Ireland Meditation, Creativity & Yin Yoga Retreat

June 1-June 7, 2025 - Led by Lora Ksieniewicz, Lindsey Provost assisting

Join us for the most grounding and restorative experience. Unwind and feed your soul in the beautiful coastal country side of Wicklow, Ireland.

I started my own practice of meditation with a retreat, at age 16. Clearly new to the concept of the Middle Way (I have always favored extremes) I signed up for a 12 day silent retreat at IMS in Barre Massachusetts without ever having meditated before. But what came from this experience was life-changing. After an extended period of struggle with my own mind, where I would have abandoned ship and never meditated again given the choice to go turn on the tv, see friends, distract….I had the most complete sense of peace and stillness that I had ever known. My natural anxiousness relaxed into a deep clarity, a full-bodied knowing of the ineffable. And while this has fostered a lifelong practice of mindfulness, I always come back to the format of meditative retreat as the place where this experience is most fruitful, most readily accessible.

In recent years, one of my favorite retreats ever was a silent meditation and yin yoga retreat with my teacher Sarah Powers in Wales. There was something so perfect about nestling into loving awareness while in such a verdant, lush setting. Like the magic was as vibrant outside, as in. One of my very favorite memories was early morning walking meditation, barefoot, in the dense carpet of dewy grass. Our Vermont Silent meditation retreat books up close to a year in advance. We're so thrilled to offer this as an additional opportunity.

We’ll spend a few of the days in silence. Why silence? In our culture, we are used to living with a lot of urgency and tension. We may sustain this pace for long stretches, sometimes decades, but we show the strains in the enduring health of our bodies and minds. A silent retreat is an opportunity to deeply re-set, connect inwards, and to stay a while with your own experience. You will find that the days are very full, but in none of the ways you may be used to. We will have a consistent and fairly continuous schedule each day of meditation, creative activities with art and craft, self-guided yoga practice, teacher-guided yoga practice, guided or independent walks through the countryside and hiking trails, meals, and dharma talks.

Yoga will be mostly Yin but also some Yang (Vinyasa) to keep the body stimulated and in balance. Everything is on offer. Our dharma talks will deeply explore the teaching Buddhism, the dharma, the practices of mindfulness, and their application to our daily lives, in a way that is not possible in any other format where the mind is still engaged in social interaction and maximum sensory input. We will peel back the layers of our own habits, mechanisms of mind, holdings and unresolved healings, in order to deeply digest that which still needs processing. The schedule is designed to be quite full, to give a strong backbone to the experience so that you do not have to wonder about where to go or what to do next, but can instead drop that part of your brain that weighs options, decides, and schedules your time.

This is also an opportunity to take a journey away from one’s daily responsibilities, preoccupations and worldly events. With this in mind, we require everyone to turn off their computers and phones for the duration of the retreat in order to genuinely connect with oneself in a less distracted inner and outer environment. This will undoubtedly deepen everyone’s experience. We feel unplugging from technology in retreat life is essential and will benefit all the attendees. There will be an emergency contact provided for students to give loved ones.

Note: You must attend the entirety of the retreat. This is not something we are able to be flexible around as once we are in silence, it is disruptive to the group as a whole to have arrivals and departures, especially unplanned.

The Schedule:

Consider the below an outline

• June 1st, Meet in Dublin - Recommended to fly overnight May 31st, drop off bags at hotel, explore). Stay in 4 star hotel, Dublin

• June 2nd, Arrive at Estate - Group bus to Estate, a full day to explore the grounds, practice yoga, meditation, have orientation sessions.

• June 3rd - Daily schedule of meditation, exploring, yoga (optional) and teacher-led dharma talks Begin noble silence in evening, after dinner

• June 4th - Silent meditation - Daily schedule of meditation, yoga (optional) and teacher-led dharma talks

• June 5th - Silent meditation - Daily schedule of meditation, yoga (optional) and teacher-led dharma talks

• June 6th - Break silence - Day to explore, rest, practice, regroup. Optional excursions on offer

• June 7th - Return to Dublin - Group bus provided

The Estate:

The country estate was built in the 1800s as a mountain residence before opening in 1934 to An Óige venue for hillwalkers and children. Bought by the current owner in 2016, it has been extensively renovated and landscaped. The escape hosts many weddings, gatherings and events.

The estate boasts some of the most refined cuisine around (check out the reviews quoted below), and all of our meals are provided while in residence. A living permaculture garden grows our food onsite, with carefully selected local and sustainable vendors for additional products. Wander the amazing grounds to relax in which have views of the Sugar Loaf, Kaedeen, and Lugnaquilla. Fire up the wood-fired hot tub and soak away your troubles.

The centre is surrounded by an oak forest at the foothills of the Glen of Imaal mountains. Enter The Glen from the garden gate.

On the 6th there will be a bus provided back to Dublin. Folks may choose to fly out that day (we plan to arrive in Dublin center by 10-11am, so plan flights accordingly. Earlier accommodation can be arranged by the retreat, at cost). Folks can opt to stay in Dublin another night, or explore other parts of Ireland easily from Dublin as a hub.

What’s Included:

• 1 night Dublin 4 star hotel

• transportation to/from Retreat Centre and Dublin Centre

• 5 nights at Retreat Centre

• breakfast, lunch and 2 course dinners at Retreat Centre

• Daily yoga and meditation

• Coal fired hot tub

What’s Not Included:

• Airfare

• Travel Insurance (required)

• Transportation to/from airport

• Meals and entertainment in Dublin

• Optional add-on spa services (full spa; massage, skincare, body wraps/scrubs, etc)

• Optional excursions

• Optional gratuities

• Local and national hotel & tourism taxes