A finely tuned spiritual container, a catalyst for groups to awaken more quickly and deeply, together.
We know that it’s a lot of work when you’re leading your own retreats.
There are so many details that you want to handle well. You need to promote it, work out prices and registration, figure out accommodations and food. Then there’s all the daily logistics. Sometimes, this doesn’t leave a lot of energy for leading it!
This was our experience for over ten years, before we discovered the value of crafting our own spiritual container. Along the way, we met some of the challenges you might be facing.
Overall, we did a great job, yet, we soon realized that a lot of energy was going into working all of this out. What we really wanted was to be focusing on the retreat experience itself, the teachings, and the unfolding.
Even with venues that were in nature and shared our values such as sustainability, we often found that little attention was paid to the aesthetics of the space. Many spaces turned out to be cold, uninspiring, and lacked a sense of the sacred.
Next to none offered meals that were nourishing, organic, and reasonably priced.
Choosing Clear Sky could transform your retreats. It did ours!
Clear Sky is a spiritual container that welcomes and supports spiritual groups devoted to personal and planetary awakening. We invite all traditions to come here to deepen their spiritual explorations.
What’s so good about Clear Sky as a space to do retreats?
- It carries the energy of a place dedicated to spiritual work
- We welcome diverse spiritual practices
- We can take online bookings and registrations for your retreat
- With fantastic food and a natural environment, you’ll feel nourished on all levels
Outer support: The five principles of a good spiritual container
With 20 years’ experience offering retreats internationally, we are highly aware of the subtleties of the group retreat experience. As a modern day working monastery that runs on a quadruple bottom line, we have a vested interest in inviting spiritual groups like you to use our center as their retreat home while also encouraging environmental, financial and social sustainability.
We’ve rediscovered five ancient principles that help create the right outer conditions of a good container for spiritual work:
1. Honor your space
2. Structure and routine are your friends
3. Conversations shape the space where we meet
4. Cleaning up big areas of your life frees up energy
5. It’s easier with others
These are the factors that have made Clear Sky work, a place that wakes people up and supports their meditation and contemplation practices. These same principles will support you when you bring your groups and host your retreats.
Here’s what you can expect when you bring your group to Clear Sky:
- A sense of being taken care of. This supports participants to trust and let go into the retreat experience.
- More energy. By caring for the retreat logistics, we free up energy for you to guide people more effectively on the spiritual journey.
- A heightened awareness that comes from an environment that is cared for, with attention to detail.
- Fresh mountain air, natural paths for hikes and outdoor exploration.
- Optional extra facilitation in mindfulness, nature walks, tours of our food forest.
- Accessibillity. Cranbrook airport is 40 minutes away, Calgary is a four-hour drive.
- Nourishment. We serve local, organic, and some home grown foods.
- Our retreat registration system is available for you to take online registrations, if you wish.
More benefits of choosing Clear Sky:
- We can provide opportunities for your retreatants to do service and learn Clear Sky’s principles.
- Your events are supported by experienced meditators, who are mindful and attentive.
- Enjoy the enhanced energy of the spiritual work that has been done before you.
- Our private cabins are usable in four seasons, subject to availability.
- Shared accommodations that build a sense of community.
Answers to some Frequently Asked Questions
- All spiritual groups are welcome.
- The meditation room can be used for teaching, yoga, and other practices.
- For reduced rates your team can be guided in karma yoga (service) for 90 minutes a day. This increases awareness of the practice of service and benefits your group and Clear Sky.
- We provide all meals with local and organic foods.
- We are 40 minutes from an airport and can provide airport transfers.
- The closest US border is less than two hours away.
- We can accommodate up to 15 in our main facility and 3 in cabins.
- Double occupancy is also possible in each cabin.
- The largest group size we can have is 25.
- Camp spots are available in the late spring, summer and early fall.
- We have a quadruple bottom line, which means spiritual, financial, environmental, and social.
- Our 310 acres is part of our container and we encourage you to make use of it. We invite you to explore and meditate in our woodlands, grasslands reclamation plot, and food forest. We can offer tours of these and our green building.
