Retreats with Rashani
How can the divine Oneness be seen?
In beautiful forms, breathtaking wonders,
awe-inspiring miracles? The Tao is not obliged
to present itself in this way.
If you are willing to be lived by it,
you will see it everywhere,
even in the most ordinary things.
Lao Tzu
Rashani’s retreats are an opportunity to be “lived by the Tao” while living simply with the Earth. Re-connecting, and experiencing our interdependence, with the rhythms of nature is such a huge part of our individual and collective healing. Rashani shares what she has gleaned from her many teachers as well as from her own experiences of solitude, motherhood, partnership, severe illness, personal loss, many years of gardening and being close to the earth, decades of diverse spiritual practices, exploring dreams and the creative process. She is an alchemist in the truest sense and is constantly refining her art. Her natural curiosity and passion for truth slice through falsity and illusion, creating a space of open attention. Rashani's naturalness and authenticity invite others to join her in an ongoing, transparent communion; to consider defenseless intimacy and satsang as a way of life."
Are we not here to awaken together?" Rashani asks. " 'Personal enlightenment' seems very odd. And so many people have become obsessed with this concept. (and that's all it is, a concept.) Native American people say it so simply: We are here to dance awake the sacred Dream. So everything we do (or don't do!) is part of this marvelous, interconnected Dance/Awakening, whether we like it or not."
Through silence and soetry (song and poetry), through dyads and sharing dreams, journal writing, cultivating curiosity and kindness, walking meditation and cloud-gazing, through opening to unexpected situations, moments of deep stillness & nurturing interactions with other participants and by welcoming all aspects of ourselves to the feast of the moment, we discover a naked awareness in which nothing needs to be any different than it is. It's simply becoming Aware of what is already Here. By recognizing our tendencies to react, for example, we are gradually released from the patterning; as we bring more focused, compassionate attention to habitual behavior we move closer to true liberation.
"We are reminded again and again of the preciousness of this brief earth walk and before we know it, we realize that grace itself is the ground of being, infusing our lives like the numinous song of a radiant night sky"
–Rashani
Rashani Réa has a remarkable presence––the embodiment of Gaia and voice of Rumi. She is a unique nondual teacher and mentor who has inspired hundreds of people to explore awareness in the way that great Tibetan masters did in years gone by, by living with nature and using action, community, poetry and voice. She teaches and sings from the exulted vision that arises spontaneously in the carefree state of uncontrived awareness. I heartily recommend that you seek her deep wisdom wherever you find her.
Peter Fenner, Ph.D. Founder of Timeless Wisdom
Rashani has and is a powerful gift for us. Through her buoyant strength and grace, healing happens for body and soul.
Joanna Macy, Author of World as Lover, World as Self
Rashani carries a "huna" kind of energy, born from many years of sitting in the company of awakened beings – human and non-human – study, practice and her commitment to pursue an inner calling. A true "kahuna nui," Rashani was called to Hawai‘i more than twenty years ago. She has created two unique sanctuaries, where many people from around the world have come to heal and awaken while nurturing, and being nurtured by, the ‘aina/spirit of the land.
WILLIAM AIUKEA, HAWAIIAN KUMU
Rashani's way is individual, personal and profound. She invites you to be fully who you are, be that difficult or easy. Her gift goes beyond healing. Kipukamaluhia is a place where your soul returns to rejoicing. The land, the trees, the plants are an integral part of the experience.
James Fadiman, PhD. Co-founder of The Institute of Transpersonal Psychology
Inward Bound Retreats
Inward Bound is an opportunity to cultivate presence, nurture ecological awareness and discover the eloquence of silence in one of Hawai‘i's most cherished regions. It is an invitation to connect more intimately with the rhythms and cycles of nature and to live simply with the Earth. In January, 2003, after fifteen years of facilitating councils and retreats in Hawai‘i, Europe, Australia, the Americas and Aotearoa/New Zealand, and three years of profound personal disillusionment, Rashani began offering month long retreats on the Big Island of Hawai‘i. She held her first 3 month retreat in the fall of 2005 and will be offering similar retreats in the future. Inward Bound, this “pathless pilgrimage”, is an opportunity to meet the vastness and essence of who we are while attending to the details of everyday life. We nurture and are nurtured by the land and have the opportunity to experience more clearly what is occurring within and around us moment to moment. The illusion of separation becomes increasingly apparent.
During periods of silence and in the midst of personal interactions, whatever core issues need attending inevitably arise and are welcomed in the spaciousness of unconditioned presence. There is an effortless action that begins to happen when we drop agendas and methods and abide in the unknown.
Who are we without the need to effort towards something? What happens when we let go of resisting or confronting what we are experiencing? What occurs when we drop the habit of labeling our experience? Inward Bound is an invitation to explore timeless time. What has previously been perceived as an obstacle or limitation often becomes an opening into a more inclusive awareness or is simply deconstructed in the alchemy of direct experience. All paths, teachings and beliefs fall away and that which is deeper than any habitual behavior organically reveals itself.
Surrendering into the stream of sustained inquiry, we discover that total freedom is possible without having to change outer circumstances. We meet who we are without needing to be in control.
Rashani shares: "I was amazed to discover how quickly a bonsai tree grew when it was removed from its shallow pot and transplanted into the earth. A similar blossoming occurs in people who cultivate unconditioned presence. Gradually, the unconditioned mind infuses the conditioned mind like a fragrance of light."
Some groups prefer more structure and others want to explore structurelessness. Past groups have enjoyed formal sessions of walking, sitting and singing meditation, edgu, yoga, authentic movement and dance, journal writing, sharing in dyads and with the group, as well as less structured time for doing nothing, following the currents of the moment, communing with the land and animals, shinrin-yoku (forest bathing), https://www.rashani.com/about/shinrin-yoku and spontaneous drumming and poetry circles, sharing dreams, reading, spending time at nearby beaches, etc.
Each participant receives two sessions per week with Rashani.
Prices for Retreats
Prices include lodging but not food. (All retreatants prepare their own meals.)
Sliding scale and depending on lodging:
One week: $1,600-$2,400
Two weeks: $3,000-$4,500
Discounts are available for those choosing to offer time in the garden during the retreats—and for those who prefer bringing a tent.