Awake in Our Lives: A Silent Meditation Retreat

Awake in Our Lives is a silent meditation retreat in the Insight Meditation tradition, led by Theravada Buddhist teacher Celeste Young at Hollyhock in British Columbia, Canada. It is for people who want to settle the mind and open the heart through practice, and to bring that insight back into their lives just as they are. The program is held in silence.

What to Expect

Silence gives the mind and heart room to settle, and with that comes a renewed sense of connection with your own body, heart, and mind. The retreat runs from a Friday evening start at 6:30pm to a 1:30pm finish on the last day, five nights in all.

Each day includes two guided meditations, set among periods of silent sitting and walking meditation, mindful movement, and time in nature. Mornings are devoted to the four foundations of mindfulness. Afternoons turn to a guided meditation on awakening the boundless heart and restoring calm and tranquility. Moving between sitting and walking, the group builds continuity of mindfulness together.

Every day there is a Dharma talk to support embodied understanding, and small group meetings with the teacher offer personal instruction and support. There is also time set aside for rest. A past participant described the structure this way: each day builds on the next, strengthening the "mindfulness muscle." A detailed daily schedule is emailed about 30 days before the program.

About Celeste Young

Celeste Young is a Theravada Buddhist mindfulness and Dharma teacher who has practiced meditation and sat retreats since 2002. She was one of the first teachers empowered at InsightLA, a nonprofit Buddhist and secular mindfulness organization based in Los Angeles. Since 2011 she has taught thousands of students through classes, silent retreats, and one-to-one work, and has brought mindfulness into organizations including Netflix and the University of Southern California. She has also mentored new mindfulness teachers internationally.

For the last 16 years her own practice has centered on yearly long silent retreats, from one to three months, in the Insight Meditation tradition. She is also a certified Life Balance Strategist, and sees that work and Dharma teaching as practical ways to help people live by their deeper values with more clarity and well-being.

The Setting

The retreat takes place at Hollyhock, a retreat centre in British Columbia, where nature is part of the daily rhythm. The schedule leaves room to rest and enjoy the grounds and everything Hollyhock offers.

Before You Go

The program is taught in English. Included are the two daily guided meditations, the daily Dharma talk, small group meetings with the teacher, and access to the optional yoga or tai chi classes at Hollyhock, which the daily schedule makes room for.