3-Month Rain Retreat at Healing Spring Monastery

The 3-Month Rain Retreat at Healing Spring Monastery is a 90-day Rains Retreat in the Plum Village tradition, held in Thénac, in the Dordogne region of France. It is a long mindfulness retreat for men who want to simplify their lives, slow down and deepen their meditation practice alongside a monastic community. It follows the teachings of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. English is the only language of the retreat.

What the Rains Retreat Is

The Rains Retreat is an annual retreat that goes back to the time of the Buddha, when monastics set aside a season for study, practice, healing and transformation. In the Plum Village tradition, lay practitioners are welcome to join this period of in-depth practice together with the monastics.

The retreat is offered to those who feel the need to slow down, regroup and look deeply into themselves and into their relationships with family and society. The three months are given to meditation, to learning the art of walking the path of understanding and love, to supporting the monastic community and to building community. Thich Nhat Hanh taught the enjoyment of every breath and every step, and that is the heart of the practice here.

What Happens

The day usually begins around 05.45 am and ends around 09.30 pm, followed by Noble Silence until the next morning, after you have washed your breakfast dishes. The days include sitting meditation, walking meditation, service meditation, cooking meditation and a lazy day. This is not a silent retreat. There are Dharma talks, study classes, group mentoring and Dharma sharing sessions, all in English or translated into English.

The week has its own shape. On Thursdays, monastics and lay practitioners practice separately. Twice a month, on Sundays, the community practices with the nuns and with people who come for a day, and at the end of each month with the Vietnamese community. Weekend guests are also received. The Christmas and New Year period is celebrated at the monastery, and some participants visit their families or return for the new year.

Participants take part in the daily schedule and offer their time and energy voluntarily to the everyday tasks of the community.

Order of Interbeing Members

Two places are held for men who are members of the Order of Interbeing, the community of monastics and laypeople built around the Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings, which Thich Nhat Hanh created. These participants help support the community by training in leading sessions and working with other lay practitioners, and so refine their facilitation skills.

About Thich Nhat Hanh

Thich Nhat Hanh, affectionately called Thay by his students, was a Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk, teacher, author, poet and peace activist. He founded the Plum Village Tradition and is widely credited as a major influence on how Buddhism and mindfulness reached the West. He entered the monastery at Từ Hiếu Temple at sixteen, co-founded the School of Youth for Social Service, and coined the term "engaged Buddhism", the idea that mindfulness and compassionate action belong together.

About Deep Listening of the Heart

Deep Listening of the Heart is a meditation teacher practicing on the way of the Thich Nhat Hanh tradition.

The Place

Healing Spring Monastery is in Thénac, Dordogne. It is not Plum Village near Bordeaux. Participants stay in shared dormitory rooms of three to five beds. All meals are vegan. Only eight people are hosted for the full three months.

Before You Go

- The retreat is for men aged 18 and over. No previous experience in the Plum Village tradition is needed, only openness to practice it.
- You should be physically, mentally and emotionally stable, since you are expected to support yourself, the monastic community and weekend guests.
- Fluent English, understood and spoken, is essential.
- The commitment is the full retreat, including five days of preparation before and two days of closing ceremony after, 97 days in total. Exceptions are made for family or health emergencies and for Christmas with family. Those who need a Schengen visa should arrange it in good time.
- Alcohol, drugs and smoking, including e-cigarettes, are not allowed in the monastery compound.
- Participants practice the Five Mindfulness Trainings. Order of Interbeing members practice the Fourteen.
- Pets cannot be hosted.
- Please arrange your life beforehand so that you can practice peacefully without being busy during the retreat.

Places are by application. The contribution is a sliding-scale donation covering accommodation and food, with a lower range for Order of Interbeing members. The retreat goes ahead only if at least four participants join.