Inexplicable Magic: Meditation for Mystics

An Exploration of the Householder Path with Susan Piver and Crystal Gandrud

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Arrival: July 5th, 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Departure: July 14th, 12:30 PM

Tuition: Free
+ Lodging Costs (food & drink included)

~Add extra nights at 50% off ~

Arrival: July 5th, 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Departure: July 14th, 12:30 PM

Tuition: Free
+ Lodging Costs (food & drink included)

~Add extra nights at 50% off ~

About this Retreat

At a certain point, meditation practice stops being something we do only on the cushion. It moves into the rest of life and informs the way we inhabit our relationships, homes, work, creativity, finances, and all the ways we live. Everything from the way we keep house to how we express love becomes the practice. In the Buddhist view, this is called the path of the householder. Rather than turning away from everyday life and hoping to escape the difficulties of being human, our practice develops into a turning toward it all. As a consequence, we come alive.

This is not a simple endeavor. The householder path involves riding waves of ever-increasing vulnerability and openness. To make sense of it all, we need guidelines. 

This deep meditation retreat with Susan and Crystal is a chance to breathe life into your practice within a supportive community and be further encouraged by the beauty of the Colorado Rockies in high summer.

What to Expect

During this retreat, we will explore 7 principles that steady the householder journey. 

  • We Engage in Ritual. We will discuss the necessity and power of engaging in meditation as part of a ritual rather than a mechanistic self-help gesture.

  • The Personal is Not an Obstacle. It is the Way. Who you are is not a problem to be solved. Your beauty and confusion shape the path. When we let go of attempts to manage our “ego” (most often through self-shaming), we discover a more brilliant world.

  • We Recognize Heartbreak. The result of a steady meditation practice is not bland equanimity. It is a broken heart. We feel more deeply. We more clearly experience the suffering of others. Though it is difficult, it is important: the willingness to acknowledge sorrow is the seed syllable of compassion itself.

  • We are Boundaried. While opening further and becoming more vulnerable are important, it would be dangerous to think you should be open to everything. Protections are required. Setting boundaries is necessary. We will discuss how to do so.

  • We Clean Up After Ourselves. When we have a steady (or steady-ish) meditation practice, are willing to face ourselves and our world, and feel some degree of order within it all, we can turn attention to our world and take time to clean up our messes (whether in the kitchen sink or relationships). When we do so, we invest in sanity, that’s pretty important right now.

  • We Dream on Behalf of Others. Our world desperately needs people to keep alive the vision of an awakened world.  By actively cultivating our capacity to imagine and feel into the world we want to create for ourselves and others, we make a difference. What we do not envision, we cannot build. To dream is a privilege and with a strong practice, we naturally  exercise that privilege on behalf of people, animals, trees, everything.

  • We Live as Mystics, Hiding in Plain Sight. All the principles mentioned so far are rooted in seeing our world as alive, confounding, mysterious. When we turn toward it with respect and curiosity, our everyday lives are peppered–or even saturated–with expressions of sanity and joy. This is the path of the householder mystic.

Program Schedule

July 5th

Arrival Day

Check-in 2:00 – 5:00pm

July 6th-13th

Eight Full Practice Days

July 14th

Departure Day

Program ends after breakfast

Practice Day Schedule
7:00 a.m. Practice session

8:00 a.m. Breakfast

9:00 a.m. Yoga

9:45 a.m Practice session

12:30 p.m. Lunch

2:30 p.m. Practice session

4:00 p.m. Tea

4:30 p.m. Practice session

6:00 p.m. Dinner

7:30 p.m. Practice session

8:30 p.m. Conclude

10:00 p.m. Lights Out

Retreat Faculty

Susan Piver

Susan Piver is the New York Times bestselling author of many books, including The Wisdom of a Broken Heart; Start Here Now: An Open-Hearted Guide to the Path and Practice of Meditation; The Four Noble Truths of Love: Buddhist Wisdom for Modern Relationships; and The Buddhist Enneagram: Nine Paths to Warriorship, Inexplicable Joy: On the [...]
Teacher headshot

Crystal Gandrud

Crystal Gandrud dropped out of pre-med and joined the circus, which eventually led to a Conservatory Classical Theatre degree and an advanced degree in Experimental Fiction. In 2018, she co-founded Lionheart Press with Susan Piver, a small press exploring Buddhism for everyday mystics. In 2022, she founded The Owl Circus to explore the nexus of [...]

Lodging

We have several accommodations to choose from during checkout. All options include meals and drinks.

Off Campus
 Participants who wish to commute from their own accommodations off-site.
Example: Own home, Air BnB, Camping nearby in Red Feather.

Car Camping
We have some primitive parking spots in our Rigden parking lot, for parking and sleeping.
Note: Your vehicle must be self contained, you cannot pitch a tent or set up other camping gear.

Single/Double Tents
(Late May – Early September)
Platform Tents located in Our Main Campus Area and in our more remote Maitri Village, each of which is near a bathhouse. Tents can be rented as a single or a double (with a roommate).
These 12′ x 14′ tents have twin beds, bookcases and a hanging clothes rack.*
Note: Bedding is NOT provided. Please bring your own twin sheets, blanket / sleeping bag, and pillow.

Dormitories
Two Rooms with beds for up to 7 people. Gender-segregated with men in their own dorm and women in another. Bathrooms just down the hall, which are also equipped with shower stalls.

Monk Rooms
A cost-effective option for participants looking for indoor, solitary lodging, but who don’t mind using a shared bathroom. In addition to a bed, bedding, a private room and closet, the monk rooms also have a large window and a desk and desk chair for added comfort.

Single and Double Rooms
The perfect choice for a retreat where you want both your own space and your own bathroom. Each room offers a little more space, a dresser and closet, and a 3/4s bathroom (toilet, sink, and shower, no bathtub) attached to each room.

Junior Suites
Our Lodge Junior Suites include a queen-size bed topped by a cozy comforter, a desk, dresser, closet and private bath with bathtub, plus a sitting area.

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