​Venue

The retreat is hosted at our meditation center, a peaceful 10 acre located in Azusa in the southern part of South Gabriel Valley: 

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Dhammakaya Int'l Meditation Center

865 E. Monrovia Place

Azusa, CA 91702

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Each guest is provided a single-occupancy room. Rooms have a toilet, sink, and shower. Guests are provided with a twin mattress bed and a pillow. Rooms are heated in the cooler times of the winter, and air-conditioning is available during warmer times of the summer. If you prefer to stay in a double room, please let the staff know in advance. Female and male residence area are separated. You can bring your own twin-size bed sheet set, pillowcase, and blankets for comfort. Alternatively, we can provide these items. If you choose our linens, please allow an extra 2 hours after checkout for washing.

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Pets

Because of our communal practice, we cannot accommodate pets at our meditation center.

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Before you arrive…
One week before the start of the retreat, on Saturday, January 4th at 2 PM, we’ll all meet virtually on Zoom to share details about the retreat, answer any questions, and have a chance for retreat participants to get to know one another.
We will also discuss the Eight Precepts, a set of mindfulness training guidelines intended to help deepen your meditation practice. We will be following the Eight Precepts during the retreat. Please familiarize yourself with these precepts in the retreat guidelines section. During the retreat, we will also cultivate mindfulness throughout the day with a mantra repeated in the mind. We encourage being mindful in all activities as well, including being mindful of your amount of conversations, topic of conversations, your eating, and your rest, as moderation in our engagement with our external world will help calm our internal world. In the upcoming week prior to the retreat, we encourage you to begin the process of preparing your mind for deeper meditation by bringing elements of this mindfulness training into your daily life. As much as is comfortable for you, we invite you to:
1. Observe the Eight Precepts

2. Recommit to your daily meditation practice
3. Bring mindfulness into your everyday actions
4. Keep your mind centered throughout the day
5. Observe your mental triggers and conditioned reactions throughout the day
The goal is not to complete these suggestions perfectly, but rather to have attempted them as much as possible in an effort to observe our state of mind during this practice. The intent is to have a dedicated time of increased commitment to the meditation practice so that we may bring any questions or challenges that we experience to be reflected upon in the retreat.

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We will meet together via zoom meeting on Saturday, January 4th, 2025 at 2:00 pm
as link /meeting ID below ��
Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82564234844?pwd=dHFrRlEraEpielBVT1NPRWhDaG9zZz09
Meeting ID: 825 6423 4844
Passcode: klp20

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Retreat Guidelines
Please observe the following guidelines during the retreat. By respecting these guidelines, we contribute to maintaining a harmonious and tranquil environment for everyone participating in the retreat. Thank you for your understanding and consideration.

Arrival
Check in time is from 4 - 6 PM on Friday, January 10th at the main entrance to the Luang Pu Meditation Room.

No food is provided on Friday evening after arrival. Please be ready to attend the orientation and evening session from 6 - 9 PM.

Attire
Please wear casual and modest clothing that is comfortable for sitting in meditation. We ask that all clothing cover the shoulders, midsection, and knees. No shorts, tank tops, capri pants, or pajamas outside your accommodation. To harmonize with the serene environment, we recommend wearing earth tone, light, or pastel colors while on the grounds.

Lodging
1. In order to maintain cleanliness and prevent issues with insects, eating in the rooms is not permitted.
2. Lights should be turned off by 10:00 PM to ensure everyone's rest
3. You can bring your own twin-size bed sheets, pillowcase, and blankets for comfort. Alternatively, we can provide these items. If you choose our linens, please allow an extra 2 hours after checkout for washing.
4. After checkout, you will find a drop box conveniently provided for returning your keys at the registration table in front of the library.

If you must go off-site during retreat, please inform the staff so we are aware of your absence.

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What to bring
● Clothing: 2 sets light or pastel color clothing, undergarments, jacket (if needed), comfortable shoes
● Bedding: sleeping bag, twin bed sheets, pillow, pillowcase, blanket (Alternatively, we can provide these items. If you choose our linens, please allow an extra 2 hours after checkout for washing)
● Personal items: soap, toothpaste, toothbrush, shampoo, towel
● Medicine: allergy medicine, stomach medicine, etc.
● Water bottle (you can fill up at the dining hall)

● A small amount of cash for final gratitude donation to teaching monks

● Sandals if you prefer

Please DO NOT bring
● Any kind of reading materials (novels, textbooks, magazines, letters) which may be obstacles against meditation practice
● Food; anything that can be chewed or swallowed
● Any pictures of friends or family
● Any devices that play entertainment
● Items of value and any accessories such as rings, necklaces, etc.
● Weapons or knifes; anything that could be dangerous
● Cigarettes, alcohol beverages, including any kind of drug

Eight Precepts
Please familiarize yourself with the Eight Precepts, a set of mindfulness training guidelines intended to help deepen your meditation practice. We will be observing these guidelines throughout the retreat. These principles aim to calm the mind from habitual sense desires in order to cultivate a heightened awareness of mind.

The Eight Precepts are to:
1. Refrain from causing harm to living creatures
2. Abstain from taking what is not freely given
3. Avoid engaging in any sexual activity
4. Refrain from speaking falsely or harmfully
5. Abstain from intoxicants that lead to carelessness
6. Avoid eating after midday
7. Avoid using adornments, perfumes, and participating in entertainment
8. Refrain from using indulgent sleeping arrangements

Restricted Areas
● Staff Residence: Respect our staff's privacy by refraining from entering their designated residence area.
● Monk Residence: Honor the sacredness of the monk's living quarters and avoid entering this area.

● Monk’s Refrigerator (they are labeled): The refrigerator designated for the monks is off-limits to participants
● Kitchen and Stock Room: These areas are restricted for staff use only.
If unsure about permitted areas, please ask our staff. We're here to assist.

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Transportation
Please arrange a mode of transportation to the meditation site. Common options are shared ride (Uber/Lift) or by public transportation. Our meditation center is located within a 5-10 minute walking distance from the APU/Citrus College Metro Light Rail Station.
 

Teaching Monks

Venerable Dr. Nicholas Thanissaro is a Buddhist monk of UK origin. He has been a monk for more than twenty years and has over thirty years of meditation experience. He pioneered popular meditation courses in Europe since 1997 and has several TV guest spots, audio CD's, books, book translations and academic articles to his name. He is also a UK Complementary Medical Association qualified teacher of meditation. 

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Venerable Napasin Natthachayo is a Buddhist monk from Thailand. He ordained as a monk since 2003
until now, 21 years. He has practiced meditation for 30 years. He would love to share his knowledge and
teach meditation because he would like people to reach true happiness regardless religion, race,
nationality or any other status.
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Venerable Prasit (Peter) Thitichayo has been a monk for over 10 years. He first ordained at the age of 12
at Wat Wiengkasem, a forest temple, in Thailand before pursuing meditation training and the study of
Pali, a Buddhist scriptural language, at Dhammakaya Temple in Thailand. Venerable Peter holds a level 6
mastery in Pali studies and a B.S. in Buddhist Theology from Dhammakaya Open University. He came to
Washington D.C. to learn English before taking residence at the Dhammakaya International Meditation
Center in Azusa, California.

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