True Refuge Week: Self-Directed Intensive Practice for MRO Students

Self-direction within form

This retreat inverts the typical sesshin structure. Rather than following a prescribed schedule, participants negotiate the shape of the week together—when to sit zazen, how long, what other practices to include—while keeping core anchors: formal zazen periods, communal meals, liturgy, and shared caretaking. It's a structured experiment in autonomy within a Zen container, designed to help practitioners understand their own practice needs rather than defaulting to convention.

With the group capped at nine, this is intimate work. MRO teachers and senior staff are present to support and reflect back what emerges, but the retreat belongs to the students. This format assumes experience: you're expected to know how to sit, how to pace yourself, and how to work with others in silence toward a shared aim.

Mountains and Rivers Order context

The Mountains and Rivers Order, founded by teacher John Daido Loori at Zen Mountain Monastery, emphasizes rigorous practice integrated with creative expression and environmental stewardship. This retreat reflects that ethos—formal Zen training (zazen, dokusan if sought, liturgical chanting) with space for practitioners to articulate what they're actually working with.