Ongoing Classes

Brendan leads monthly classes as part of the hedge school he founded roughly seven years ago, which now lives under the Contemplative Therapeutics™ umbrella as one of its primary public offerings. Known as The Divine Wisdom Hedge School, the school provides an ongoing, hybrid (i.e., both online an in-person) context in which members of the Contemplative Therapeutics™ learning community can gather. In each gathering (Gaelic, Cnuasach) of the Hedge School, Brendan offers teachings and practices, and facilitates deep, formative spiritual conversation. The Hedge School gathers twice a month, and is open to all sincere seekers who have been invited to participate. For more information about The Divine Wisdom Hedge School, and to inquire about attending, please see the following page: Hedge School

Workshops & Retreats

Below you will find information about upcoming workshops and retreats being offered by Father Brendan, both in person and online.

The calendar for 2025 and 2026 is still being developed, so please check back for updates as we populate the event listings here. Some in-person retreats and workshops will require registration through the retreat centers where each event is being held; others can be registered for through CT directly. Please note this distinction when considering registering for an event.

The next standard, recurring course offerings for introductory training in the Contemplative Therapeutics™ system will begin in the summer of 2025. Please note that there are pre-requisite courses. The Kósmología retreat is the foundational introductory retreat that is requisite for all other programming in the core CT curriculum (though not necessarily for workshops or retreats outside that core curriculum, as noted on a case by case basis).

Blessings from the Living Earth

with The Rev. Brendan Ellis Williams, CMR (Ngakpa Pälden Dorje)

Saturday, May 31st, 2025

The Bishop's Ranch Retreat Center: Healdsburg, California

Learn the sacred ritual art of making tsa-tsas—molded clay icons of divine or enlightened beings—using traditional Tibetan tools and techniques, and offer your completed and consecrated tsa-tsas on the Land at The Bishop’s Ranch (and elsewhere if you wish) for the blessing of all sentient beings. Participants will be guided in making their own tsa-tsas from locally harvested clay, crafting traditional images of both Indo-Tibetan and Western origin, focused especially on the divine feminine. Father Brendan (Ngakpa-la) will then consecrate all the completed tsa-tsas using an ancient Tibetan ceremony. He will also give teachings throughout on Tārā and María as deified or enlightened beings and vessels of perfect compassion, offering some ancient prayers and rituals related to these important divine mother figures. In conclusion, participants will be led on a hike to distribute tsa-tsas as they wish at various spots on the Land. * Open to all.

Open and Spacious Like the Sky

A Practical Introduction to the Depths of Contemplation

with The Rev. Brendan Ellis Williams, CMR (Ngakpa Pälden Dorje)

SEPTEMBER 22-26, 2025

The Bishop's Ranch Retreat Center: Healdsburg, California

This retreat offers a deep but accessible introduction to the fundamentals of contemplative practice from an inter-spiritual perspective, bringing together both Eastern and Western approaches. Participants will learn ancient, time-tested skills in meditation, breathwork, somatics, and contemplation that can fundamentally transform their outlook and quality of life, and they will be guided in embodying and integrating those practices in a sustainable way. The sacred work presented in this four-night retreat speaks to the heart-essence of the perennial spiritual quest. Key elements of the true contemplative life offered in this experience will open a door to the discovery of greater freedom, joy, alignment, wholeness, beauty, and aliveness through a holistic transformation of body, mind, and spirit.