Residential Retreat
Devin Berry, Tara Mulay & Hakim Tafari
Slow Down, Open, Belong: Insight & Lovingkindness Meditation Retreat
9/27-10/21, 2026
Insight San Diego Welcomes
Devin Berry, Tara Mulay & Hakim Tafari
Residential Retreat
BIG BEAR Retreat Center
Devin Berry, Tara Mulay & Hakim Tafari
In a culture of pressure and hurry, stillness is radical. On this four-night silent Insight and Lovingkindness retreat, we step out of habit and into presence—learning to stabilize attention and soften the heart. Through mindfulness of the body and the grounding support of mettā, we meet life with less judgment and more compassion. The retreat includes daily meditation instruction, dharma talks, practice meetings, sitting and walking periods, and optional Qi Gong. No prior meditation experience is needed—just a willingness to rest and begin again.
Devin Berry began practicing in 1999. His teaching is rooted in the Buddhadharma and mindfulness daily life practices. Devin’s training includes Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction teacher training, the East Bay Meditation Center Commit to Dharma Program, Spirit Rock’s Dedicated Practitioners Program, and Insight Meditation Society’s four-year Residential Retreat Teachers Program. Devin also co-founded both the Teen Sangha and Men of Color Deep Refuge Group at East Bay Meditation Center in Oakland. Almost 20 years ago, Devin began some of the first mindfulness programs in SF Bay Area schools, including: weekly mindfulness groups for marginalized youth as a frontline advocate, leading wilderness camp programs for teens, Rites of Passage programs for tweens, and a summer camp for boys. Devin co-created Deep Time Liberation, an ancestral healing journey that explores the impact of ancestral legacy and intergenerational trauma on Black Americans. Devin is a father and teaches nationally.
Tara Mulay has practiced Insight Meditation since 2003. She received instruction from a teacher in the lineage of Mahasi Sayadaw, a Burmese Theravada Buddhist monk and meditation master. She has gratefully drawn influence from the Mahasi lineage, including Howard Cohn, Kamala Masters, Gil Fronsdal, Joseph Goldstein, Sayadaw U Tejaniya, and Ayya Anandabodhi. She is a South Asian (Indian)-American and felt an initial motivation to explore dharma practice upon encountering the Buddha’s teachings rejecting caste as a measure of worth and of capacity for awakening. She believes classical Buddhist practices, designed to cultivate compassion, non-greed, non-hatred, and non-delusion, are uniquely potent vehicles for empowering people in marginalized communities and effecting social change.
Hakim Tafari is a Buddhist Dharma practitioner and meditation facilitator blending his meditative practice with street and trail running. Hakim’s experience of mindfulness and social awareness supports his friends, family, and community at large. He believes that the essence of mindfulness is not only something to be practiced for the self, but for those seeking to walk (or run) a path of non-judgment, non-ego, and compassion for the greater good of all beings.Retreat Information
Date & Time:
The retreat begins on Sunday, April 19 at 3:00 pm and ends Thursday, April 23 at 2:00 pm
Detailed timing information for each day will be provided when you register.
Mission San Luis Rey
4050 Mission Ave, Oceanside, CA 92057
Location:
Registration fees are set on a sliding scale to make the event available to all who want to attend. Registration fees are offered at different levels; SUPPORTER, DONOR, and BASE. The Base rate represents our cost for an individual to attend. Registering at the Supporter or Donor level helps to fund scholarships for the retreat and other ISD programs. Please pay at the highest level you can.
As space is limited, we encourage early registration. Registration opens January 19, 2026.
Single Room Rates: Supporter $775, Donor $725, Base $625
Commuter Rates: Supporter $375, Donor $325, Base, $275
Teacher compensation is not included in the registration fee. If you wish to help support Matthew's teachings you may donate via PayPal or Venmo at https://www.matthewbrensilver.org/support. There will also be an opportunity at the end of retreat to make a donation to Matthew. Thank you for your support!
Should finances be an obstacle, please visit our scholarships page for information about financial assistance. To be considered for a scholarship, applications need to be received no later than March 19, 2026.
Registration Info:
About Mission San Luis Rey Retreat Center:
This retreat will be held at the Mission San Luis Rey Retreat Center located on 56 acres of property. Grounds include beautifully manicured gardens and walkways, Labyrinth, perimeter walking path, guestrooms and meeting space, Dining Room and a refreshment lounge with complimentary coffee and tea. Retreatants can enjoy the fragrant rose garden and numerous outdoor spaces for tranquility and reflection.
Guest rooms provide simple overnight lodging for single occupancy. Each room typically has two twin beds, a sink and a desk. European-style restrooms in the hallway have private showers and toilets. Linens and towels are provided. Each room has individual controls for heat; air conditioning is not provided.
Delicious vegetarian meals are freshly prepared in the Mission Kitchen and served buffet style in the Retreat Dining Room. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are provided daily on full days of retreat. The Mission is unable to accommodate special dietary requests including but not limited to: vegan, dairy free, gluten free and allergies. The kitchen is not an allergy-certified kitchen. Those with dietary restrictions or allergies are encouraged to bring their own food to supplement the provided meals. The O’Keefe Lounge is centrally located on the grounds and offers a refrigerator and microwave for those who wish to bring personal food items.
Additional Info:
Banner image credit; https://www.pexels.com/@neosiam/