Spring 2022 Six-Week Course and Retreat:
Support, Trust, Awakening with Henry Shukman
6-week course: May 1 – June 5
Weekend retreat: June 11 – 12
(Course & Retreat are Online Only)
“We can open to the healing and awakening power of support, seen and unseen.” – Henry Shukman
- A weekly two-hour live large group session
- Two weekly guided meditations (recorded)
- Practice sharing groups for those interested
In many ways, meditation is all about support. It can open us to ever wider fields of support and connection, wonderful to discover and recognize. It teaches us to make friends with things – to find ourselves in a friendly world, even a friendly universe. And it teaches us how to pass on that friendliness in our daily lives, so we become more of a help to other beings.
This six-week course, followed by a weekend retreat, will lead us through various kinds of support that sustain us, even when we feel alone. Support is both about opening up and noticing it, as well as about trust and some vulnerability. To be open, we need a glimmer of trust. So we’ll explore ways of loosening up, lightening up, and trusting more, so we can open to the healing and awakening power of support, seen and unseen.
We’ll touch on koans too, and explore how they can show us that things – objects, creatures, the stuff of our world – are really closer than close, and can awaken us to a love within all things.
We will dive deep into these different arenas of support:
- our bodies and their many parts
- the four elements: earth, water, fire/warmth and air
- the three “refuges”
- ancestral legacies and gifts
- nature and the more-than-human realm
- the wisdom of koans
Guest teachers: We are excited to welcome Rick Hanson, PhD, as a guest teacher for our session on Sunday, May 15.
Guided Meditations
For the 6-week course participants, Henry will be recording 2 guided meditations per week. At the end of the 6 weeks, you’ll have a set of 12 meditations to keep and review. These guided meditations can serve as touchstones in your week, helping you deepen your capacities for Support, Trust and Awakening.
Facilitated Community Sharing Groups
This past Late Winter course was our first time offering these groups, and they were a great success.
Here are some words from our Sharing Group participants:
“The sharing groups supported me so very much. People’s willingness to share and be vulnerable was inspirational! This experience encouraged me to be more honest and vulnerable. Our facilitator was great. She created a feeling of safety and structure.” – LJ
“It was very nourishing to share with the group and to hear my own thoughts, and to listen and to get to know the others. I picked up tips and ideas too. Hearing the shares from the other participants was very connecting and real. The facilitator helped create an atmosphere of kindness, calm, and humanity.” – ET
And our facilitators found the experiences equally transformative:
“Facilitating the Sharing Groups made me realize just how connected we truly are. This journey of the heart is truly a shared one. I was the facilitator, but I felt equally supported by the participants. It was a gift in every way. Honored to be a small part.” – Shana Smith
New for Spring 2022 Sharing Groups! We are offering a new “asynchronous” way to engage with a Community Sharing Group through our online community forum. These groups will have a dedicated facilitator, be the same size, receive the same discussion prompts, and carry the same intention and commitment as in-person groups, but will engage purely online through a private page on the Forum.
Members of these online groups will receive the week’s sharing prompt after each Sunday Session and will be asked to check in on the forum at least twice throughout the week to a) post their own reflection on the prompt, and b) read and acknowledge what others have shared. This is a great option for folks who can’t join the scheduled meeting times.
This Spring, the Community Sharing Groups will be offered as an addition to the 6 week course, with an additional registration fee. This reflects our true costs for running the program. See below for how to register! Please note: Community Sharing Groups are included in the Original Love 1-Year Program.
Course information
Schedule:
6-week course:
Sundays May 1 – June 5, 2022, 10am – 12pm MT
Weekend retreat:
Saturday & Sunday June 11 – 12, 10am – 3pm MT
Facilitated community sharing groups (optional):
These groups will be meeting in-between Sunday sessions. The available times are:
- Sunday 12:15pm MT
- Monday 6:30pm MT
- Wednesday 11am MT and 6:30 pm MT
- Friday 11am MT
- And we have a brand new option where we’ll be having groups meet on our community forum, which does not require you to be there live (good for those in other time zones or with busy schedules)
For those of you in different time zones, or who can’t make the scheduled meeting times – all events (except the Sharing Groups) are being recorded and you will have access to recordings shortly after each event.
Cost:
6-Week Course: $249
Weekend Retreat: $195
6-Week Course & Community Sharing Group: $349
6-Week Course + Weekend Retreat: $395
6-Week Course + Weekend Retreat + Community Sharing Group: $495
Scholarships
We have a limited number of scholarships available. We don’t want anybody not to be able to take the program because of financial need. If you need financial assistance, please contact Jeremy.
OL is 100% online: there are no in-person events this year.
If you have any questions, please contact Jeremy. We’re happy to answer any questions and look forward to having you join us!