Releasing into Presence: A Meditation, Mantra, Music & Movement Retreat

Whatever our spiritual path or meditation experience, we benefit from finding and resting in the inner sanctuary of the heart. A place we arrive at naturally through releasing into a natural place of open, grounded presence.

Join us for a rejuvenating retreat where we will slow down and experience the benefits that meditation, mantra, music, and movement have to offer our body, mind, and soul. 

Devotional chanteuse and recording artist, Nina Rao shares traditional chants from her ancestral home of India, guiding us to release into presence —the mental and emotional space where we  find our inner sanctuary. Just knowing that this sanctuary exists can soften anxiety and clear a more open path as we walk through life. When you enter this practice of devotional chanting intentionally — day after day — the foundations of this sanctuary grow stronger such that our confidence develops with a clearer mind and an ever-opening heart to carry us through the day, one step at a time, moment-to-moment.

Buddhist teacher and author Lopön Chandra will offer guidance in meditation and gentle yoga to help us release into grounded presence with ease and comfort. We will learn techniques for developing shamatha, calm abiding, and vipashyana, insight. These techniques will include the mindfulness of breathing, an especially effective approach to soothing the body and calming the discursive mind, and more advanced techniques called “settling the mind in its natural state” and “awareness of awareness.” Yoga practice will be accessible for all body types and levels of experience. 

Nina and Chandra share a profound appreciation for the complementary wisdom and devotional traditions of Tibet and India. Together, they weave a tapestry of mystical stories, meditations, mantra, singing chants, and gentle yoga to offer an immersive experience of the many pathways available to us as we explore the creative power that underlies our inner and outer nature.

Esalen is a truly magical experience this time of year, one that you will never forget. All are welcome.