PERSONAL PRACTICE RETREATS

Dharmalaya supports dedicated practitioners of meditation by providing a conducive environment for personal practice retreats. Our campus features a small number of eco-friendly retreat cottages where experienced practitioners can conduct formal retreats in an inspiring natural setting. Personal retreats at Dharmalaya Institute are open to trained practitioners who already have a well-developed personal practice and wish to do a committed retreat for at least ten days. If this is what you are looking for, read on for details.

Doing a personal retreat at Dharmalaya

If you already have a meditation practice and are looking for a peaceful place to focus on your practice in retreat, Dharmalaya Institute might be a fit for you. Our campus, perched on a forested hillside in a remote area just above the town of Bir and the monastery of Palpung Sherab Ling, provides not only a tranquil setting but also a healthy one, serving salubrious, 100% plant-based (vegan) meals and providing accommodation in eco-friendly earthen buildings made from adobe (mud bricks), bamboo, stone, and local wood.

At present, availability of accommodations for personal retreats is highly seasonal. The best times are usually the July-September rainy season (which is the traditional time for long retreat in India) and mid-December through February. We suggest applying as far in advance as possible.

The meaning of ‘retreat’

Of the many different types of retreats, there are certain types of retreats that Dharmalaya Institute exists to support, while others fall outside of the scope of the Institute’s mission. Specifically, for our purposes:

A ‘retreat’ is a noble commitment to withdraw from engaging with the outside world and the mundane concerns of day-to-day life for a period of time in order to be present with one’s inner experience more fully — to get to know one’s own mind and heart, to train the mind in empowering ways, and gradually to replace old habits of body, speech, and mind with healthier and more supportive ones.

In other words, a ‘retreat’ isn’t just a time to take a break from the stress of modern life (that’s what vacations are for). We love vacations, too, but the Institute’s retreat cottages are intended specifically to support formal meditation retreats. A formal meditation retreat is a time to step back from our normal life and focus on inner work through meditation (and, for some practitioners, also yoga or other mindful physical practices).

Dharmalaya Institute is nonsectarian and thus does not require retreat applicants to be practicing according to any one particular tradition. It does, however, look for retreat applicants who take the retreat commitment seriously, because Dharmalaya exists to serve as a place for deep learning and transformation, not as a guest house. Our retreat accommodation space is very limited so we want to make sure that it is made available to those practitioners who are mosst committed to their practice. For that reason, personal retreats at Dharmalaya Institute are by application only, and we consider only those applications that meet the criteria outlined below.

Requirements for those wishing to do personal retreats

  • Prior retreat experience: Retreatant must have completed at least one retreat of at least ten days in duration that was guided by a qualified meditation/yoga teacher.

  • Long-term meditation practice: Retreatant must have been meditating regularly for at least one year.

  • Qualified teacher: Retreatant must have a qualified meditation teacher who can be contacted in case support is needed.

  • Emotional stability: Retreatant must be mentally and emotionally stable for at least the past year. (We are unable to host retreats for anyone currently/recently experiencing overwhelming emotional challenges or mental instability, simply because sometimes retreats can stir up such challenges and unfortunately at present we do not have the necessary resources to provide qualified support if needed.)


Commitments

  • Time: At least ten days. (For shorter retreats, there are other places in the area that would be better suited.)

  • Purpose: Meditation retreat with at least four hours of formal meditation practice per day.

  • Presence: ‘Retreat’ is generally defined as withdrawing from the outside world to make time for formal practice, and accordingly it is expected that retreatants will remain on the Dharmalaya Institute’s campus for the duration of their retreat (not going into town, visiting friends, eating at restaurants, etc.). If a retreatant were to leave the Institute’s campus, the Institute would consider the retreat concluded and the retreatant would be asked to leave in order to make room for others who wish to do committed retreat.

  • Service: All people residing at Dharmalaya Institute (with the exception of people in strictly solitary retreat, not interacting with others at all) are expected to take on one or more karma yoga tasks to contribute to the smooth functioning of life on campus, such as helping with gardening, cooking, cleaning, etc. Special considerations are made for people doing strictly solitary retreats, so please make your needs known to us.

  • Silence or mindful speech: ‘Retreat’ generally means either remaining in complete silence or, at a minimum, limiting communication to whatever may be required for meeting one’s basic needs during the retreat (i.e. no idle chit-chat or just hanging out). Please let us know your communication preferences before your retreat begins so we can support you accordingly. Tip: One should complete any travel arrangements and other communications before arriving at Dharmalaya Institute, so that those things won’t be a distraction during your retreat.

  • Code of conduct: All retreatants vow to maintain the traditional code of conduct for the duration of their retreat, which is summarized as follows:

    • Respect all life by practicing loving-kindness and gentleness, and avoiding causing harm to any living being (even insects — we don’t kill or harm anything here!).

    • Practice generosity and unselfishness by sharing and giving more than you take, and by refraining from taking anything that isn’t freely given.

    • Be honest, sensitive, and straightforward in all communication, and refrain from hurtful or deceptive speech.

    • Be celibate and keep modest conduct, out of respect for everyone around, including fellow retreatants and also the local villagers (this includes refraining from all forms of affection in public, including hugging, massages, etc., and also wearing clothes that cover at least the chest, shoulders, and knees whenever you leave your room).

    • Practise clear and steady mindfulness, refraining from indulging in intoxicating substances as well as intoxicating actions and ideas (meaning, in other words, abstaining from any substance, thought, or activity that has the potential to impair one’s judgment or lead to heedlessness).


