Introductory Weekend Online Retreat

Find out what passage meditation can do for you

"There is nothing glamorous about meditation. It is a lot of hard, hard work. But when you know from your own experience what the tremendous benefits can be, you look forward to meditation. When the alarm goes off in the morning, even in the dead of winter when the bed is warm and the blankets hold you down, you get up for your meditation with eagerness and enthusiasm every day, well or not so well, because you know that meditation is the key to the art of living." – Eknath Easwaran

Introductory Online
Onlineretreat

3 days

In these terribly uncertain times, we can’t fix external events for ourselves or even for our dearest loved ones. But we can learn to make a valuable contribution in the midst of it all. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if - despite what is happening in the world - you could be a calming influence, a source of light, generous good cheer, and useful service to those around you? Eknath Easwaran’s method of passage meditation can help you bring this vision to life by accessing your own deepest inner resources.

This weekend retreat will introduce you to Easwaran’s teachings on how to lead a meaningful and fulfilled life; teach you how to practice passage meditation; and give you real-time meditation experience. You will also have rich “practicum” opportunities - in your own home - to try out the daily life skills that make passage meditation so versatile and practical.

In a group of 10-20 people, you’ll take part in interactive workshops and exercises designed to help you practice what you learn. BMCM presenters - students who have dedicated their lives to this practice - will answer your questions and support you throughout the retreat to do the hard work of sitting to meditate every day and integrating what you gain into your home and work life.

This intro retreat is a great way to brush up on the fundamentals of your Passage Meditation practice.

Easwaran describes passage meditation as a “come-as-you-are party,” and our retreats reflect that. Everyone is welcome, and we hope you’ll feel relaxed and comfortable from the start.

Retreat Content

By the end of the weekend, you will have:

Tried out passage meditation five times (each session is 30 minutes and you can meditate on a chair or on the floor)
Experienced the benefits of a quieter and calmer mind
Developed a personal plan for maintaining a successful meditation practice at home
Chosen a mantram to steady your mind throughout the day
Tried out a “mantram walk”
Experienced a balanced schedule of learning, practice, and application in your home; and discovered the beginning of a resilient, fulfilled lifestyle

The workshops are interactive, and you can speak up as much or as little as you choose.

Your retreat will be facilitated by two BMCM presenters who are longtime passage meditators and have completed a comprehensive, long-term training program.

Daily Retreat Schedule

The retreat consists of three half-day Zoom sessions (Friday, Saturday, and Sunday) with recommended offline practicum activities to work on at home. This retreat is an around-the-clock affair, so we ask that you please keep your calendar clear for the full length of your retreat (Friday morning to Sunday afternoon). You will be busy during your offline practicum time.

All times below are Pacific Standard Time:

9:00 a.m. Silent study offline (in-home, optional)
9:30 Zoom-based workshops (with break)
12:00 Zoom call ends (12:30 on Saturday), meditation begins, followed by self-selected spiritual enrichment activities

Note** We also ask that you attend a 45-minute retreat orientation a week before the retreat.

Prerequisites

All are welcome. There are no prerequisites, but we do ask that you attend the 45-minute orientation a week before the retreat because this will help you prepare to make the most of your at-home retreat experience.

Fee and Enrollment

Fee

The standard fee is $150. The sliding scale is $75–$225.

The maximum enrollment for this retreat is 20. Enrollment requests over 20 will be put on a waiting list. The minimum enrollment to hold this retreat is 8.

Explanation of Sliding Scale

Our sliding scale means that you can choose the price that is right for you. If you can pay the standard fee, that will cover the cost of your retreat.

Please choose a lower fee if the standard fee is too much for you to afford.

If you add a donation to the standard fee, that will help others to attend – thank you!

The BMCM is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. All our work is made possible by donations. While income from books and retreats covers a portion of our costs, everything we do depends on the generosity of those who benefit from Easwaran’s teachings.

Each dollar paid over the standard fee is a tax-deductible contribution. We keep all donations and fee payments confidential.

Financial Aid

You are welcome to attend this program with a scholarship if you need to pay less than the lowest end of the sliding scale. Our scholarship fund is created out of donations from generous friends to help more people attend programs.

We also offer payment plans, so you can pay your fee in installments.

For either a scholarship or payment plan, please don’t register online, and instead write to financial.aid@easwaran.org or call us at 800.475.2369. We’ll get back to you within three days.

Refunds

If you need to cancel your retreat, please let us know as soon as possible and we’ll refund your full fee.

Experiences

"The dedication and commitment of the presenters was so evident...and it was contagious! Passage meditation is an integral part of my life thanks to the support of BMCM."

"I was thrilled to re-read "Passage Meditation," and to hear the Q&A from Presenters & Attendees. Attending greatly strengthened my meditation practice: my passages during meditation were feeling a little stale, but I didn't realize that until our retreat discussions: I really need to slow down the passages during meditation; and pick up long passages again that I had learned in the past. The presenters were FANTASTIC and I can't wait to be on another retreat with them!!"

"I’m excited about taking the returnee online retreat and weekend retreat down the road."