Integrating Retreat into Your Life Style

 Guest Contributor, Lama Thubten Pelma

As a beginner retreatant, you should focus first on learning how to be happy with your own mind. Retreat involves removing yourself from your usual activities and entertainment. It’s a learned skill, which you can develop by spending a few evenings by yourself alone and quiet. Then try a one-day retreat and slowly increase the number of days in each subsequent retreat. It’s important that doing a solo retreat doesn't feel scary but rather a pleasant way to spend time with yourself.

Here are a few quick tips:

• For a one-day retreat, enjoy a light schedule of studying sacred text, meditation and yoga practice. When you move onto a retreat of two days or more you should incorporate prayers and mantra recitation.


• At home retreats can be challenging because you’re in an environment that you’re very accustomed to. The temptation to fall into your usual routine is much greater. If you must do retreat in your home, try using only one room (in addition to the bathroom) and make sure the room is very clean. For meals, prepare them in advance so you only need to go to the kitchen to retrieve them.

• If you have a teacher, ask for advice on the focus of your retreat and what practices you should do. If you don't have a teacher, you can go to the Daily Practices section of http://www.acidharma.org
• It’s very helpful to have a plan for your retreat no matter how long it is. Then you can get everything you need in advance. Plus, you are clear on how to achieve what you wish to do in retreat. Planning a series of retreats over six months to a year helps you create a path for advancing your practice. It also orients your life around retreat.

• Most importantly, enjoy your retreats. They are a beautiful and profound way to live.

For more of Lama Pelma's retreat wisdom, please visit her websites at:

http://www.retreat4peace.org/blogs/lama-pelma
http://www.facebook.com/lama.pelma

Lama Thubten Pelma is an American Tibetan Buddhist nun who founded the Three Jewels Dharma Center in NYC. For the past 10 years, Lama Pelma has been a student of the masters at Sera Mey Monastery in southern India. In 2003, she completed a silent three-year retreat in the high desert of Arizona. She currently resides in Bowie, Arizona and is planning to undertake another 3 year retreat at Diamond Mountain in December 2010.