With Fred Eppsteiner

Dates: September 24 - 27
Retreat Application Deadline: August 30
Suitability

This retreat is open to persons (member and non-members) who have attended a retreat with FCM or another Buddhist group in the past. First time retreatants are encouraged to attend one of FCM ’s weekend retreats. 

Please note that your retreat application does NOT guarantee acceptance into the retreat. Participants will be notified of acceptance by September 1.

Description

Driven by historical habit patterns, caught up in our thoughts and emotions, and easily distracted, we may discover that there is a gap between the person we want to be and the way we actually show up in our lives. Although we aspire to have greater peace, purpose, and deeper connections, we may find that our habitual tendencies and reactivity can easily pull us off course. 

In this retreat we will aim to bridge this gap with practical, down-to-earth, and time-tested tools. Fred will share teachings, meditations, and reflections to help us quiet the mental noise, break out of reactive patterns, and live a life of intention. We will learn how to stay present in all our varied relationships and to confidently navigate life’s inevitable ups and downs without losing our footing.

The goal of this Awakening to Life retreat is for participants to realize that it is possible to stay deeply connected to our aspirations of the heart while simultaneously being fully engaged with our daily lives. 

Join us for three days of insightful guidance, supportive group practice, and wholesome nurturance. 

Retreat Leader

Fred Eppsteiner has been a student of the psychology of Buddhist meditation for over 50 years and was a psychotherapist for more than 30 years. He has trained extensively in the Buddhist meditative traditions of the U.S. and Asia. He received permission to teach from Thich Nhat Hanh in 1994 and is the editor of two books: The Path of Compassion and Interbeing. He is the founding teacher of the Florida Community of Mindfulness.

Fees

The fees are $270 for overnighters and $210 for commuters. The registration fee will be fully refunded to those not admitted to the retreat.

FCM aspires to support the retreat experience for all who are on this path, and thus retreat scholarships are available and encouraged if it would support your participation. Please click here to see FCM ’s Retreat Scholarship Policy and for an application, which needs to be submitted prior to the registration deadline for this retreat. 

The Retreat Manager will be sending additional information to registrants closer to the retreat start date.

Retreat Logistics

The retreat will begin with orientation and dinner at 5:00 pm on Thursday, September 24 and end after lunch on Sunday, September 27. 

Please note: 

• The deadline for applying for this retreat is August 30. 
• We will send a retreat acceptance letter by September 1 with additional information to help you prepare for retreat.
• The full fee will then be due by September 7, otherwise the spot will be given to another applicant.
• Please click here to read FCM's Retreat Cancellation Policy.
• If you are not familiar with our campus, you may enjoy this short video tour.
  
• New to retreating with FCM? Please visit our FAQs page.

The teachings are offered in the Buddhist tradition of Dana, wherein the teachers freely give of themselves to the students out of gratitude for what they ’ve received from their teachers and a desire to be of service. The student’s response is also based on Dana, i.e., generosity that naturally flows from a sense of appreciation of the value of Dharma and gratitude to the living lineage.

Questions?
Please contact Rita at ritaanna727@gmail.com for any logistical questions.

With Guo Gu

Dates: November 3 - 8
Retreat Application Deadline: October 6
Suitability

Experienced practitioners who have some familiarity with Chan/Zen Buddhism.

Please note that your retreat application does NOT guarantee acceptance into the retreat. Participants will be notified of acceptance by October 12.

Description

At the very center of Chinese Mahāyāna Buddhism lies the luminous philosophical tradition of Huayan, a treasure trove of profound wisdom that has shaped the whole development of East Asian Buddhism, especially Chan/Zen. Yet Western Buddhism has evolved in virtual isolation from the transformative teachings of Huayan. For instance, while concepts like “interconnection” and “interbeing” are widely adopted in Western Buddhist discourse and popular culture, their origins in Chinese Huayan philosophy remain largely unacknowledged and unexplored. In this five-day retreat, Chan teacher Guo Gu will provide a newly translated Huayan source text for an exploratory dive into the rich teaching of interdependence.

Retreat Leader

Guo Gu (Dr. Jimmy Yu) is the founder of the Tallahassee Chan Center, the founder of the socially engaged intra-denominational Buddhist organization, Dharma Relief, and a professor of Buddhism and East Asian religions at Florida State University. He studied under the late Master Sheng Yen for over 30 years, nine of which as his attendant monk and most senior and closest disciple. He is the author of The Essence of Chan(2012),Passing Through the Gateless Barrier(2016), and Silent Illumination(2021).

Fees

The fees are $450 for overnighters, $350 for commuters and $175 for online. The registration fee will be fully refunded to those not admitted to the retreat.

