Visiting Guidelines

Food is not eaten after 12 noon each day. Only tea, juice or soft drinks are consumed after noon. (An evening meal for medical reasons must be approved at the time of registration.) The meals prepared here are vegetarian; please note, dairy and egg products may be used.

All overnight guests/retreatants/residents must be 18 or older or accompanied by their parent or guardian. (except for the Youth Retreat)
Abstain from killing, stealing, committing any sexual activity, lying, gossiping, slandering, and using harsh language.
Please let us know your estimated arrival time to as close as you can. Please consider arriving between 2-4 pm since you will need to meet with the Guest Master upon your arrival.
Completing your retreat registration here begins at 3:00 pm in the dining hall the first day of the retreat. Each retreat end after lunch on the last day.
All retreatants will be asked to do a daily chore while in retreat. This work, which is required during retreats, is to help us maintain our center while large groups are in residence. Chores like washing dishes, maintaining the tea area, vacuuming floors, etc.; there will be a sign-up sheet available when you complete your registration here. Please ask our Retreat Coordinator for details.
If you have medical needs relating to your sleeping accommodations, such as indoor plumbing or electricity, please let us know.
You may not use a telephone during retreats. When not in retreat, you may use the telephone for a short message using your credit card or by calling collect. Limit your calls to no more than five minutes.
E-mail and internet access is not available at any time.
The Jetvan Monastery is not to be taken as a hotel or recreation center. It is purely a place for serious meditation and Dhamma study.
Avoid all physical contact except in emergencies.
Jetvan Monastery accepts visitors to stay up to seven days. If you would like to stay at our center before a retreat begins or stay after it ends, we request that you follow our guideline of seven days total with the exception of retreats that last longer than seven days. When requesting to arrive before a retreat begins or stay after it ends, if your stay is longer than seven days (including retreat days), you are requested to apply for residency. Please note, applying for residency may take up to three to six weeks before we will let you know if your request is accepted or not so please plan according. Please also note, we are limited to how many visitors we can accept at one time so accepting your request will depend on how many are already scheduled to visit.

If you cannot fully participate in the entire retreat, you will need permission from the leader of the retreat before you can reserve a space to participate. The guideline to request permission to leave a retreat early or arrive late: You will need to contact the Jetvan Monastery and ask permission to arrive late or leave early before registering (contact our office for details). If you receive permission to register from the monastic leading the retreat, your name would be put on a wait list. If a space is available the week before the retreat starts, our office will contact you.
Laundry facilities are only available for those who stay at our center ten days or longer.
Men should not enter women’s dwellings and women should not enter men’s dwellings, even for loading and unloading vehicles.
As a matter of respect and etiquette, it is considered inappropriate to point the soles of one’s feet toward a monk, nun or Buddha image. Accordingly, please be aware of your posture in the meditation hall: do not stretch legs out toward the altar and do not lounge or sprawl on the floor.
For those requesting to visit when we are not in retreat, at this time, the Jetvan Monastery only offers what we term a casual personal retreat. A casual personal retreat means you are asked to follow our daily schedule (sample can be found on our website) which includes no eating after noon, fully participating in all scheduled daily activities, working 2-4 hours each day (or longer if the work load is especially in need during your visit) though most work is completed in the morning but on occasion, it can continue in to the mid-afternoon hours.

For an Intensive Personal Retreat, you must have completed at least one ten-day retreat at the Jetvan Monastery.
Retreatants are expected to observe strict silence except in an emergency, in case of sickness, or in order to talk with a teacher.
Retreatants will be given 2-4 hours of work each day. Instructions for the work will be given before your retreat period begins.
In addition to your own meditation, you are required to attend two hours of group meditation a day (in morning and evening).

Interviews with a teacher must be requested and scheduled prior to the beginning of the retreat period.
Because you will likely be the only one here on silent retreat, be aware that others will be talking. If you want to avoid hearing people speak, we recommend that you stay away from the main building.
Do not leave the center until your retreat period ends. Once you leave the Jetvan Monastery premises, we will consider your intensive practice terminated.

All guests are expected to fully participate in the daily meditation schedule as well as the devotional service and any other activities while here at our center. During Vassa (July through October) and the winter months (November and December), daily meditation schedule may be different. Please check our Daily Schedule for details.
We do not accept guest when we are in a retreat; please make sure you check our Retreat Schedule prior to registering for a visit.
All guests will be expected to participate in up to two to four hours of work each day.
If you would like to come just for a day visit, we would still ask that you register so that we are aware of your intention to visit along with your arrival and departure time.
Non-retreat visits are limited up to a seven day visit. To stay longer, please submit a residency application.
We encourage visitors to post their visiting dates on our Ride Share Listing so that others who would like to visit our center can share the cost of transportation with them. Please consider offering a ride to others who may live in your area or an area you may be passing through on your way to our center.
You may make arrangements to come early or stay after a formal retreat if there is space available. Please note, Jetvan Monastery closes at noon on January 1st so that all residents can begin their private two month retreat, please do not register to visit during the months of January and February, thank you.