A five-session summer series
Wednesdays July 9, 16, 23 & 30, plus Saturday August 2.
All sessions are 10am-noon Pacific time.

Series Overview

Contemplative Rest is a relaxing, present-moment, embodied meditation practice which draws somatically on previously lived transcendent experiences—moments of awe, connectedness, mystery, revelation—extraordinary experiences of the numinous in which we feel one with everything.

In this series, Contemplative Rest founder M Freeman teaches the meditation practice, initially guiding participants gently through necessary preparation—selecting past extraordinary experiences, savoring those experiences in vivid detail, and reflecting on them from your current perspective.

What to Expect

—  You may come to understand resources in your life you never knew you had.

—  You may find a basic kind of peace work in this heart-calming practice that enhances your everyday and is an antidote to anxiety, to looping bad memories, to triggered reactions, to despair…

—  You will be guided to recall numinous experiences in your life, sometimes fleeting moments of wonder or ease during an exceptional time, and sometimes experiences in  ordinary moments that turn suddenly astonishing and wondrous.

—  In guided visualizations, M will lead participants through exploring, savoring, honoring, and reflecting on those personal experiences.

—  Your curiosity may deepen through noticing emblematic gestures, images, sounds, and words that heighten precise moments and expand atmospheric love.

—  You will begin a Contemplative Rest journal.

—  You will be invited into reflective writing, group sharing, and evocative listening.

—  You will participate in and contribute to the remarkable expansiveness of personal experience through community practice.

—  You will be invited into a deeper and shared awareness of the numinous, through Cinema Divina, M’s practice of contemplative film screening.

—  Difference and diversity are valued, respected and hoped for.

—  You will have the opportunity to join regularly practicing contemplatives. This series concludes on August 2, flowing directly into the First-Saturday Contemplative Rest group practice offered monthly for those who have participated in Contemplative Rest training.

Who This Series is For

Open-hearted folks of all backgrounds are welcome. This series is for folks who’ve never heard of Contemplative Rest, and for those who’ve attended previous Contemplative Rest trainings. No prior experience with meditation practices is necessary yet seasoned practitioners may find inspiration, centering, and fortification. Maybe you are seeking peace, stillness, inspiration, insight, or healing. Whatever you are seeking, bring your heart’s desire, and know you will find yourself among kindred spirits.