Morning Sun Mindfulness Center

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Alstead, NH
Morning Sun Mindfulness Center

Plum Village mindfulness retreat center and intentional community MorningSun is a Plum Village meditation retreat center and intentional residential community.

We focus on ecological, spiritual, and community care, applying the teachings and practices of Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh. We have Sunday Days of Mindfulness throughout most of the year, as well as overnight mindfulness retreats that span two to five days long. MorningSun is nestled in the woods and hills of southwestern New Hampshire on unceded Abenaki land. Please email us at [email protected] with any questions!

09/03/2026

Rest in the woods, come back to yourself, and dwell simply in your gentle steps during a Day of Mindfulness here. Til the new year, we have these Sundays. All are welcome, no experience meditating needed. Just bring yourself, warm layers, a water bottle or thermos, and some outdoorsy shoes for guided walking meditation. We kindly invite you to arrive around 9:15 am so you can go slowly, use the restroom, and settle into your seat before we begin. We hope you don't have to hurry. We have plenty of mats, cushions, chairs, and a warm wood stove. Our Sundays are by donation. Please find registration on our website 🌕

08/25/2026

Sacred Darkness - Illuminating Brightness. (two images from sitting at the pond: One with moon and stars at night and one on a sunny day)

08/13/2026

Wed. Aug 19th at 7:00 pm eastern time, we will gather online for the one-year memorial of Reverend Dr. Larry Ward. The gathering will be held by The Lotus Institute. Dr. Larry was a precious Dharma Teacher in our tradition, wrote incredible poetry, and shared his practice in real, clear, and inspiring ways. He gave guidance, respite, and support to so many people over the many decades of his life. He was such an important being in the world. Now we come together to water our seeds of being continuations of Dr. Larry. We look towards offering spiritual and physical support to his life partner and co-teacher, Peggy Rowe Ward. Our beautiful mother earth manifested a teacher like Dr. Larry and we are aware of all the conditions that had to be possible for him to exist in our world. May we walk mindfully with liberation and peace for all beings past, present, and future. We hope to see you at the gathering for Reverend Dr. Larry Ward on Aug 19th.

https://www.thelotusinstitute.org

08/10/2026

Upcoming MorningSun Schedule

• Sun Sept 6: Day of Mindfulness (DoM)
•• Sun Sept 13: DoM
••• Fri-Sun Sept 18-20: Mindful Living Weekend Retreat & DoM
•••• Sun Sept 27: DoM

• Thurs-Sun Oct 1-4: OI Retreat (email us directly for the link. Space is filling up!)
•• Sun Oct 11: DoM (Thay's continuation day)
••• Thurs-Sun Oct 15-18: Men's Retreat (registration already open, fifteen spaces left)
•••• Sun Oct 25: DoM

• Sun Nov 1: DoM
•• Sun Nov 8: DoM
••• Sun Nov 15: DoM
•••• Fri-Sun Nov 20-22: Mindful Living Weekend Retreat & DoM
••••• Sun Nov 29: DoM

• Sun Dec 6: DoM
•• Sat-Sun Dec 12-13: Winter Solstice Retreat and Ceremony (all-ages)
••• Sun Dec 20: DoM

We just concluded our summer retreat season and are closed for August's remainder to rest

We'll open up registration for Sept-Dec on our website soon

Men's Retreat Oct 15-18 is already open: Fifteen spaces left

Thank you everybody. We look forward to seeing you!

(Photo of the Forest Meditation Hall here in MorningSun, ready for Dharma Sharing)

06/28/2026

We feel so grateful to have had the chance to visit Plum Village in France for the June retreat. 900 people from 45 countries coming together to practice, learn, and connect our hearts in looking towards building a beautiful community in ourselves and across the world. Snacking on fresh mulberries with oolong tea with old friends. Listening to BIPOC&LGBTQIA+ panels, intergenerational community panels, Dharma talks, circles sharing about their lives, and chanting while following our breathing together. Waking up to the reality of what we have inherited and what we can transform.

Eating packed lunches on bell steps while the sun passed overhead. A truly intense heatwave slowing everything and everyone down all at once. Taking time to look back and into now. Thank you very much to the monastics of Plum Village, the many many people who came from all over the world who brought radiant, wise, and passionate energy to the retreat, and to the MSun residents who also stayed at home to take good care of themselves and the land. This will stay with us for a very, very long time. We can't wait to share with those coming to MorningSun soon.

