How the Heart Leans: A Half-Day Retreat on Right Intention
with nico hase
Saturday, February 13, 2027 · 10 am to 1 pm Pacific time
Before you act, something in you has already leaned.
Toward getting. Toward defending. Toward the small self that needs to come out of this okay. Mostly we never catch it: the lean fires, the action follows, and we call the whole thing “me.”
Right Intention is where the heart learns to lean somewhere truer. The tradition names three directions: away from grasping, toward goodwill in place of ill will, toward harmlessness in place of cruelty. These are the natural pull of a mind that has started to see clearly.
What We’ll Explore Together
In this half-day online retreat, nico explores Right Intention: the quiet pointing of the heart that shapes everything that follows. We’ll watch where our intentions actually tip, and practice the three classical leanings — toward letting go, kindness, and doing no harm — until they start to feel less like effort and more like home.
The morning begins with an opening conversation around the theme, followed by lightly guided sitting and walking practice, and closes with a dharma talk and time for questions.
A Full Path of Practice—Rooted in Community
🪴 Monthly Half-Day Retreats – This is the second in an annual series of eight online half-days offered by Refuge of Belonging, a dharma community rooted in presence and open to all.
🪴 The Eightfold Path – The Buddha’s eightfold path is the heart of the practice: eight interwoven factors, from view and intention to mindfulness and concentration, that together form a complete way of living and waking up.
🪴 devon + nico – Refuge of Belonging’s guiding teachers lead the series together, trading off and teaching in pairs across the year, bringing both monastic depth and a grounded, contemporary voice to the path.
What People Are Saying
“Working with nico radically changed my perspective on myself, my life, and what well-being really means. His clear and kind-hearted support shaped not only my personal world, but also my career. I am forever grateful for nico’s wisdom and engaged presence and continue to look to him for inspiration and guidance along the way.”
— Gabrielle Farquhar, MPH, Mindfulness Program Coordinator, Boston Medical Center
Registration & Payment
Date: February 13, 2027 · Time: 10 am to 1 pm Pacific time · Format: Online via Zoom
We offer these half-day retreats on a dana model. The suggested donation is $40 to $120 per session. We gratefully accept contributions of greater or lesser amounts, based on your resources.