Illuminating Silence: A Four-Day Chan Retreat

Begins: Friday, December 4, 2026  (5 – 7 PM check-in)

Ends: Monday, December 7, 2026 (10 AM) 

Venue: 255 H Street, Fremont, CA 94536

Suggested Donation: $200 (any amount will be greatly appreciated) 

This residential retreat offers dedicated practitioners the opportunity to immerse themselves in the Chan method of Silent Illumination. Though simple in essence, this practice can be quite subtle and requires careful guidance. With profound insight and encouragement, Dr. Rebecca Li presents the teachings and methods to provide participants with opportunities to experience a transformative opening, allowing them to come to rest, find inner peace, embrace spacious clarity, and reconnect with the true nature of being.

Retreat Program

Retreat participants will learn to engage in Chan Practice in the context of daily life activities, such as sitting, eating, walking, and working, under the teacher’s guidance.  Instructions will include eight-form moving meditation to harmonize the body and mind.  The retreat also includes daily lectures, meditation instruction, guided meditation, and personal interviews.

The retreat schedule can be viewed by clicking here.

Requirements

This is a silent retreat with a rigorous schedule, starting early in the morning to make good use of the precious opportunity to practice with a group in person. There will be multiple 30-minute sitting meditation periods throughout the day. 

Participants should be mentally and physically prepared for the rigors of such a regimen. Therefore, attendees are asked to meet the following requirements:

• Already received basic meditation instructions
• Participants who have previously attended 1-day (or multi-day) retreat(s) or equivalent experience(s) are preferred.
• Commit to attending the entire retreat, staying overnight at the center from December 4 to December 7.
• Due to limited facilities, all participants will sleep on the floor in a personal tent and should bring their own sleeping bag and pad. 

Remarks

• No late check-ins
• Seating is limited
• A complete packing list will be sent with the notice of acceptance
• Registration Deadline: November 27 at 5 pm

Registration- DDMBASF Center/Fremont

About our Dharma/Chan Teacher: Dr. Rebecca Li

Dr. Rebecca Li, a Dharma heir in the lineage of Chan Master Sheng Yen, is the founder and guiding teacher of Chan Dharma Community.  She began practicing with Master Sheng Yen in the mid-1990s and became his translator in 1999 until his passing in 2009. She also trained with John Crook and Simon Child, two of Master Sheng Yen’s lay Dharma heirs, from the U.K. She received full Dharma transmission from Simon Child in 2016. Rebecca teaches meditation and Dharma classes, gives public lectures, and leads residential retreats in North America and Europe. Her talks and writings can be found at www.rebeccali.org, Tricycle and Lion’s Roar.  She is also a sociology professor and lives with her husband in New Jersey. She is the author of Allow Joy into Our Hearts: Chan Practice in Uncertain Times, and her recent book Illumination: A Guide to the Buddhist Method of No-Method was published in 2023 by Shambhala Publications.