Meditation Retreats and Study Classes
“Good friends are the whole of the spiritual life.”
-The Buddha
Retreat Schedule for 2025/2026
Tranquil Wisdom Insight Meditation (TWIM) Retreat
with Rachael O’Brien
Students will end 2024 and begin the New Year with Lovingkindness at this 10-day, 9-night residential retreat. Eight Training Precepts will support intensive practice of the Brahmavihārās and the Jhānas. Students will interview daily with Rachael. Those with no previous meditation experience as well as long-time practitioners will find great benefit in this silent meditation retreat. Space is limited to 20 students.
St. Francis Retreat Center
San Juan Bautista, CA
December 27, 2024 - January 5, 2025
Jhānas and Emptiness
with Leigh Brasington, Rachael O’Brien, and Heather Sundberg
This program explores training in the Jhānas and how they support deepening insights into emptiness. Instructions for Jhānas are taught from the lineage of Ayya Khema. Teachings and practices in maturing insight into emptiness are taught from influences in the Thai Forest tradition, with complementary perspectives from the suttas and Mahayana teachings. Short periods of Metta practice will be offered as well. Participants will check in individually with a teacher every three days to support deepening practice.
Barre Center for Buddhist Studies
Barre, Massachusetts
April 21 - May 1, 2025
August 28 - September 2, 2025
Annual Sutta Study Class Retreat
with Rachael O’Brien
This online retreat is only open to members of the weekly sutta study class led by Rachael O’Brien (See below if you would like to join the class!). Students will observe Eight Training Precepts and Noble Silence to support their individual and online group meditation practice. Students will interview with Rachael daily.
Online Retreat via Zoom
Vermont Insight Meditation Center Online Retreat via Zoom
December 13, 2025
Details TBA
Ānāpānasati Retreat (Mindfulness of Breathing)
with Rachael O’Brien
This 9-day, 8-night residential retreat at a Franciscan monastery in the beautiful California countryside will provide the setting for deep meditative training in the 16-steps of Mindfulness of Breathing. Following the Buddha’s instructions in the Ānāpānasati Sutta, students will explore body, mind, and heart to develop the Seven Factors of Awakening. Eight Training Precepts (not eating past noon) and Noble Silence (including no electronic devices/screens) will support the practice. This retreat is open to those with no previous meditation experience as well as long-time practitioners. Students will interview daily with Rachael. Space is limited to 20 students.
St. Francis Retreat Center
San Juan Bautista, CA
December 27, 2025 - January 4, 2026
The Gradual Training: Mettā, Jhānas, and Insight
with Leigh Brasington and Rachael O’Brien
This retreat will guide students through the Gradual Training, which provides step-by-step instructions on the Early Buddhist Path. Two daily Dhamma talks by Leigh and Rachael will support the practice and provide techniques for entering heightened states of mind called the Jhānas. The Jhānas are the basis for mental stability, deep learning, and liberating insight. One-on-one interviews with Leigh and Rachael will allow students to explore their own development of the Gradual Training as the retreat progresses.
Barre Center for Buddhist Studies
Barre, Massachusetts
April 02 - April 12, 2026
Sutta Study Class
Rachael offers a one-hour, biweekly online class every other Thursday night at 7:00PM (Eastern US) for those interested in a deep exploration of the Discourses of the Buddha (Suttas). The class begins with fifteen minutes of group meditation, which is followed by a Dhamma talk and discussion. The topic of discussion is announced prior to class to allow students to read the suttas in advance, ask questions, and share their comments with the group. Those who register will be added to the weekly sutta study group and will be provided with the Zoom link to join.