What We Need is Here

The Prescott Insight Fall Retreat
Taught by Howard Cohn

September 19 – 22, 2024
Garchen Buddhist Institute, Arizona


Settling the mind into the body,
noticing and caring about the flow of experience,
our hearts can settle,
and we can realize that the peace and ease
we are looking for in our lives
is the natural peace and ease of our own nature.

– Howie Cohn
In his beautiful poem, "The Wild Geese”, Wendell Berry writes, "We pray, not for new earth or heaven, but to be quiet in heart, and in eye clear. What we need is here.” He reminds us that everything we need to clear our minds and quiet our hearts is here in the present moment.
Returning to Garchen Institute for our meditation retreat after 5 years, we have the rare opportunity to come out of the tangle of our complicated minds and live in silence together, supporting each other to recover the natural peace and clarity that is our true home. Insight Meditation instructions, dharma talks, and opportunities for checking in with the teacher will be included. The retreat is open to all levels of experience.
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Courtesy Mission Dharma
Our Teacher

Howard Cohn is a founding teacher of Spirit Rock Meditation Center in northern California. He has led the Mission Dharma sitting group in San Francisco for over 35 years, been in private practice as a psychotherapist, and led Vipassana retreats worldwide since 1985. He incorporates the influences of Theravada, Zen, Tibetan Dzogchen and Advaita Vedanta in his teaching, with an emphasis on reawakening our intrinsic freedom. Among his many teachers and mentors are Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, U Pandita Sayadaw, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Tsoknyi Rinpoche, and the Advaita Vedanta Master H.W.L. Poonja. Howie is known by his students for his kindheartedness and warm sense of humor.
We are SO honored to receive the gift of Howie's teachings every autumn since 2007!
Howie receives no compensation from your fee for his teachings, offering his time and wisdom freely.
Honoring our ancient tradition of dana (generosity), the teachings of The Buddha are considered priceless and offered freely to all. We are thus inspired to help Howie lead a life devoted to teaching the dharma by offering a gift of dana in any amount, before, during or after the retreat. In the act of giving, we develop our ability to let go, cultivate loving-kindness for all beings, and honor our inter-connectedness.


The Retreat

This is our 25th annual Fall Retreat, begun by Carol and Monty Cook. Our gratitude flows endlessly to them for there love of sangha and of the dharma!

Our days together will comprise instructions, sitting meditation, walking meditation, question & answer sessions, and evening dharma talks. Noble silence will be observed throughout the retreat in order to provide an optimal container for internal work. We'll receive guidance in the Five Precepts, the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, and in the practice of loving-kindness (metta), cultivating friendship toward oneself and all beings. One-on-one or group check-ins with the teacher will be scheduled as time permits. This retreat is suitable for beginning and experienced practitioners alike.
There will be guided movement sessions on Friday and Saturday afternoon, as the schedule permits.

Set-up and check-in for participants will be from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 19. No lunch will be served Thursday. We will begin orientation at 2:30, then enter into noble silence as the retreat begins at 4:00 p.m. The retreat ends after lunch on Sunday, September 22, 1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
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Courtesy Garchen Buddhist Institute
The Setting

We are SO grateful to gather once again at Garchen Buddhist Institute, a beautiful Tibetan Buddhist center in the pinion-juniper hills, about one hour north of Prescott, Arizona. This serene, off-grid location is graced with sweeping views to the northeast of the Sacred Peaks, Red Rocks country, and Verde Valley, and the landscape surrounding Prescott to the southwest. For driving directions to Garchen visit their location page.

This is primarily a camping retreat, including indoor and outdoor camping. Lodging with beds and linens include the Dorm, retreat cabins and huts and Tashi House. Availability of accommodations will change as reservations continue to be filled. Regrettably, there are no ADA compliant (wheelchair accessible) rooms available.
Participants not requesting a bed must bring their own bedding and other camping gear. The U.S. Forest Service camping area has level tent sites and a portable toilet, and is a 200-yard walk downhill from the main campus. No fires are allowed in the camping area. All participants will have access to the bathhouse near the Assembly Hall.

During the week prior to the retreat we will send you important, detailed information. An online ride-share signup sheet will be available for those wanting help with transportation.

Registration & Fees

Retreat fees are $270 for outdoor or indoor camping, and $330 for a bed in the dorm and retreat cabins.

The fee covers our use of the venue, expenses, and three vegetarian meals per day, except lunch on Thursday. No one will be turned away for lack of funds as space allows. If you are unable to pay part or all of the retreat fee we offer full or partial scholarships. For funding assistance please email us after registering and before September 16. Once the first 50 positions are filled, submitted names will be placed on a waiting list in the order in which they are received.

If you experience symptoms or a positive test for any infectious illness in the week prior to the retreat, we ask that you not attend.
If you must cancel your reservation please let us know as soon as possible to allow others to plan ahead. Refunds will be issued for 50% of your fee through August 16, 2024. After that date we will not issue refunds, and any non-refunded fees will be used in our retreat scholarship fund.
After registering with the above link, we ask that you pay your fee as soon as possible, preferably with Paypal, using the link below or the one in your confirmation email:

You may also pay by check, either by mail or at check-in.
Please make you check payable to:

"PIM Retreat Planning"
1209 Eagle Drive
Prescott, AZ 86305

Please designate in the memo field "COHN RETREAT".

To get on the mailing list for announcements about this and other retreats, or about our weekly Tuesday night sits, please use the form at the bottom of our Connect page.