FCM aspires to support the retreat experience for all who are on this path, and thus retreat scholarships are available and encouraged if it would support your participation. Please click here to see FCM ’s Retreat Scholarship Policy and for an application, which needs to be submitted prior to the registration deadline for this retreat. 

The Retreat Manager will be sending additional information to registrants closer to the retreat start date.

Retreat Logistics

The retreat will begin with orientation and dinner at 5:00 pm on Tuesday, November 3 and end at 12:00 noon on Sunday, November 8. There will be a group photo after that, as well as lunch offered at 12:30 for those that wish to attend.

Please note: 

• The deadline for applying for this retreat is October 6. 
• We will send a retreat acceptance letter by October 12 with additional information to help you prepare for retreat.
• The full fee will then be due by October 19, otherwise the spot will be given to another applicant.
• Please click here to read FCM's Retreat Cancellation Policy.
• If you are not familiar with our campus, you may enjoy this short video tour.
  
• New to retreating with FCM? Please visit our FAQs page.

The teachings are offered in the Buddhist tradition of Dana, wherein the teachers freely give of themselves to the students out of gratitude for what they ’ve received from their teachers and a desire to be of service. The student’s response is also based on Dana, i.e., generosity that naturally flows from a sense of appreciation of the value of Dharma and gratitude to the living lineage.

Questions?
Please contact Rita at ritaanna727@gmail.com for any logistical questions.

With Angie Parrish and David Braasch

Dates: January 15 - 17, 2027
Retreat Application Deadline: December 18
Suitability

This retreat will be beneficial for both newcomers to meditation and more experienced mindfulness practitioners with an interest in living with more equanimity, open-heartedness and compassion. 

Please note that your retreat application does NOT guarantee acceptance into the retreat. Participants will be notified of acceptance by December 22.

Description

The Brahmaviharas, also known as the Four Immeasurables, are four natural, beautiful qualities of heart that - when touched more deeply - open us to experiencing our interconnection with all of life: ourselves, others, and the world around us. These qualities, which include loving kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity, are naturally present in our minds but are often covered over by fear and other emotions that cause us to wall off our hearts. 

Our weekend retreat will focus on practices that will help us to rediscover these beautiful qualities, weaving together teachings on loving kindness with qigong, aligning body, breath, and movement with a loving and open heart. Using guided practices to bring mindfulness of body, heart and mind to both movement and stillness, we will explore how to meet life with equanimity, open-heartedness and compassion, and to work skillfully with obstacles that get in our way.

This will be a silent retreat. The silence affords us the opportunity to deepen our meditative experience while absorbing the experiential meaning of the teachings and practices presented.

Retreat Leaders

Angie Parrish has been a student of Buddhism and mindfulness for over 20 years. She is a Dharma Instructor with FCM, having been given permission by FCM’s teacher Fred Eppsteiner to share the Buddha’s teachings with the sangha. She is also a Qualified Teacher of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and is a frequent teacher of classes and retreats at FCM.

David Braasch has been a student of mindfulness and meditation at the Florida Community of Mindfulness since 2015, where he has taught Introduction to Mindfulness and Meditation, Buddhism: The Basics, and Mindfulness for Educators. He has been a student of Tai Chi, Aikido, and is a certified Qigong teacher under Holden Qigong of Santa Cruz, CA.

Fees

The fee for in-person participation is $180 for overnighters and $140 for commuters. 

Retreat Scholarships are available; please click to see FCM’s Retreat Scholarship Policy and for an Application, which needs to be submitted prior to the registration deadline for this retreat.

Retreat Logistics

This retreat is in-person only (either staying overnight or as a commuter) participation at FCM’s Tampa Center. The retreat will begin with orientation at 5:00 pm on Friday, January 15 and ends after lunch on Sunday at 4:00 pm, January 17. Participation is open to both FCM members and non-members.

Please note: 

• The deadline for applying for this retreat is December 18 . 
• We will send a retreat acceptance letter by December 22 with additional information to help you prepare for retreat.
• The full fee will then be due by December 28, otherwise the spot will be given to another applicant.
• Please click here to read FCM's Retreat Cancellation Policy.
• If you are not familiar with our campus, you may enjoy this short video tour.
  
• New to retreating with FCM? Please visit our FAQs page.

The teachings are offered in the Buddhist tradition of Dana, wherein the teachers freely give of themselves to the students out of gratitude for what they’ve received from their teachers and a desire to be of service. The student’s response is also based on Dana, i.e. generosity that naturally flows from a sense of appreciation of the value of Dharma and gratitude to the living lineage. All retreat dana for this retreat will go towards supporting future programs at the FCM center. 

Questions?
For more information, please contact Angie at parrish26@gmail.com. Please contact Rita at ritaanna727@gmail.com for any logistical questions.