Retreat support services

Should you require any particular kind of support for your retreat practice, please discuss your needs or wishes with us clearly beforehand, to clarify whether we can accommodate your request or not.

Some kinds of retreat support that we can provide if desired:

  • Providing meditation cushions, yoga mats, etc.

  • Delivering meals to your doorstep if you are in strictly solitary retreat (subject to availability and advance planning).

  • Arranging certain ritual items and other supplies that meet our ecological guidelines (e.g. natural, no chemicals, no plastic packaging, no animal products), such as incense, fresh fruit for your altar, toilet paper, etc., which we can shop for at your expense and deliver to you.

  • You are welcome to borrow books from our library for the duration of your retreat.

  • Laundry: We can provide you with natural laundry soap and other items to help you wash your own clothes or, alternatively, we can send your clothes to be laundered in town (at your expense).

Some kinds of retreat support that we cannot provide:

  • We don’t have a qualified retreat master on campus and can’t provide qualified spiritual guidance (so you need to rely on your own teacher).

  • Whether or not we can provide basic practice guidance and/or basic emotional support depends on who is present on campus at any given time, so in general you should not count on it.

  • We can’t provide (and don’t allow) ritual items that don’t meet our ecological guidelines (e.g. anything with chemicals, plastic packaging, or animal products).


Accommodations

Dharmalaya Institute is in the process of building a hermitage in a secluded corner of our campus to provide the most conducive environment for long-term retreats. The first of the hermitage’s lovely, earthen retreat cottages has been completed, with more planned for future construction.

Meanwhile, we have one or two regular cottages that are sometimes (depending on the season) available for retreat practitioners. These cottages are often occupied by staff or long-term interns during our busy seasons (generally March through June and mid-October through mid-December), so your best chances to find them available for meditation retreats are during the monsoon (roughly July through September) and winter (mid-December through the end of February).

For those with very simple needs, we also have large and comfortable canvas tents (furnished with a mattress and proper bedding), which sometimes can be made available for private retreats (again, seasonally).

Food

Dharmalaya Institute serves healthy, balanced, hygienically prepared, plant-based (strict vegetarian, 100% vegan) meals that include as many organic and local ingredients as possible. We can provide one to three meals per day, depending on your preference (since some retreat practices involve limited meals, please let us know your desired meal timings), plus tea around 3:30pm for those who wish to take it. We also provide safe drinking water (processed through a four-stage filter that includes activated carbon filtration and UV treatment, meeting World Health Organization standards).

Most retreatants take their meals from the buffet during the group meal times (and we can give you an “I’m in silence” badge to wear so that others will understand that you’re in retreat). However, if you’re planning to be in strictly solitary retreat (no contact with others), we can arrange for meals to be delivered to your doorstep.

Some special dietary needs can be accommodated, while others can’t (at least not reliably), so please check with us beforehand about any food allergies or other special dietary needs.

Please note that, for reasons of compassion, ecology, and health, the entire Dharmalaya campus is committed to to a low-waste, vegan lifestyle, so no junk food or animal products are allowed anywhere on the campus. Please do not bring packaged snack foods with you. A retreat is a time to let go of our various addictions and indulgences, and to discover how much better we feel when we’ve been free of them for a while.

Costs

Formal, full-time meditation retreats at the Dharmalaya Institute are offered on a donation basis, with food and lodging handled slightly differently, as explained below.

Lodging: For committed practitioners doing formal meditation retreats of at least ten days, accommodation in a retreat cottage or tent is offered according to the traditional dana system, in which the practitioner freely gives an amount of her/his choosing that feels both generous and manageable. The traditional practice of dana is to look into your heart to find a win-win amount that feels appropriately generous and doesn’t cause undue hardship either to the giver or the receiver.

Food: Because providing healthy, organic food is a significant expense for the Institute, there is a minimum food donation of Rs 5000 for the first ten days (assuming three meals per day), which is payable in advance in order to enable the Institute to buy enough food for you for those ten days. For retreatants staying longer than ten days, or for those requiring only one or two meals per day instead of three, please let us know your needs and we can discuss options.

Note on donation amounts: Because we wish to make it possible for people of all backgrounds to be able to do formal practice retreats in a supportive natural environment, we try to be as flexible as possible, and we trust that most practitioners will respect the dana tradition and not abuse that flexibility. For your kind consideration, please note that the minimum donation amount we mentioned only covers the cost of providing healthy meals for you, and not the costs of staff wages, building and maintaining retreat accommodations and other facilities and services, so it would be very helpful and greatly appreciated if you would be so kind as to offer more than that bare minimum if you are able. Giving generously will help us make more retreat space available to other sincere practitioners like you, some of whom may have lesser financial resources.

Donation timing: In most cases, retreatants prefer not to handle money transactions during their retreats, so typically they make their food donation in advance (so that the Institute will have sufficient funds to buy the necessary ingredients) and then make an additional donation of their choosing (e.g. for accommodation, staff, and general support of the Institute) at the end of their retreat. However, if it is more convenient for you to make a single donation for everything before the start of your retreat, you’re welcome to do so.

Other important information about staying at Dharmalaya Institute

Dharmalaya Institute is an ashram-style environment in a remote village area, which means life here is very different from what most people have experienced. Please read the important information on our About Dharmalaya Institute page so you’ll have a clear sense of how we do things, what to expect, what’s expected of you, what to bring with you, and what not to bring with you.


Applying

After reading all of the information above, if you wish to apply to do a personal retreat at Dharmalaya Institute, you can do so by submitting the personal retreat application form here.