05/31/2026

Upcoming Days of Mindfulness here in MSun
-Sunday July 5
-Sunday July 12
-9:30 am-1:00 pm
-We conclude before lunch

Upcoming community working meditation day
-Saturday July 11
-10 am-4 pm
-We'll offer community lunch around 1 pm

Then, three five-day retreats will begin. We still have space in our Educators Retreat and BIPOC All-Ages Retreats

Our next Day of Mindfulness will be Sunday, September 6, and more after that.

In the late summer and early fall we'll hold a few special retreats: namely a special weekend retreat (TBA), Order of Interbeing Members & Aspirants Retreat, and Men's Retreat.

Please head to the link in our bio to read more about our upcoming mindfulness programs here in MorningSun. We're in the beautiful woods of rural NH and we'd love for you to swing by for respite and practice support.

And please reach out anytime !

Photo: Retreat staff member dear Idris at the pond last summer

05/28/2026

All working in any education system are invited to our Educators Summer Retreat, July 15-19.

Spaces: We have six open beds in El Cielo ranging from the dorm, double, or single occupancy. We have about six open sandy campsites. We have two beds available in the Harmony yurt for women or NB folks. We have more housing available nearby to MorningSun as well, and commuting is always an option for our retreats.

If you work any position in a daycare, school, higher ed, administration, special needs learning, and so on, our Educators Retreat is a really special time focused on giving you care, compassion, rest, and nourishment through simple meditations, home cooked meals for mindful eating, Dharma talks, and ample time in serene nature. Our schedule flows in a way to help slowing down and releasing the past year.

All three of our retreat teachers have an incredible amount of experience in education, practicing with school employees and administrations, applying practices to transform classrooms and offices into healthier and more compassionate places. Our intention is to manifest a society where people working in educational systems feel more understood and supported in their professional and personal lives.

Happy teachers will change the world.

You're invited to find more details and registration about our Educators Retreat on the link in our bio.

Also, people not working in the education world are welcome to this retreat. We will practice core elements from the Plum Village tradition throughout the five days, so anyone is welcome.

(photos from 2025's educators retreat)

05/19/2026

Little sweet glimpses into our mindfulness retreat for Black, Indigenous, and POC folks in MorningSun.

This was our second year holding this five day long Plum Village practice gathering. This time we welcomed children and teens to join their families for the retreat, some folks came without kids, and together we manifested the energy of spiritual family while we were here.

It's a beautiful time of experienced and new mindfulness practitioners coming together, precious time with both elders and children, learning from the land, the teachers, each other, and ourselves. Being together with likeminded folks from the global majority diaspora was a gift of an experience that we continue to feel in the land and in our hearts.

MorningSun offers home cooked meals during our retreats, indoor sleeping, and sweet sandy campsites nestled in the woods. There's a beautiful pond nestled in the retreat campus so we always feel held by the energy of water.

The next BIPOC All-Ages Retreat in MorningSun is August 5th-9th. The teachers for this retreat come with many years of Plum Village practice, guiding, and community organizing on numerous levels. We are fortunate to welcome back diane little eagle, Marisela Gomez, and Kenyatta as our three teachers.

We offer spiritual refuge scholarships for this retreat.

Please see our website for details & registration

(photos from the most recent global majority BIPOC retreat in MorningSun)

05/14/2026

"My actions are my only true belongings."

-Thich Nhat Hanh

Practicing with the Dharma door that is impermanence

(photo of an old silo that was left by the mining company that operated here on this land many years ago)

05/12/2026

Impermanence, a Plum Village gatha to meditate upon for a few cycles of breath: "The day is ending and our life is one day shorter. Let us look carefully at what we have done. Let us practice diligently, putting our whole heart into the path of meditation. Let us live deeply each moment and in freedom, so the time doesn’t slip away meaninglessly."

(photo of a beaver's work on a tree in MorningSun)

Address

81 Rose Apple Lane
Alstead, NH
03602

Opening Hours

9am - 1pm

Website

http://www.MorningSunCommunity.org/

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