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In the mountains of Northern New Mexico you can experience a rejuvenating and life affirming gay retreat at the Bodhi Manda Zen Center. The shifting light on the red rock walls of Jemez Canyon, the stillness of the meditation hall, the sounds of the Jemez River, the natural hot springs and the endless stars overhead, all welcome you.
There is extraordinary power to be found in a community of gay men gathered together for seven days in such an intimate setting. With the loving encouragement of brothers, we are able to see ourselves more clearly and empower each other in realizing our life's potential, taking small steps and sometimes leaps, toward living life to the fullest.
The Summer Retreat is much more than a gay vacation, focusing on activities that encourage inner reflection and heighten spiritual awareness. Our days are filled with insightful group sessions, yoga, meditation, heart-circles, shamanic ceremony, laughter and play. You may discover deeper levels of intimate connection with other participants, and with your own heart. Spiritual renewal, lifelong friendships, greater self-acceptance, and clarity of future direction often spring from this sacred time together.
The daily schedule incorporates a balance of group sessions and leisure time. These sessions are designed to help you downshift, step back from daily routines, and provide the means to examine various facets of your life including relationships, career, creativity, sexuality, and spirituality. Movement exercises, guided visualizations, topical discussions, journaling, personal contemplation, group sharing, interrelating in groups of two and threes, are just some of the group activities offered during the retreat.
No previous experience is necessary for any of the activities planned. Instruction, guidance and support by qualified facilitators is provided throughout the retreat. The Summer Retreat consistently remains fresh and alive due to the particular combination of participants, facilitators, and activities blended together. The overall energy and experience is always unique. A few planned highlights of this gay retreat will include........
SWEAT LODGE is a purification and healing practice taking place in a dome-shaped hut (representing the womb of Mother Earth) filled with natural steam created by hot rocks, water, and herbs. By sweating away physical, emotional and psychic blockages, personal healing and visions may occur. Chanting, singing, and praying are part of this timeless and sacred tradition found across the world, throughout human history.
TRANCE DANCE also has an origin as old as recorded history and is used as a devotional practice, healing ritual, and a means for personal insight. Blindfolds, global music, and movement are used to assist participants in connecting with the subconscious and bringing them more fully into their authentic nature. We use these rituals for the purpose of accessing intuition and opening ourselves to fresh possibilities.
SHAMANIC CEREMONIES drawn from the Toltec tradition and other indigenous wisdom teachings of the world, help us experience our living connection with the world around us; release limiting beliefs, reactions, and habits; and harness the deep powers of joy, creativity and inspiration within ourselves to create lives of beauty, awareness, compassion, and mastery.
ZEN PRACTICE with Jiun Hosen, the beloved vice-abbess of the Bodhi Manda Zen Center. The sessions with Hosen provide a foundation for understanding basic Zen practice (sitting and walking meditation) and include profound questions and answer discussions. Hosen has been with the Zen Center for over 25 years. Spirit Journeys has a special relationship with Hosen as she has been responsible and supportive of our annual retreat returning to the center these past 16 years. She makes a point of personally getting to know many of the retreat participants. Photo above shows a walking meditation led by Hosen.
PLAY DAY is a day during the week that we explore ourselves by exploring the world around us. This past year, we traveled to Bandalier National Monument. After breakfast, we boarded our bus and headed to Bandalier. We stopped along the way at the beautiful Valles Caldera National Preserve for a photo op. Bandelier's human history extends back for over 10,000 years when nomadic hunter-gatherers followed migrating wildlife across the mesas and canyons. By 1150 CE Ancestral Pueblo people began to build more permanent settlements. Reminders of these past times are still evident in the park as are the strong ties of the modern Pueblo people. Once at Bandalier, we spent a few hours just exploring, wandering and playing together, then returned to the Bohdi Manda for dinner.
Plan to come with an openness and enthusiasm to fully participate in the group activities as this is vital to the retreat process and the evolution of community. Most of us rarely have a chance to be in the company of other gay men in a setting that lacks pretense and superficiality. One comment that is frequently heard during our retreats is "I can't believe how comfortable and close I feel among a group of gay men that I just met." The foundation of Spirit Journeys' retreats is a remarkable experience of intimacy, trust, nurturing, and honest communication which unfolds among the participants.
The yoga and meditation sessions will be oriented for all levels so do not feel awkward if this will be your first time. Yoga and meditation have become very popular lately and includes numerous styles and techniques. Please understand that the practice of yoga and meditation is not a goal but another avenue for heightening self-awareness.
THE BODHI MANDA ZEN CENTER
Lodging at the Zen Center is simple, rustic, and quaint - each bedroom accommodates two to four persons (there are no single occupancy rooms at the Bodhi) with several bathrooms throughout the center. There are enough sleeping areas for everyone to spread-out and be comfortable. The Zen Center recently renovated some of the bedrooms and bath facilities, and completed an exquisitely designed new meditation hall. The Center follows a mostly vegetarian diet. Non-vegetarian participants in past years have been surprised at how easily they adapted to and enjoyed the food. There is no cell phone service at the Bodhi Manda, but wireless internet is available on a limited basis.
The Zen Center's natural hot spring pools are accessible 24 hours a day and become a wonderful gathering place for soaking (clothing is optional after dark), conversation and pure relaxation. There are three pools ranging from cool to warm to hot, with a cold rushing stream nearby for refreshing dips. Participants frequently enjoy lulling in these hot springs at night under the New Mexico's star-studded sky.
Each year our group comes and finds itself falling in love with the special sacred environment of the Zen Center. One way this is facilitated is through our daily mindful service practice held for 45 minutes after breakfast. It is during this period that we offer selfless assistance to the Center, having the opportunity to contribute to the community and interact with the Center and its staff. Feel free to learn more about the Zen Center by visiting their web site at www.bmzc.org.
Jemez Springs is located 60 miles from Albuquerque Airport. There is no public transportation from Albuquerque Airport to Jemez Springs. The Zen Center will be providing round-trip airport transfers at specific times, see below for transfer details. Jemez Springs is 1 and ½ hours drive from Santa Fe. The temperature in Northern New Mexico mid-August is delightful, days in the 80's and nights in the 50-60's, making this an ideal time of year for our retreat.
Have questions?
Contact us at 800-754-1875 or info@spiritjourneys.com
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