Description
Using the Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh’s metaphor of water, we will explore taking refuge in the Sangha (community). If you identify and live life as a Black, Indigenous, Asian or Person of Color, come join us as we take refuge in our POC community to explore “the way of harmony, awareness and compassion” through “mindful walking and breathing” to arrive at our collective liberation. This is a rare moment to come together in person for a full day to deepen our practice. Beginners and experienced practitioners are encouraged to register.
Retreat participants are welcome to join the monthly CIMC POC drop in sit and potluck dinner on Friday night (May 2, 6:30 PM – 8:15 PM) before the retreat. We chose this date for the POC retreat so we’d have the opportunity for extended practice across two days. This is a suggestion, not a requirement.
Beginners and experienced practitioners are encouraged to register. All are warmly welcome.
Melanie Huitse Cherng （程慧慈）(she/her) was raised in a Taiwanese family that practices Pure Land Buddhism. Communal and spiritual life are deeply intertwined for her. She remembers as a young child coloring outside the altar room door while listening to her father chant at dawn.
She’s offered meditation instructions to the BIPOC community at Cambridge Insight for the last decade and is a trainee in the four-year IMS and Spirit Rock teacher training program. Mel loves learning different ways to hold spacious, non-hierarchical practice spaces that support rest and healing. She is a licensed acupuncturist, herbalist, and dancer. She and her partner are currently rewilding their backyard with native plants. She identifies as a baby queer.
Gina LaRoche is a trainee in the four-year IMS and Spirit Rock teacher training program. She started her meditation practice in 2000 and was introduced to Insight Meditation while attending her first residential retreat in 2010. Deeply transformed by the Dharma, Gina integrates its teachings into her daily life and work. She is a 2017 graduate of the Spirit Rock Community Dharma Leader Program, a founding teacher of Elm Community Insight in New Haven, CT, a former IMS Board member, and co-holds the monthly POC sit at CIMC (MA). Gina is married with two adult children and co-authored, The 7 Laws of Enough: Cultivating a Life of Sustainable Abundance.
Attending an in-person retreat
- CIMC is a refuge. Out of compassion for those with 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.
- Please arrive at least 20 minutes early to check in and find a comfortable place in the meditation hall.
- Parking at CIMC is limited; we suggest you take public transportation to the Center whenever possible.
- Retreats are held in silence. Please power off your cell phone, smartwatch, and other electronic devices for the retreat. All phones, pagers, beeping watches, and other electronic devices must remain completely turned off while you are at the Center.
- Please leave your shoes on the shoe shelves on the first floor and keep your valuables with you.
- We provide vegetarian meals at day-long, weekend, and multi-day retreats. We are unable to accommodate special dietary needs, however. If you have dietary restrictions, we invite you to bring your own vegetarian meal. Please note that nuts may be used in our kitchen.
- Retreat Meal Dana: In keeping with tradition, we invite you to sponsor a retreat meal as a simple and meaningful act of generosity. You can share a dedication of your generosity, perhaps to someone in your life, a special occasion, or an aspiration. Please contact the office for more information on offering Meal Dana for this retreat.
- The meditation halls do not allow food and beverages, including water.
- We strongly recommend you dress in layers since the temperature in the meditation hall varies throughout the day. The hall thermostat is set to a comfortable temperature range; however, it’s best to have a range of clothing options, as individual preferences for warmth or coolness differ widely and cannot be accommodated.
- Masks are optional. Some masks are available at the entrance of the Center.
- CIMC provides zafus (round cushions), zabutons (large mats), meditation benches, blankets, and chairs. At the end of the program, we request that participants brush off their zabutons and plump up their zafus. All other items should be returned neatly to where they belong.