retreat

Stop. Breathe. Breathe again.

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Stop. Breathe. Breathe again. In that time, did you miss anything? A multimillion-dollar deal? A major life event? So what is the rush? What is the constant need to be doing something? It is going to be ok, even if you stop to breathe for a few minutes.

Of course, if you want to take that to a really healing level, you should take a few days off for a silence retreat, a technology detox, a news cleanse, a silent retreat, call it what you will. For the last five or so years, I have had the privilege of taking a few days off and heading North, over the Guadarrama mountains to the Monasterio de El Paular.

Although the Benedictine monks ask you to pray with them at least three of their five prayers, I always enjoy going to all five, including the 6:30am Maitines. There is a great beauty in reciting the Psalms and praying together in a slow, contemplative rhythm.

When you are not praying you are free to go hiking in the mountains. This year I went up to the Reventón for the first time to check out El carro del diablo, a huge rock with a legend about the cathedral of Segovia and, you guessed it, the devil. I also went up to the Puente de la Angostura bridge which I had not visited in years.

A particularly healing aspect is when the monks ask you to work with them. This time we had to sweep the farmhouse porch for the upcoming fiesta of St. John’s dinner. Brother Enrique and I spent the morning cleaning and fixing up area for the party.

The rest of the time you are meditating, reading, writing, enjoying the Vicente Carducho paintings in the cloister, praying. It is an amazing experience. You should try it. Here is the link for the monastery or find one near you!

https://www.monasteriodeelpaular.com/

You are welcome.

Yes, you need a silence and meditation retreat,

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Unless, of course, you are a Zen master or a monk or a nun. This is my third such retreat, but my last time here was in February of 2020, the week right before the Covid lockdown. Since then, I started a new job far away in Florida which means I only come to Spain for the holidays and that time is pretty busy with family, friends, chores, etc. and although I had been meaning to get out here, things do not happen unless you make the commitment, so here I am.

El Paular monastery is an ancient (1390) Medieval monastery built in the confluence of two or three streams where a hermit used to live. The monastery was originally of the Carthusian order, but it got dismantled in the 19th Century and re-started again in 1948 under the Benedictine order. It currently has eleven monks, which is a couple more than when I was last here!

The journey here brings you over the mighty Guadarrama mountains, specifically the 2000mt Navacerrada pass. That is your first threshold, leaving Madrid far away. The descent on the other side is your second signal that you are entering a new world. And then, there you are, face to face with what used to be a massive monastery, which is now a fraction of what it once was, but still beautiful and awe inspiring.

The first thing you notice stepping into the cloister is the silence, there are no TVs, radios, music, nothing other than the birds chirping. Then you notice the rhythm, the pace. There is no rush here, everything works pretty much the same way it did over six centuries ago. Then you notice the massive 52 Vicente Carducho paintings depicting the history of the Carthusian order!

As for the retreat, you get a cell which is a perfectly nice room with a bed and a desk, and a bathroom with great water pressure and even better views of the mountains!

You are encouraged to pray with the monks five times a day:

6:30 Maitines

8:00 Laudes before breakfast

2:00 Sexta before lunch

8:00 Vísperas before dinner

10:00 Completas

One does not talk with the monks unless the monks talk to you, which when they do is briefly. You eat your meals in silence in the refectory -well, there is a reader, yesterday they were reading Merton’s biography!

Other than that, you are free to go walking in the mountains, or to the village a couple of miles away, but that kind of breaks the silence –unless you did not pack enough socks and you have to venture into the village to get some. You spend most of the day reading, writing, meditating.

The abbot is my spiritual director, so when I come, we spend some time talking. Padre Joaquín, like all the monks emanates spirituality, patience, love. Being in the presence of the monks brings down your blood pressure, after all these guys have the key to happiness. It is scientifically proven that monks are the happiest people in the world!

Yes, I have my phone, but it spends a lot of time just sitting in my cell. I take it with me on my walks mostly so I can take photos. This is the beginning of feeling free… (to be continued)