The sound of chipmunks chatter, wind, bird song and silence. That was the primary sound I heard from our wonderful recent four-day meditation retreat in the San Bernadino Mountains (September 12-16), part of the Transverse Ranges that define southern California. Of course there was also the beautiful chanting at morning and evening service every day–we had over half of the Dharma Voici harmonizing with us afterall–and the spirited discussion on Dorje Pamu’s Dharma of Concentration, Contemplation, and Visualization that we studied in detail every evening and practiced in our daily meditation sessions. We mostly observed the silence. The camp cook staff did jabber as they prepared and cleaned up after our major meal and a helicopter could be heard a few times, but we were mostly surrounded with silence and time to just contemplate what we were experiencing in the silence. I cannot recommend this enough!
It must have been Mt. San Gorgonio or “Old Greyback” (11,503ft/3,506 meters) soaring above us as we entered the wilderness to go to the Unitarian Universalist Camp de Benneville Pines located near Angelus Oaks and south of Big Bear Lake. We rose very rapidly up the side of the mountain, passing through Angelus Oaks where we returned for a late lunch. It was wilderness with tall trees everywhere. The temperature dropped. It was down to 40F degrees at night and only slightly above 70 during the day. After the triple digit stuff we had in the Fresno area that was heaven. The others attending the retreat flew in to Ontario International Airport, rented a van, and drove directly to the camp.
The first place we saw was this building which served as our Meditation Hall. We set up the altar that is usually taken to Hesperia every month and arranged the chairs and meditation cushions for the retreat. There was a pavilion nearby that some used for meditation, too. I hadn’t considered that we were at a high enough altitude that it would be almost impossible to light matches or lighters and burn incense. We were only at about 6,700 feet. I remembered trying to climb nearby San Gorgonio Mountain and for the only time in my life getting altitude sickness and having to come down early, but that was not a problem at our camp. I believe we all adjusted rather quickly.
We only used one of the many cabins where we ate breakfast and held our daily Dharma class in the evenings. Craig’s Cabin even had a fireplace and lots of cut logs for a cozy fire. It is handicapped accessible, which was very well received. It is the newest cabin and is equipped with a meeting area and small kitchen making it perfect for our retreat.
There are enough cabins here to provide 26 private rooms for a full seven-day meditation retreat next year, if there is enough interest. We could even offer a few solitary retreats for anyone ready for that option. You would do the entire retreat in your room, with your meals brought to you. We would probably have the camp prepare both a breakfast and late lunch and offer a snack tray at the lodge for an evening offering. That was what we did for this retreat, but we also fixed our own breakfast since we had the kitchen and were all in one cabin. I have asked for the only time they have available for a seven-day retreat in mid August next year and will be needing to know if there is any such interest. What we did this year was only possible because someone had cancelled at the last minute and they had a gap between other scheduled events. Please let me know if you are interested.
I just found out that the road to the cabin was washed out in last week’s freak monsoons that drenched the state. CLICK for article on this. I would not recommend a retreat there if there is only one mode of access and exit given the propensity for wild fires. I would like to plan for another retreat in any event, only make it for the full seven days as the Buddha Master required. He told me it could not be considered a real retreat for less than seven days. It takes that long to get into the state you need to really see progress. If you would be interested in taking a Solitary Retreat there, please CLICK to check and make sure you have the necessary prerequisites. Some of the Dharmas you may receive while at the retreat, but you will need to have progressed with the Four Preliminaries and an active yidam practice and some silent retreat experience.
Add comment