Embodied Freedom: Energy, Wisdom, and Somatic Awakening

Embodied Freedom is a six-night silent meditation retreat at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, California, for people who want to meet the body as a path of insight. Led by devon hase, Dawn Mauricio, and movement teacher Djuna Devereaux, with Joseph Goldstein joining by video, it weaves vipassanā meditation, somatic inquiry, samādhi practice, and accessible yoga. Beginners and experienced practitioners are both welcome.

What to Expect

Many of us sense the body only when something hurts, or hardly at all. This retreat starts from the felt sense of the body, moves into subtle energy, from there into stillness, and from stillness into insight. The teaching draws on wisdom from the vipassanā lineage of southeast Asia and asks some basic questions: What am I? What is this experience of being human? What would it mean to be free within it?

The retreat opens on a Monday with check-in between 2:30 and 4:30 PM, orientation, practice instructions, and an evening sitting. Tuesday through Saturday follow a steady rhythm: early morning sitting in the Upper Meditation Hall, walking meditation, somatic and energy-body practices, yoga and asana instruction, a midday meal, afternoon sitting and practice periods, and evening meditation with a closing practice. On Sunday there are final morning and midday sessions and a closing circle, with departure by 11:00 AM.

The retreat is silent, except for teacher-led Q&A, small groups, and other practice meetings. Joseph Goldstein will not be on the land. He will join by Zoom for one session during the retreat.

The Teachers

devon hase has practiced intensively in the Insight and Vajrayana traditions since discovering meditation in 2000, and has spent a cumulative four years in silent practice. She teaches at the Insight Meditation Society, Spirit Rock, the Forest Refuge, and other centers. Her approach is friendly and conversational, with an emphasis on relational practice and the natural world. She co-authored How Not to Be a Hot Mess: A Buddhist Survival Guide for Modern Life.

Dawn Mauricio has taught since 2005 and spent 13 years teaching yoga and mindfulness meditation full-time. Since 2018 she has taught Buddhist Dhamma and meditation, mostly in intensive retreat settings. She is a Somatic Experiencing practitioner and the author of Mindfulness Meditation for Beginners. Her training includes Spirit Rock's four-year Retreat Teacher Training and its Dedicated Practitioners' Program. She teaches in a playful, dynamic, heartfelt way grounded in embodied and relational practice.

Djuna Devereaux 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 is also a yoga therapist and Somatic Experiencing practitioner in private practice.

Joseph Goldstein co-founded the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, and has taught Vipassana and Metta retreats worldwide since 1974. In 1989 he helped establish the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies.

The Setting

The retreat takes place at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in Woodacre, in Marin County, and uses the consecrated Upper Meditation Hall. Of the center's 80 rooms, 16 are doubles and the rest are singles. Shared and single rooms are both offered, though singles are limited and are first prioritized for people with serious medical needs. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and refreshments are provided. The group is limited to 80 people.

Before You Go

No previous meditation, yoga, or somatic experience is needed. First-time meditators are encouraged to attend two or three daylong programs before a longer retreat. Retreat commuters, who attend without overnight accommodation, must have completed at least one weeklong silent residential retreat in Insight meditation. The retreat is taught in English.

Registration includes six nights of lodging, all meals, and all teachings and practice sessions. It does not include transportation to Spirit Rock or teacher dana, which is offered at the closing circle. Sliding scale pricing, scholarships, and payment plans are available. Because people live closely together, those who are sick are asked to stay home.