The Human Coherence Retreat
An extended silent retreat in awareness, embodiment, and ethical alignment.
This retreat is for people who are no longer interested in chasing experiences and are ready to reduce holding and internal friction.
It is not a performance retreat.
It is not an energy cultivation retreat.
It is not designed to produce peak states or dramatic breakthroughs.
It is a structured period of silence and simple daily rhythm in which attention, body, breath, emotion, and action are allowed to realign naturally.
When interference drops, coherence emerges.
When coherence emerges, life requires less effort.
That is the work here.
What this retreat is
- A sustained environment of silence and simplicity
- Daily sitting, standing, and walking meditation
- Strong emphasis on embodiment and nervous system regulation
- Minimal instruction, decreasing over time
- Shared daily tasks as part of ordinary functioning
- Clear ethical orientation without belief requirements
The structure is repetitive by design. Nothing new is introduced each day. This allows the nervous system to settle and self-regulate.
What this retreat is not
This retreat is not for those seeking:
- special or altered states
- energy manipulation or amplification
- spiritual identity or advancement
- constant teaching or explanation
- emotional catharsis as an end in itself
Experiences may arise. Sensations may arise. Quiet power may arise. None of these are trained, pursued, or evaluated.
They are treated as side effects, not achievements.
The environment
The retreat takes place in a traditional American Buddhist retreat center’s shrine room. The shrine will be present in the space but will not be used ritually during the retreat.
The shrine is explained once, simply, as a symbolic representation of awakened mind. Participants are not asked to bow, pray, make offerings, or adopt any religious framework. The environment is treated with respect, clarity, and neutrality.
Structure and rhythm
Days 1–4: Orientation, shared language, and embodied training
(talks, guided practices, and discussion)
Days 5–12: Embodied practice
(seated, walking, and standing meditation, aimless wandering, silent meals, and embodied awareness practices)
Day 13-14: Re-entry and integration
(reflection, practical translation into daily life)
Silence begins on the morning of Day 1 and continues through most of the retreat. Silence here is functional, not performative.
Each day begins with a short opening chant that is about arriving. It reminds the system that nothing else needs attention right now. Nothing from before needs to be carried forward. Nothing new needs to be produced.
Some days close with a short chant about completion. It reminds the system that the day does not need to be reviewed, evaluated, or preserved. Nothing needs to be held onto.
These chants help mark the beginning and ending of the practice day, and they point attention away from habit and toward what is already functioning on its own. If at any point the recitations don’t resonate for you, you don’t need to engage with them at all. Let the words pass through like sound.
For experienced practitioners
This retreat may be particularly resonant for practitioners who have completed a dathün within the Shambhala Buddhist tradition.
A dathün offers a sustained month of meditation, silence, ritual, movement, and shared work, guiding practitioners from mental noise into clarity and direct relationship with habitual patterns. That training builds discipline, endurance, and respect for form.
This retreat does not replace that work or extend it in duration. Instead, it turns in a quieter direction. Where a dathün emphasizes structure and repetition, this retreat emphasizes integration and self-regulation. Where a dathün relies on form to hold attention, this retreat explores what happens when interference drops and coherence begins to organize itself from within.
For those who have completed a dathün and sense that the next step is not more intensity but less effort, this retreat offers a compatible and natural continuation.
Retreat practices include
- Seated and walking meditation focused on attention stability
- Standing meditation for embodiment and grounding
- Breath practices for nervous system regulation
- Body scanning to develop sensation without interpretation
- Silent relational presence exercises
- Ethical reflection and silent service
No visualization, breath retention, or activation practices are used.
Devices
All digital devices are collected following the evening talk on arrival day and returned on the last day of the retreat. This supports nervous system settling and reduces external demand on attention.
Emergency contact procedures are provided.
Orientation
This retreat does not promise outcomes.
If you leave calmer, clearer, and less reactive, the retreat has done its job.
If you leave underwhelmed or disappointed that nothing dramatic happened, the retreat has also done its job.
This work favors subtraction over accumulation.
Who this retreat is for
This retreat is best suited for people who:
- can tolerate simplicity and repetition
- are willing to sit with boredom or uncertainty
- are not looking to be entertained or inspired
- are interested in ethical alignment, not spiritual display
- can take responsibility for their own regulation
Meditation experience is helpful but not required. Curiosity and maturity matter more than technique.
A final note
This retreat will not give you something to keep.
It may show you what no longer needs to be carried.
Waitlist
Add your name to the waitlist to receive details about this 14-day retreat, including dates and location, when they are solidified.
