Category: Winter Meditation

Seeing the Unseen: Bringing our Gifts into the Light

January 17 – 19, 2020

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center ~ Highlands, NC

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Dear Brothers,

Our Ancestors are with us, supporting, gifting, and enfolding us. These are loved ones we have known and not known; from our family of origin, our chosen queer family, and from the Queer Breath of the Universe that flows around us. They have given us gifts which we may not even know. Let’s bring these gifts into the light.

Friday night, we will gather, meet, greet, and eat. The opening Heart Circle will weave us together in mutual purpose and transform us into a sacred compassionate container in which we do our deep work together as a community. Together we will invite and welcome those who love us, the Sacredness, the Spirits, and our Ancestors. We will ask them to come and help us to know ourselves more fully, especially our hidden gifts and strengths.

On Saturday, we will connect with our deepest, truest self, and invite the luminous being of light within each of us to ignite, shine, and make itself known. Through Systemic Family Constellations, Systemic Ritual, and other techniques, we strengthen our ancestral connections more fully so that the unique universe of mystery which lies within us may come forward in beauty and safety. We will welcome all of ourselves into the circle.

Sunday morning, we break our fast together and share our experiences. We will speak our spiritual experiences out of the dream and into reality thus solidifying their potency. We will thank the Ancestors and the Loving Spirits for holding us so beautifully and we will invite them to depart in beauty. As we take our leave of each other, we will carry into the wide world the bright seeds of our sacred container and all the beauty they contain. May they find fertile ground in which to sprout for all people.

We envision time for reflection and recreation in our schedule, as well as workshops. We invite you to suggest workshops you may wish to offer as well as suggestions for workshops you’d like to see.

Vic Mansfield
Convener, 2020 Winter Meditation
vcmansfield@gmail.com

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GSV 2019 Winter Meditation

Tranquil Reflection & Mindful Intention

January 18-20, 2019

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center ~ Highlands, NC

Dear Siblings,

Winter at The Mountain is a magical experience. Long dark hours in retreat from life’s commitments create space for tranquil reflection and mindful intention. The Mountain beckons you to come, let go, and be in the moment.

This year’s Winter Meditation will provide you the opportunity to experience activities with the purpose of creating space to be present and open to clarity. Silent, Guided, and Mindful meditation will be offered. Additionally, Sacred Sound Journey, Chakra Dhyana, and Sacred Healing Touch will be offered. Active methods of creating present awareness will include T‘ai Chi Ch‘üan, Iyengar Yoga, Theravada Walking Meditation, and Contemplative Drumming. Finally, intention setting activities will include Soulful Breathwork, Mindful Scripting, and Sacred Elder Bead stringing. The weekend will start with a pilgrimage of light and be complete with the calm of thoughtful intention.

Pack a “steamer trunk” if you wish and include warm comfortable clothing for times of stillness, loose attire for movement activities, ritual attire (robe, cape, cassock, etc.) for a pilgrimage, a mat, pillow and/or blanket for other activities, a drum, pen and paper, and flannel jammies!

I hope you will join your brothers at The Mountain and be in the midst of love, reflection, consciousness, stillness, presentness, and…. to just be!

We want anyone who resonates with our mission to be able to attend our gatherings. The Raven Wolfdancer Financial Assistance Fund was created to help offset the cost of a GSV gathering so that attending does not impose undue financial hardship. For more information and to apply for assistance,
click here.

I look forward to seeing you soon.

Bill Harris,
2019 Winter Meditation Convener

Register for the 2019 Winter Meditation

GSV 2019 Winter Meditation

Tranquil Reflection & Mindful Intention

January 18-20, 2019

The Mountain Retreat and Learning Center ~ Highlands, NC

Dear Siblings,

Winter at The Mountain is a magical experience. The air is crisp, the atmosphere is tranquil, and all of nature is in repose. Long dark hours in retreat from life’s commitments create space for passionate reflection and powerful intention. The Mountain beckons you to come, let go, and be in the moment.

This year’s Winter Meditation will be a time of “Tranquil Reflection & Mindful Intention.” We will be offering several forms of meditation from silent to sound, stillness to motion, and contemplation to mindfulness.

The Friday evening ceremony will include a pilgrimage of light to the Sacred Space to call in the directions, a release of the weights of your journey, and a sowing of seeds of intention. Prepare now for the pilgrimage by gathering your cassock, cheongsam, chasuble, cape, monks robe, or similar ritual attire. Saturday will provide numerous opportunities to reflect and go within through ancient and modern forms of meditation. Plan to bring warm comfortable garments for the times of stillness and loose attire for activities with movement. Also consider mats, pillows, and blankets for function and enhanced comfort during some activities. Saturday will also allow freedom to escape into unstructured activities designed for calm intent. Sunday will be the culmination of the weekend’s reflective activity into the calm of thoughtful intention.

I hope you will join your brothers at The Mountain in January to be in the midst of love, to be reflective, be conscious, be still, be present, and…. just be!

I look forward to seeing you in January.

Bill Harris
2019 Winter Meditation Convener

Register for the 2019 Winter Meditation

Bringing Darkness to the Light

January 12 – 14, 2018

at The Mountain, Highlands, NC

Cost: $235.02 – Double Occupancy | $309.74 – Single Occupancy

Life’s waters flows from darkness.
Search the darkness, don’t run from it.
-Rumi

Dear Siblings,

Come gather during the darkest time of the year with a loving community of men who love men for a weekend of supportive exploration of the dark corners of our collective consciousness. Surrounded by loving siblings, we will create a safe vessel to share, listen, and celebrate the delicious darkness that both terrifies and inspires us.

We will explore mystical texts, such as Dark Night of the Soul by Juan de la Cruz, tales from world mythologies, and contemporary personal stories to enrich our understanding of the wisdom that is found in darkness.

We will experience different styles of meditation, including silent and guided meditation, walking meditation, and lectio divina, or divine reading. There will be plenty of time for reflection, writing, healing arts, and labyrinth walks, weather permitting.

You are invited to share your gifts during this retreat by proposing a workshop, offering massage, playing music, or whatever you feel called to bring! Contact the Winter Convener with your ideas, dreams, and questions. More information will be available in the coming weeks.

In gratitude,

Andy Foskey, Convener

Register for the 2018 Winter Meditation