About the Enlightenment Intensive

Enlightenment Intensive is a group retreat designed to enable a spiritual enlightenment experience (satori) within a relatively short time. It is a ‘stand-alone’ process outside any organisation or religion, yet it uses a combination of the most efficient tools from traditions such as zen, mindfulness and modern communication techniques. The founder of the Enlightenment Intensive process was Charles Berner, who developed its structure during his research of more effective ways to accelerate spiritual development and personal growth.

"I have tested this technique and I have compared it to other methods of enlightenment. This technique is about 50-100 times more rapid in producing enlightenment experiences than the classical techniques." Charles Berner

During the intensive process, you will be placed in a completely secure and safe environment with no distractions (social silence). The core of the work will be self enquiry sessions called Dyads: a profound zen contemplation of the question (koan) ‘Who am I?’. The program also includes numerous holistic techniques, such as guided meditations, conscious movement, working/walking contemplation and holistic detox. After three days of the intensive process, you will have an opportunity to integrate and enjoy the afterglow of your experience through relaxation, movement sessions and/or to simply enjoy the stunning nature around. All practical aspects are taken care by the staff of facilitators, so that you have the full support to totally pursue your personal self enquiry.

The core of the process are enquiry sessions called Dyads that facilitate a physical, mental and spiritual detox. Dyads are enquiry sessions that are held with two people. One listening in stillness, the other communicating their direct experience of this moment in response to the question ‘Who am I?’ After five minutes the roles change.

This is repeated for thirty or forty minutes and is followed by a break. You will start the next Dyad with a new partner. Each Dyad clears the mind of mundane chit-chat and gives space for your authentic Self to be revealed. After a while the grip of the mind loosens as you move deeper into the direct experience of your Essence. Eventually, there is a moment where the mind becomes completely still. This creates a profound shift in your state of being – in the traditional practice of Zen, this is known as a Satori … A glimpse of enlightenment.

It is recommended to refrain from caffeine, tobacco and sugar for a few days prior to the workshop and to arrive willing to dive deep within.

A few days before your arrival, you will receive a brochure (via email) to support you in preparing yourself for your Enlightenment intensive experience.

Please, note, that if you are following any form of mental health therapy / using any medication / have a recent history of any substance addiction (in the last 6 months) / you are in any kind of a recovery process, please, reach out to the retreat provider so you can find out together, if this retreat is suitable for you.

Please note, that this retreat is a very profound individual journey of self discovery. In case you wish to experience this program with your relatives, partners or friends, we recommend to book different dates or don’t share a room together. If you are with a friend, during the process you would not be working together. You can also contact us before you book, so we can find together an arrangement, which won’t interfere into your EI process.

We're here to help! If you have any additional questions or need more details about the retreat, please email us at retreats@insighttimer.com, and we'll be happy to provide you with all the information you need.