Silent Meditation Retreat

A Silent Meditation Retreat

A Silent Meditation Retreat is a reminder that
you´re a Human Being,
not a Human Doing…

Silent Meditation Retreat Sitting

A Silent Meditation Retreat

Being present, where Heaven and Earth meet,
… where life unfolds itself,
… where being is enough,
… being with all as it is,
… being moved by the flow of life,
… in resonance with the pulse of life.

The Sweet Sound of Silence

A Silent Meditation Retreat is a taking away.
Removing what is not needed.
Making space for what is already there,
but we usually are too busy to see it.

Being during a Silent Meditation Retreat
Walking during a Silent Meditation Retreat

It´s not easy to describe a Silent Retreat,
Poetry comes close,
Art gives a flavour,
Music touches,
only to leave one empty-handed.

Emptiness is what it is all about,
The lack of things,
Simplicity,
Being.

The Daily Programme

Breakfast (individually), in silence
09:30 – 10:30: Sitting/Walking Meditation
10:30 – 10:45: Break, in silence
10:45 – 12:30: Free time in the Center
12:30 – 13:00: Lunch, in silence
13:00 – 15:00: Free time in the Center
15:00 – 15:15: Break, in silence
15:15 – 15:45: Possibility for Sharing & Feedback
16:00 – 18:45: Afternoon session
19:00 – 20:00: Dinner, in silence

Each Silent Meditation Retreat includes

• Individual Guidance & Feedback
• Four short Silent Gatherings during the day
• Morning session with Sitting/Walking Meditation
• Afternoon session with either
– visits to Assisi´s Sacred Places
– “Camino-Walks” (90 minutes) near the Center
– free afternoons

Read more about
• the cost for your Silent Meditation Retreat

FAQ about the Silent Meditation Retreats

The day of your arrival we have our personal welcome meeting to make sure all practical matters are clear so you can relax during the retreat.
In that meeting we will also ask you how we best can support you in your process of falling into the Great Silence…

Every afternoon gives the possibility for Sharing.
During our Summer Retreat however – in order not to disturb the proces of the other participants – more private guidance will have to take place individually during the breaks.

If it shows that more profound support is needed, a therapy session with Mayadevi can always be booked.

Our meals and breaks happen in silence. After the meals we stay seated for a while which gives a certain quality to the sequence from “eating” into “sitting silently” and “rising up and going on” a smooth and natural form. All this to integrate the meditative space into daily life – and live daily life in an ongoing meditative space.

Ideally, from the moment you register for your Silent Meditation Retreat! Then you have started the proces of Enquiry: “What is the purpose of my communication with the world around me?”

Am i pleasing, avoiding, charming, dominating, honest, manipulating… and so on. Endlessly. Until we say Enough is Enough!

But to answer the question: The day of your arrival, after we picked you up from the station and leave Assisi behind by driving through the medieval city gate and enter another world:
The protected Parco Naturale del Monte Subasio.

Then your Silent Retreat starts:
take a deep breath,
you can relax now,
let go of all travel worries,
surrender to the nature all around,
be embraced by the vast space,
welcomed by the Silence…

By now we don´t have to explain that The Silent Retreat Center is a place of … silence, do we?
But we do communicate practical informations, so daily life can happen smoothly. However, we refrain from conversations and smalltalk. We listen instead. And as nobody talks, it´s silent…

Silence is not something we practice here, it falls upon us…

So silent: yes!
speaking when a situation requires action: yes!
conversations: no!
sign language or whispering: absolutely not! (makes more noise than natural talking!)

We are not encouraging nor teaching a special way of meditating. You can use your own preferred techniques or just be.

So you can participate in the retreat without any prior experience.

More about The Silent Meditation Retreats