As you have seen through practicing mindfulness, your thoughts, words, and actions have consequences; they condition future moments in your life that will create either suffering or non-suffering. For this reason, to fully realize cessation of all clinging requires purification of the mind as well as training in mindful awareness. Therefore, you deliberately and repeatedly create these liberative conditions of the mind utilizing the purification trainings that the Buddha . . . called the Noble Eightfold Path. You cultivate ethical behavior (sila) so that your mind is not disturbed by guilt and denial. You develop mindfulness and concentration (samadhi) both in meditation and in life so that your mind is steady and awake during all your daily activities and so that you are present to to make choices not to create dukkha. And finally, you cultivate wisdom (panna) through meditation, observation, and reflection so that you develop the discernment to know what brings happiness and what causes suffering. All three — sila, samadhi, and panna — act together to purify the mind.
— Phillip Moffitt, Dancing with Life, pg 209
This program is for dedicated Dharma Ground practitioners who feel drawn to commit to an extended practice immersion — cultivating the Buddha’s liberative path — with the support of teachers and sangha. Utilizing the potency of the Naturally Arising Practice Method, this immersion has an arc that includes both depth and integration, and offers steady relational support for the kind of transformation that happens over time. This 8-month Immersion Program includes:
All aspects of this program are online.
This program forms a “sangha within a sangha,” where together we embrace our lives as spiritual training and explore specific practices deeply. We will prioritize program admittance based on practitioners’ sincere intention to be part of this practice community and their commitment to this extended Dharma Immersion Program.
The two-hour online classes in this Immersion will provide continuity and include short dharma talks, hour-long guided meditations, and reports from the field with responses from the teacher. Dana will be the main teacher of these class series; Phillip will be a guest teacher.
Participants are asked to attend at least two-thirds of the 16 sessions, and to maintain a regular meditation practice, including both formal practice and practicing within daily life. Recordings of guided meditations and talks will be made available. Class size is limited to support a sense of community and to encourage depth of sharing. There will be two class sections to choose from:
If participants are unable to attend their regular session on a given week, they have the option of joining the other session.
Class Series are at the bottom of this page.
There will be two online Flexible Practice Intensives part of this program: a 9-day Flexible in the fall, and a 21-day Flexible in the winter.
The Flexible Practice Intensives include ~2 guided meditations per day and drop-in practice support meetings. For those who cannot make it to the live guided meditations, recordings will be available for you to listen to at a convenient time. There will also be daily silent morning meditations and evening silent Candlelight meditations. Dana, Ying and Alex will teach the Flexible Practice Intensives.
The Flexible Practice Intensives are an integral part of this program, supporting both integration and depth. How you participate in the Flexible Practice Intensives may be intentionally tailored to accommodate your life circumstances; they can be held as a period of seclusion/dedicated silent practice or as a time of intentional practice that includes work and life responsibilities. You’ll be supported holding these Flexible Practice periods as valuable intensive practice time, even if you are practicing in multiple, interactive situations such as work and relational life.
As part of the application you will be asked to share how you would participate in these Flexibles, understanding that they can be tailored to match your life circumstances. In particular, the 21-day February Flexible is a potent, extended practice period; it follows the February Experienced Retreat, resulting in a 28-day cumulative practice period. This practice period serves as the depth anchor of the entire 8-month unfoldment. (Some will choose to take those 28 days as a dedicated Monthlong Retreat, but that is an optional track with an application separate from this Immersion Program.)
Flexible Practice Intensive dates:
(Retreat donations & teacher dāna are not included in this program. Space in these retreats is guaranteed as part of this program.)
The two online Experienced Students Retreats are an integral part of this program but are not required to participate in this program. In the Class Series and Flexibles we will circumambulate the themes introduced in the two retreats. If you are unable to attend a retreat, let us know in your application and we can explore options to support you staying in sync with the unfoldment of this program, including the option to practice with the retreat recordings on your own schedule and submitting asynchronous field reports.
The themes for the two Dharma Ground Experienced Students Retreats are not yet set. Past themes have included Wholeness and Unity (2026), The Flowering of the Discerning Mind (2025), Discovering the Contented Mind-Heart (2025), The Empowerments of Recognition, Realization, and Resolve (2024), The Dharma of Surrender, Forgiveness, and Accountability (2024), The Seven Factors of Awakening (2023).
Retreat dates:
This Immersion program is offered completely by donation. Your donation includes both teacher support (dāna) and organizational support for everything in this program besides the two retreats.
The suggested donation range is $680 - $5,720 (equating to $85 - $715 per month over 8 months). You are invited to offer what is appropriate given your life circumstances (including an offering outside of the suggested range). All offerings are gratefully accepted. All registration offerings are tax-deductible. Payment plans are available.
“The substantial container that this immersion program has provided allowed my practice to unfold. . . This program feels like a novel and really effective way of growing sturdy roots.” — Mercy
“The power of the Immersion program is a combination of Dana's graduate-level teachings, practicing in Sangha over 20 sessions, and sharing and listening to field reports that add another layer of clarity and understanding. In this program, I've come to treasure the practice even more and see each gathering as illuminations of the Sangha as the whole of the practice.” — Shawn
”The program is a spiritual journey with the class session topics integrated with the retreats that are part of the program. . . Again and again, I find that this practice is gentle and full of practical applications to daily life.” — Peggy
“My participation in the immersion program has enabled me to deepen and create greater regularity in my practice. I find myself more present, more centered, and more available for life as a result.” — Stan
“I firmly believe that this immersion program made it possible for me to have a transforming experience during the surrender, forgiveness, and accountability retreat. It almost felt like you were preparing us, paving the way . . . And it feels like we are all growing together.” — Julie
“I love the continuity of this program and am so happy it will run again.” — Paige
Pre-requisite to apply: Completion of at least one Dharma Ground Experienced Students Retreat, or prior teacher approval.
The initial application window is April 1 - 22, 2026. Initial admittance letters will be sent by April 24, 2026. After the initial window, applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until the program is filled, and will be reviewed within three weeks of submission.
The application is available here.
Please get in touch with us anytime at info@dharmaground.org.