PROGRAMS
Programs | Solitary Retreats
A solitary retreat differs from a group meditative retreat. In a solitary (or solo) retreat student and teacher set the meditation schedule and choose the focus of the practice. Since solo practitioners have to rely on their own inspiration and self-discipline to practice, there is more opportunity for touching deeper reservoirs within themselves, strengths and abilities that they might have doubted lay within. Also in solitary retreat the students have a unique experience in modern America--an opportunity to spend time away from the myriad distractions of daily life that they conspire with to keep from looking deeply within. In solitary retreat, you as a student can learn how to dwell alone in happiness and well-being. There is also the opportunity to meet daily with the teacher and receive the relentless energy of that individual to prod you out of the familiar and comfortable, to help you wake up. Solo retreats lasting from three to seven nights are available to members of FCM who have attended retreats and who have an established relationship with the teacher Fred Eppsteiner. Accommodations All solitary retreatants stay in Great Cloud Refuge, our residential retreat facility located on the campus of FCM’s practice center on North Nebraska Ave. in Tampa. As many as 3 people may be scheduled for solitary retreat at the same time in Great Cloud Refuge—each person having their own room, providing their own linens and vegan food. Kitchen and eating space are available, and the FCM garden is available for walking meditation. Retreats start in the afternoon of the day you enter GCR and end with departure on the morning after your last night. The daily cost is $35/night payable directly to FCM. The per-diem covers the cost of your room in Great Cloud Refuge, but does not include dana. As has been the tradition since the time of the Buddha, priceless Dharma teachings are given freely. Any dana you may wish to offer for the teachings may be given by check made out to Fred and given directly to him at the conclusion of your retreat, or offered as Teacher Dana on the FCM website. Thanks to the generosity of donors, financial assistance is available to members who could not otherwise do a solitary retreat. Scheduling 2023 Solitary Retreats For 2023, we are introducing a new, more open and flexible process for scheduling solitary retreats. Rather than opening registration two or three times a year for newly announced dates and scheduling everyone at once for those dates, we will use the following process. 1. 2023 dates when Fred or GCR is NOT available for solitary retreats are published below and updated throughout the year as needed. Please do NOT ask to schedule a solitary retreat entering or departing GCR on any of the following UNAVAILABLE DATES:
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Members of FCM have the extraordinary opportunity to experience a solitary retreat in a tranquil space in which to meditate and study at a deeper level under the skillful guidance of Dharma Teacher, Fred Eppsteiner. Solitary retreat experiences are now available at our Tampa campus in Great Cloud Refuge.