6 Week Life Retreat: March 8th – April 18th, 2014
Retreat Description
Within the Buddhist contemplative path there are many pathways to experiencing the freedom of unqualifiable emptiness. In this 6-week intensive Life Retreat we’ll explore several of these wisdom pathways, or gateways, in the context of formal meditation practice and our everyday lives. We’ll explore some of the classic entry points to emptiness including: ceaseless change, existential struggle, and selflessness. We’ll also look at the ways in which this (non)experience of emptiness is inseparable from our personal experience and the outer world.
Emily and Vincent’s teaching approach draws on the methods and practices of concentration, investigation, meditative inquiry, formless awareness, and heart-based meditation. As you work with Emily and Vincent one-on-one you’ll go through a discovery process together, finding out which techniques best support your unfolding process. Topics of group exploration will include: Ceaseless Change, Existential Struggle, Seeing through the Self, Non-Duality of Form & Emptiness, Non-Separation of the Inner & Outer.
Retreat Format
Each week you will have the opportunity to engage in:
- One-on-One Instruction : Weekly 45-minute video sessions–3 sessions with each teacher–to explore your practice on a regular basis.
- Small Group Meetings : Weekly 75-minute video hangouts each week with a small group of peers, to practice together, check-in, and explore various topics related to integrating practice and life.
- Small group meetings take place each Saturday–at 9am Pacific Time / 12pm Eastern Time. It’s ok if you know ahead of time you won’t be able to make a group session, but we do suggest making all that you can.
This Life Retreat is limited to 8 people.
Cost
The cost of this Life Retreat is $500-700 (sliding scale).
A 3-month payment plan is available on request.
Retreat Teachers

Emily Horn is a contemplative teacher with fierce compassion and the skill that comes from dedicated practice and personal exploration. Her integrative teaching style is influenced by Mindfulness meditation and revolves around the interwoven nature of contemplation, personal unfolding, and daily life. She has taught mindfulness classes at InsightLA, and is currently in the Insight Meditation Society and Spirit Rock Retreat Teacher Training led by Jack Kornfield, Trudy Goodman, Joseph Goldstein, and others. Emily has also managed projects in contemplative education environments including Naropa University, InsightLA, and Sounds True. She is also the Life Retreat Director at Buddhist Geeks.

Vincent Horn is a Buddhist Geek and meditation teacher. Starting just over ten years ago Vincent began an intensive exploration of contemplation, including nearly a year of intensive retreat practice at Buddhist meditation centers, and a degree of comparative mysticism at Naropa University. In addition Vincent co-founded a popular organization–and social movement–called Buddhist Geeks. Buddhist Geeks focuses on the exploration of modern forms of Buddhism as it interacts and is changed by rapidly evolving technology and a global cultural context. His work focuses on the fusion of nascent technology, media, and contemplative wisdom, as a means to explore what it means to be human right now. His work has been featured on the pages of Wired, Fast Company, Tricycle, and the Los Angeles Times.
Schedule an Intro Session
If you’re interested please schedule a free 30-minute intro session with us, so that we can find out more about your practice and answer any questions you might have about the Life Retreat. Assuming it’s a good fit, and you’d like to join the Life Retreat, we will give you registration details after the intro session. If you already have a relationship with one of the teachers, feel free to contact us directly and we’ll send you registration info.


