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Three Characteristics: Wisely Knowing Non-Self (Anatta) (hybrid: in-person)

Program Type:
Teacher:
Time:10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Date:Sunday - October 5, 2025
Sessions:1
$125
$100
$85

This one-day retreat is the second of three retreats on the Three Characteristics of Existence offered in Fall, 2025 by Matthew Hepburn. Participants may attend one, two, or all three retreats.

This program will be hosted both in-person and online (hybrid). This is the registration page to join Matthew Hepburn in person at our Center in Cambridge. (Register here if you prefer to attend online.)

In-person space is limited. Registration will close at 12:00 pm on Friday, October 17th. Walk-in registrations will not be available. A vegetarian lunch will be provided.

How do the three “characteristics”—more directly translated as the three perceptions—fit into the Buddha’s teachings on suffering and the end of suffering? Impermanence (anicca, in Pali), suffering (dukkha, in Pali), and non-self (anatta, in Pali) - while words are imperfect, these are the words the Buddha chose to name what can change in our present-moment perception. Changing our present-moment perception allows our present moment experience to be liberated by nature itself. It can become utterly natural for us to be in harmony with what is right here.

Suffering, struggle, and stress are caused by misunderstanding life here in this present moment. When we replace areas of misunderstanding with understanding right here and now, we can feel, perceive, know, and respond in harmony with what is here.

But how do we develop understanding, and what exactly is understood? As it turns out, for greater understanding we need to develop our attention (go figure!). That is why mindfulness is the means for liberation.

The Buddha suggested that when we pay attention mindfully, and when the conditions are ripe, we can relax into presence with the three characteristics of existence: impermanence, where we had mistakenly perceived permanence; unsatisfactoriness, where we had mistakenly perceived lasting satisfaction (or the potential for it); and the experience of ourselves as more than any separating, fixed, and limited ideas of who we are.

In this daylong meditation retreat, we will come together to discover and re-discover ways of nurturing our understanding and perception of the characteristic of non-self (anatta). We will practice feeling life moment-to-moment with the recognition that not only what is known is non-self, but that knowing is non-self, just as all experiencing can be felt here and now as liberatingly non-self.

Full and partial scholarships are available. Please submit your requests to office@cambridgeinsight.org at least 72 hours prior to the start of the program.

NOTE: At check-in, participants will be asked to volunteer for a short period of mindful service during the retreat—a “yogi job.” Yogi jobs enable the smooth running of the retreat and offer an opportunity to practice alongside other retreat participants.

There are no prerequisites for this program. All are warmly welcome.

Retreat

Attending an In-Person Retreat at CIMC (see below for attending online retreats)

  • Please arrive at least 20 minutes early to check-in and to find a comfortable place in the meditation hall.
  • Retreats are held in silence. Please power off your cell phone, smartwatch, or other electronic devices for the duration of the retreat.
  • Parking at CIMC is limited; we suggest taking public transportation to the Center whenever possible.
  • CIMC provides vegetarian meals at day-long, weekend, and multi-day retreats. We are unable to accommodate special dietary needs. If you have dietary restrictions, we invite you to bring your own vegetarian meal. Please note that nuts may be used in our kitchen.
  • Food and beverages, including water, are not allowed in the meditation halls.
  • We strongly recommend you dress in layers since the temperature in the meditation hall will vary throughout the day. The hall thermostat is set to a comfortable temperature range; however, please give yourself a range of clothing options, as individual preferences for warmth or coolness differ widely and cannot be accommodated.
  • Please leave shoes on the shoe shelves on the first floor and keep your valuables with you at all times.
  • CIMC provides zafus (round cushions), zabutons (large mats), meditation benches, blankets, and chairs for your use. At the end of the program, we request that participants brush off their zabuton and plump up their zafu. All other items should be returned neatly to where they were found.
  • CIMC is a refuge. Out of compassion for those who may have chemical sensitivities, please avoid using scented products—lotions, deodorant, after-shave, hair products, perfume, clothes laundered with scented detergent, or dryer sheets—before you come to the Center.
  • Retreat Meal Dana: In keeping with tradition, we invite you to sponsor a retreat meal as a simple and meaningful act of generosity. You will have the option to share a dedication of your generosity, perhaps to someone in your life, to a special occasion, or to an aspiration. Please contact the office for more information on offering Meal Dana for this retreat.

Attending a Retreat Online

  • Sitting a retreat at home and online is certainly different from coming to a meditation center. Tending to your comfort and giving yourself a quiet, private sitting and walking space (if possible, in the environment you are in) will help keep your attention focused and support your practice and learning. Plan to bring as much simplicity and ease to your day as possible. The schedule of the retreat is structured to support your well-being and practice with regular breaks and time for mindful movement.
  • We will be using Zoom for this retreat. Before your retreat begins, be sure to download Zoom and familiarize yourself with using the program, including the chat feature. Specifics about how we will be using Zoom during your retreat will be covered at the beginning of the retreat; however, we are not able to provide technical support during the retreat.
  • We ask that you treat our virtual meditation hall as if we were together in person, in the same room. The teachers and other yogis benefit greatly from your full presence and careful attention.
  • Join each session of the retreat a few minutes early. This will support the teachers and your fellow retreatants.
  • Please maintain noble silence as much as possible for the duration of the retreat and take any necessary steps to limit external distractions such as incoming emails, texts, or other interruptions so that we can maintain the integrity of our practice together. Close all programs on your computer other than Zoom and turn off all notifications on your devices.
  • Ideally, power off phones and smartwatches for the entire time scheduled for the retreat on each day. Please don’t check your devices during breaks. We suggest that you put an “away” message on your email and voicemail and leave your devices in another room during your retreat hours.
  • Please keep your video on during our time together as much as you can. This supports a sense of connectedness and sangha.
  • Closed Captions for CIMC Programs are generated through “live streaming” via Rev.com. CIMC programs are not live-streamed to any other platform for any other use.
  • You will receive a welcome email from CIMC a day or two before your program that will include the zoom link, retreat schedule, and further information.