Conditions

Ideally, coming to a dark retreat would appease your hedonistic luxury and comfort craving senses.

However, in today’s western cultural space, we are used to certain mundane standards. Therefore, Men Ling’s blind retreat house is significantly more comfortable, modern, warm, and functional than the damp and cold solitary primitive caves in the high mountains or forests used in the early days of this tradition.

It also serves our desire to respect the Eastern teachings about the middle way — not exhausting the body and mind excessively with extremes, with extreme asceticism.

The retreat house has a comfortable bed covered with sheets, a kitchenette with a sink and hot water from the tap, a refrigerator, and a kettle, dishes, and cutlery.

All household electronics are without indicator lamps and do not produce light. The room is heated with electric radiators during isolation.

Since the house is used for individual separations even in normal lighting conditions, with open shutters and lamplight, there is also a small wood-heated stove for this purpose.

In the case of a blind retreat, the latter is of course not used. However, electric heating ensures pleasant warmth in the room at any time of the year.

The house has also taken care of functioning ventilation.

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There is a shower and toilet in a separate room. The entrance to the room has a vestibule, which fulfills the function of a “gateway” for serving food, if necessary, in cases of isolation lasting more than a week.

As previously stated, before the beginning of the blind retreat or during the period of other spiritual practices, the house can be used without light-proof shutters. At that time, it is possible to use the ceramic electric stove to cook independently.

A ceramic electric stove and wood heating cannot be used when making darkretreat. Then you can eat food prepared from the dry ingredients you brought yourself, adding hot water made with a kettle if necessary (ecological packet soups, instant porridges, etc.), fruits, and other food that can be kept at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

Many recluses have also combined their spiritual practices with partial or total fasting.

For dark retreats lasting more than one week, hot food can be ordered once a day from Men Ling (served through the gate in front of the room).

The minimum stay in the hermitage is 3 nights

In the presence of chronic mental disorders, acute psychiatric treatment, or special physical needs, we recommend consulting your doctor before planning a retreat.

Men Ling must also be notified in advance of possible health problems, ongoing treatment, medications being consumed, and special needs.

Your hosts are Silva and Kaido Soobik with their family. We have been developing the Men Ling Tibetan Medicine Center as a clinic working both in the countryside and in Pärnu for almost twenty years, and in the form of our retreat house, we would like to offer you great rest and relaxation, restful sleep, and bright insights in the background of taking time out.