Retreats
Benefits of Retreat Practice
Over the past few years, in addition to our weekly meetings, Open Door has typically offered periodic day-long retreats at our space in Portland, as well as an annual residential retreat in Maine’s north woods. Our Guiding Teacher, Chas DiCapua, explains the benefits of retreat practice below.
Entering into an intensive period of formal practice, regardless of the length, is an extremely wholesome thing to do. Actually, just having the thought of going on retreat is beneficial. How much more so, when one follows through with that intention.
One of the great supports of retreat practice is that we often do it in the company of other meditators. Being in the company of otherwise beings supports our meditation practice in a way that doing it alone can’t. With everyone dedicated to non-harming, a safe and comfortable space is created, which is essential for the practice to flourish.
Putting down the usual business of our day-to-day life, we have an opportunity to look more closely at the heart and mind and see where suffering is being produced and where it’s not. We also have a chance to rest the mind and body in a way that isn’t often realized when we are fully engaged in our lives.
Having time for turning away from the details of the world and turning inward to our own experience is an important aspect of all spiritual paths. Cultivating the Buddha’s Noble Eightfold Path is no exception. If and when the conditions of our lives allow us the time to spend on retreat, and when the intention to do so arises, it is very much for our wellbeing to follow through as best we can.
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Living And Working in the Dharma: Non-Residential Retreat with Alexis Santos
Enrich your practice in the depths of winter with a multi-day, non-residential retreat for both new and experienced meditators. This retreat is designed to be accessible to all whose work and family life make attending a week-long residential retreat a challenge. The partially hybrid retreat* schedule includes a Sunday afternoon in-person opening session, flexible early morning online sits, and five in-person evening sessions.
Over the six days of the retreat, Open Door co-founder Alexis Santos will support participants as they deepen and grow their practice both on the cushion and in their daily lives.
Winter Day-Long Retreat
During this retreat we will explore skillful ways of being with, and at times not being with, the difficulties that arise in our hearts and minds. We’ll learn that we can find the middle ground between being lost in their stories and pushing them away.