April 4 – 11; Saturday to Saturday, 7 days with Steve Armstrong and Kamala Masters

To be announced

Steve Armstrong has practiced insight meditation since 1975. He has served for many years at the Insight Meditation Society in Massachusetts as Executive Director, Board member and senior teacher. As a monk in Burma under the guidance of Sayadaw U Pandita he undertook intensive, silent practice of insight and lovingkindness meditations for 5 years and in Australia, he studied the Buddhist psychology (abhidhamma) with Sayadaw U Zagara. He continues his practice under the guidance of Sayadaw U Tejaniya. Steve is a co-founding teacher of the Vipassana Metta Foundation’s dharma sanctuary and hermitage on Maui. He has been leading meditation retreats internationally since 1990 and encourages spiritual development through cultivating insightful awareness and liberating understanding of the core teachings of the Buddha in all life activities.

Kamala Masters is one of the founders and teachers of the Vipassana Metta Foundation on Maui, where she is currently developing Ho'omalamalama, a sanctuary-hermitage for long term practice. She teaches retreats in the Theravada tradition at venues worldwide, including being a Core Teacher at the Insight Meditation Society at Barre, Massachusetts. Practicing since 1975, her teachers have been the late Anagarika Munindra of India and Sayadaw U Pandita of Burma with whom she continues to practice. Kamala has a commitment to carrying and offering the purity of the teachings of the Buddha in a way that touches our common sense and compassion as human beings. She lives in Hawaii where she raised 4 children, and is now blessed with 5 grandchildren.

Retreat cost: $420 plus dana offering.  Register Here

************

April 24 - 29; 5 days with Heather Martin

Vipassana Meditation

Insight or Vipassana meditation is the simple practice of observing one’s direct experience in this very moment, with a gently relaxed, open and careful awareness. By learning to be present with this attitude, we are able to access our natural qualities of a spacious, calm, clear mind, and a kind and peaceful heart. As we develop this way, we respond to the inevitable joys and sorrows of life with increasing sensitivity, stability and love. Metta or Loving Kindness meditation cultivates connecting with and caring for ourselves and others. It is true friendliness. We can deliberately nurture our heart’s natural capacity for peacefulness and kindness, acceptance and forgiveness. These practices intertwine and are mutually supportive. This retreat will take place in Noble Silence, and the format will include: specific training in both Vipassana/Insight and Metta/Loving Kindness meditation; daily Dharma talks; periods for questions and answers; and opportunities for discussion with the teacher. It is suitable for both beginning and experienced students of meditation.

Heather Martin has practiced meditation since 1972, finding the dhamma in 1981 by studying with S. N. Goenka for 8 years. Since then she has been influenced by both Burmese and Thai streams of the Theravada tradition, having studied with many of the senior western teachers, and more recently by Tibetan Dzogchen with Tsoknyi Rinpoche. She is training with Jack Kornfield and leads retreats in Canada and the US. She worked for 20 years as a midwife, continues to prepare parents for Childbirth, and lives on Saltspring Island, B.C.

Retreat cost: $300 plus dana offering.  Register Here

************