 The Radiance of Being
A 4-Day In-Person New Year's Retreat
with Darananda and Sami Badawy
December 30th, 2026 - January 2nd, 2027
 About the Retreat
Spend the turning of the year with of like-minded practitioners in a deep encounter with the radiance of Being.Â
Darananda and Sami Badawy will lead four days of intimate transmission, meditation, and conversation in a peaceful, private rural setting. Rituals, land honoring, and shared meals will complete the encounter. Each day a quiet celebration.
You're invited to join us each day at the venue for an on-time start and to stay for the duration of the scheduled programming. Lodging is arranged by participants.
"Quote about awakening"
The Details
A Group Space for Individual Deepening
*sample itinerary, subject to shift
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Wednesday December 30th:
- Arrival: 1:00pm
- Opening session: 2:00pm
- Dinner: 5:30pm
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Thursday December 31st & Friday January 1st
- Arrival & tea service: 8:00am
- Morning session: 9:00am
- Lunch: 12:00pm
- Afternoon session: 1:45pm
- Dinner: 5:30pm
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Saturday January 2nd
- Arrival & tea service: 8:00am
- Closing session: 9:00am
- Lunch: 12:00pm
Healthy lunches and dinners made with local and organic ingredients, will be prepared and served on-site and are included in your registration fee. Upon registration and before the retreat, we will contact you about dietary restrictions.Â
This is a non-residential gathering. Please arrange your own lodging and travel arrangements.Â
Reflections From Previous Participants:
“I looked forward to each session because I knew I would walk away feeling rested and aware of my own boundaries and groundedness. It was supportive because I got to practice the balance of having a firm sense of my own boundaries while also staying open and receptive to the influence and experience of others.”
“It has deepened my practice significantly to have a space to meet weekly where I am held and have the opportunity to hold others.”
“One concrete takeaway I can give at this moment is more awareness and datapoints that I’m able to go deeper into bodily presence in group spaces than when I meditate alone (alone my meditations tend to be far more heady)”
“I absolutely loved the group experience. Even though the time spent with each person was short, I felt like the benefits were amplified by the relational space. It really helped me have a more concrete grasp of the idea that what is beneficial for one is beneficial for all.”
“I believe that practicing the group format accelerated shifts for me, not all of which I could articulate. There's now more light, more familiarity with subtle structures - but always still helpful when they're verbally pointed out, so I could follow with my imagination - and more access to stillness and presence."
"There's something about being in the same space, with the same people, and all with a strong intention to be there that makes the field really robust.”Â
“There was one moment when Dara was saying there is no inside and no outside and I felt suddenly that all of what I was experiencing inside myself was not self and it had buddha nature to it. That was pretty cool.”
 “I have more awareness of the sedimented habits I carry (eg weak boundaries) in my field and more experience tapping into wholeness that exists in me and all around me.”
“I also really like the group sessions format. I like the agency/participation aspect of it, the sense of democratization of the spiritual process, and the softening of the teacher/guru-student dynamic in a real way. It also upends any sense of being a passive recipient (and, if I understand how transmission really is, one is never just a passive recipient anyway).”