Brian Lesage

Residential Retreat Teacher

Brian Lesage has practiced Buddhist meditation since 1988 and has taught meditation since 2000. He has studied in the Zen, Theravada, and Tibetan schools of Buddhism. He was ordained in the Rinzai Zen tradition in 1996. His training in Vipassana Meditation includes doing extended meditation retreats in Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, and India as well as numerous retreats in the U.S. He leads retreats and teaches meditation courses nationwide. Brian also has a private practice in Somatic Experiencing, which is a naturalistic approach to healing trauma. Brian completed the SRMC/IMS/IRC 4-year teacher training in 2016.

What underlies the sense of I am somebody who needs to do something in order to awaken in the future, is the sense that practice has a beginning point. Then you travel: you travel and practice. You come to a lot of retreats, and then you get over here, finally! Finally you’re awake: you’ve become somebody who’s no longer confused. I want to point out that this is a story. I love the linear story, but it can be such a hook. Do you see how it can play into becoming? I’m somebody here, and I’m gonna get over here. That’s what becoming is about. I’m somebody and then I’ll become somebody else. It’s all rooted in the sense of self. And it’s the assumptions that get created around it that start to entangle the mind.
 
Brian Lesage, Navigating a Sense of Lack in our Practice

Brian Lesage's Upcoming Programs

Retreat On-Land

February 1 - March 29, 2025 Saturday - Saturday | 56 nights

2025 Insight Meditation 2-Month Retreat - Application

Applications Still Being Accepted. An extended period of retreat offers the rare opportunity for sustained, dedicated practice. This retreat emphasizes quieting the mind, opening the heart, and developing profound clarity and depth of Insight practice. Instruction will follow the traditional four foundations of mindfulness combined with training in lovingkindness and compassion, and practice will be structured around a daily schedule of silent sitting, walking, Dharma talks, and practice meetings with teachers.

Dawn Scott

Dawn Scott

Vance Pryor

Vance Pryor

Tuere Sala

Tuere Sala

Brian Lesage

Brian Lesage

devon hase

devon hase

JD Doyle

JD Doyle

Tara Mulay

Tara Mulay

Tempel Smith

Tempel Smith

Devin Berry

Devin Berry

Anushka Fernandopulle

Anushka Fernandopulle

Kristina Baré

Kristina Baré

Francisco Morillo Gable

Francisco Morillo Gable

Marjolein Janssen

Marjolein Janssen

Rasika Link

Rasika Link

Retreat On-Land

February 1 - March 1, 2025 Saturday - Saturday | 28 nights

2025 February Insight Meditation 1-Month Retreat - Application

Applications Still Being Accepted. An extended period of retreat offers the rare opportunity for sustained, dedicated practice. This retreat emphasizes quieting the mind, opening the heart, and developing profound clarity and depth of Insight practice. Instruction will follow the traditional four foundations of mindfulness combined with training in lovingkindness and compassion, and practice will be structured around a daily schedule of silent sitting, walking, Dharma talks, and practice meetings with teachers.

Dawn Scott

Dawn Scott

Vance Pryor

Vance Pryor

Tuere Sala

Tuere Sala

Brian Lesage

Brian Lesage

devon hase

devon hase

JD Doyle

JD Doyle

Rasika Link

Rasika Link

Retreat On-Land

May 9 - May 16, 2025 Friday - Friday | 7 nights

Spring Insight Retreat

15 CE Credits.

Registration Opens - January 9. All the time before you were born plus all the time after you die is almost exactly all the time there is. Yet we find ourselves alive, with a question: how should I live? We begin by listening deeply. Throughout this retreat, we'll sit together in the refuge provided by a 2,600-year legacy of wisdom and kindness. In the silence, we come to know the preciousness of life and the poignancy of the human condition.

Matthew Brensilver

Matthew Brensilver

Brian Lesage

Brian Lesage

Tuere Sala

Tuere Sala

Dharma Library

Can't join us live online or on the land? Study and practice at your convenience with Brian Lesage through our new library of recordings, articles, and self-paced online courses.