Dharma Treasure

Join us at Dharma Treasure, the place where The Mind Illuminated was written, for a gathering built around practice, conversation, and community. Whether you come for the weekend or stay for the full week, this is a chance to go deep with The Mind Illuminated in the landscape that inspired it.

The Gathering (Sept 15 – 18)

The heart of the gathering is an immersion with a flexible, multi-track structure — because practitioners are different, and a single format rarely fits everyone.

You’ll be able to move between three complementary tracks:

• Organic Track — Contemplative time outdoors, walking meditation on the land, and practices centered on sensitivity, awe, and grounded presence.
• Vanilla Track — A more traditional retreat structure with regular sitting and walking periods, silence during practice, and guidance rooted in the early Buddhist path of ethics, concentration, and insight.
• Spicy Track — Dharma talks, guided inquiry, and heart-based practices drawn from Mahayana and non-dual perspectives, exploring compassion, emptiness, and view in the texture of everyday experience.

You can settle into one track or move between them in consultation with the teachers — whatever combination of stillness, exploration, and connection best serves your practice right now.

Throughout the weekend, experienced teachers will offer daily meditation sessions grounded in the TMI approach, optional Dharma talks exploring how the TMI maps relate to both early Buddhist and Mahayana frameworks, and plenty of space for the kind of honest, informed conversation that’s hard to find outside a room full of people who’ve wrestled with the same stages you have.

The Retreat (Sep 18 – 26)

A full week gives you real time to settle — to move through hindrances, find your footing, and let the practice develop in a way that a weekend alone rarely allows. Practitioners are welcome regardless of where they are in the TMI stages; the retreat is designed to be practically useful whether you’re establishing your foundation or working with more advanced territory. This is a silent residential retreat.

Tickets and Logistics

Weekend tickets include access to all tracks and shared activities. After you register, you’ll receive more details on the schedule, track options, and what to bring, along with guidance on how to tune the weekend to your needs. Full-week registration is available separately for those who want the extended retreat.

Lodging

There are three types of lodging. “Householders” get a private room, “Worldings” gets glamping and “Wanderers” camps or sleep out in the open.  

If you’d like to attend, but the costs of this retreat prohibit you from attending, full and partial scholarships can be applied for at Open Dharma Foundation.

If you’re curious about retreats in general, including more info on Dana, check out this retreat FAQ.

About Dharma Treasure Retreat Center

Dharma Treasure is a non-profit retreat center located in the Dragoon Mountains of southeast Arizona. This wilderness retreat has long been considered sacred — first by the Chiricahua Apaches and later by hundreds of meditators grateful to practice in this quiet canyon. While being the birthplace of TMI, the Mind Illuminated method, the retreat center welcomes spiritual sojourners from all traditions, while providing support aimed at spiritual awakening, rooted in the teachings of the Buddha.

Cochise Stronghold, the specific site where Dharma Treasure is located within the Dragoons, is a magnificent natural wonder. Granite peaks rise to the east, south and west, spotted with chromatic, lichen-covered boulders, precariously balanced rocks, and charismatic formations that take on a life of their own. An evergreen juniper and oak forest grows in the valley, providing shelter for abundant wildlife including javelina, deer, and hundreds of species of birds. A seasonal stream flows from mountain top pools down through the canyon. Sharing a border with the Coronado National Forest, the retreat center is surrounded by hiking and horse trails that snake up into the mountains for miles.

The retreat center is located 90 minutes from the Tucson Airport, 45 minutes from Benson and Willcox, and 20 minutes from the small village of Sunsites. While remote, we are part of a close-knit rural community.

The Teachers

Upasaka Upali’s (aka Paul Peterson) path to teaching began with exposure to an online 20 page PDF called “Progressive Stages of Meditation in Plain English.” The document, written by Culadasa, is what eventually became the book The Mind Illuminated. This Shamatha-Vipasana style of practice provided Upali with benefits he never imagined possible from meditation. With encouragement and support from Sangha and Noble Friendship, he was led to pursue a livelihood of imparting the benefits he received to others. He is currently a full time Dharma teacher based out of Chattanooga, Tennessee. He teaches online and also teaches multiple in-person retreats internationally each year. Upali took his Upasaka vows in 2015, received transmission in Culadasa’s lineage, and studied formally under Culadasa for 3 years. Upali was also a founding member of the Open Dharma Foundation and served as its founding Executive Director. He is currently the co-host of the podcast Teaching Meditation.

Henrik A. Norberg has meditated in the mountains of Sri Lanka, the jungle of Thailand, and led forest monks on Tudong in the Mountains of Norway. He is a cave yogi, wanderer, and mind explorer interested in pre-sectarian Buddhism and samadhi practices, and is a certified TMI/ Mind Illuminated instructor.

Ticket price only covers lodging and food. The retreat is offered on Dana, the Pali word for generosity, which means it’s offered at cost. Upali and Henrik offer their support and teachings out of generosity, and you’re welcome to contribute as you feel inspired.

On group retreat, we have the following cancellation policy:

• 60 days prior to retreat: Full refund, minus a $185 cancellation fee
• 60-20 days prior to retreat: Half refund
• 20 days or less prior to retreat: No refunds