and Yoga traditions for settling the nervous system, grounding energy, and finding a felt sense of both stability and fluidity.

What to Expect

A full week gives deep places of gripping and bracing room to release at their own pace. Each day includes gentle guided yoga and somatic movement meditation, along with seated, walking, standing and lying-down meditation. There are Dharma reflections and teachings, and small group meetings with a teacher. Time is set aside for rest and for being in nature, so you can honor the natural rhythms of your own practice.

The retreat is silent, apart from teacher-led Q&A, small groups and other practice meetings.

Check-in is on Wednesday from 2:30 to 4:30 PM, followed by orientation, settling into your accommodations and an evening opening session. Thursday through Monday follow the daily rhythm of movement, meditation, teachings and small groups. On Tuesday there are final practice sessions and a closing ceremony, and departure is by 11:00 AM.

About Anne Cushman

Anne Cushman is the author of the memoir The Mama Sutra, the novel Enlightenment for Idiots, and Moving Into Meditation, a mindful yoga guidebook. She has practiced Dharma and yoga since 1982. She is a Spirit Rock residential retreat teacher and director of mentoring for the Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program.

About Leslie Booker

Leslie Booker is a heart-centered teacher and writer focused on creating a culture of belonging. She was a 2020 Sojourner Truth Leadership Fellow and one of Mindful's 12 Powerful Women, and she is the Guiding Teacher of New York Insight.

About Djuna Devereaux

Djuna Devereaux, E-RYT, has taught yoga and Dharma for 20 years. She teaches retreats at Spirit Rock, leads its Dharma and Yoga Trainings, and is a core teacher for Sacred Mountain Sangha. She teaches internationally for Prajna Yoga and is in private practice as a yoga therapist and Somatic Experiencing Practitioner.

About Rolf Gates

Rolf Gates is the author of Meditations from the Mat and Meditations on Intention and Being. A former addictions counselor and U.S. Army Airborne Ranger, he has practiced meditation for over 25 years. He teaches yoga and mindfulness workshops, retreats and trainings worldwide, and co-founded the Yoga, Meditation and Recovery Conference at Esalen and Kripalu. He lives in Santa Cruz, California.

The Setting

The retreat takes place at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California. Of its 80 rooms, most are single occupancy and 16 are doubles. Single rooms are initially prioritized for people with serious medical needs. A limited number of guaranteed single rooms are available at the highest contribution levels. All meals are provided.

Retreat commuters can attend all sessions and meals while arranging their own lodging. A shared resting area is available during the day. This option opens once the retreat is full with a waitlist, and it requires a prior weeklong silent residential retreat in Insight meditation.

Before You Go

This is an intermediate retreat and requires prior meditation experience. Spirit Rock recommends two to three daylong programs first, then a 4- or 5-night retreat, before attending this six-night program. New meditators are encouraged to contact the registration department for guidance. The retreat is offered in English.

Fees include lodging, all meals, daily yoga and meditation instruction, Dharma talks, small group meetings and use of the meditation facilities and grounds. Teacher dana is not included. At the end of the retreat there is an invitation to offer dana to the teachers and to Spirit Rock. Personal transportation is also not included.

Spirit Rock offers its retreats on a sliding scale, along with needs-based scholarships, so that the Dharma stays accessible. Payment plans are available.