Meditation and Education

A bi-annual retreat at Deer Park Monastery for university educators and college students at all levels who are interested in meditation and its correlation to our life at school, in our family, and in our minds.

Meditation is not to get out of society, to escape from society, but to prepare for a re-entry into society. Only when our mind is at peace can we help bring peace to society. Meditation helps us take care of our mind and our body, and prepares us to remain in society, because we are aware that if we leave society, we will not be able to help change it. This is our hope for peace.

Every year our monastery holds two weekend retreats for college students and educators from academic institutions or other organizations that somehow are involved in transmitting and exchange knowledge and wisdom.  We have had professors bring their students as part of their course from UCLA, CHAPMAN University, local California State Universities and Colleges and others.  Attendees arrive on Friday early noon and leave Sunday after lunch. Past course topics included: zen meditation and psychology, living and building community, peace making and the tools of reconciliation, deep listen and loving speech, and the art of mindful living. 

We shall offer meditation practices as a tool for learning and expanding our minds and as a way to help us cope and deal with life challenges - how to reduce tension within body and mind, how to handle strong emotions, how to improve our communications, and how to live deeply with the wonders of life in the midst of our busy lives. 

Meditation can help us stop, recognize, handle, and understand deeper the workings of our mind. There will be lectures related to the theme selected for that retreat. We will also practice sitting and walking meditation, and eating and breathing in mindfulness. There will be workshops, discussion groups, and other special activities. 

Recommended reading: Being Peace, The Miracle of Mindfulness, Present Moment, Wonderful Moment, Peace is Every Step, and Creating True Peace (author:Thich Nhat Hanh). 

All students and teachers are welcomed. It is preferred that you are currently enrolled in or affiliated with an educational program or some sort. Please call to inquire about exceptions.