Dragons, Faeries, and Conscious Trees: Bringing Animism Back Into the Dharma (SF2G26)

Registration closes at 9:00am (Pacific Time) on August 29, 2026. A waiting list will be created if the program fills early. A recording* will be available following the program.

Description:
The Buddha’s teachings are populated with subtle non-humans: nāgas who guard sacred waters, devas inhabiting ancient trees, and spirit beings of many forms dwelling throughout the human and animal worlds and beyond. These were not metaphors to the early Buddhists. They were neighbors.

With deep listening and “don’t know mind,” we can recover this animist worldview that suffuses our tradition. Offering respect to subtle beings cultivates relational intelligence, humility, and the wisdom of interbeing. Drawing directly from sutta sources, we explore how the Buddha engaged a living, responsive cosmos, and what it means to meet that cosmos again in our own practice. Through meditation and teachings on nature practice, we’ll develop a felt sense of the ecosystem as a web of conscious presences that interpenetrate our lives in ways both subtle and significant.

The forest is still listening, and speaking for those who can hear.

Online Only: We are offering this program online via Zoom.

Sliding Scale: Our sliding scale options for this program include financial support for our teachers. Please consider paying at the highest rate that you can afford: your generosity supports the teachers as well as Spirit Rock and your fellow practitioners who need to pay less.

Benefactor – $108
Sustainer – $50
Basic – $30
Scholarship Rate (BIPOC, Mudita/Karuna) – $15
No Fees – $0

*Recording Note: Registration includes unlimited access to this program’s recording. You must register by the deadline above. The recording will be available in ~10 days after the program.

Cancellation Policy – Online: Drop-ins, Daylongs, Multiday Programs (1-3 days), Family Programs/Series, CEC fees:

• NO REFUNDS
• Open Credit, or Donation to Spirit Rock = if cancel by midnight, the day prior to program start (Pacific Time)
• No Open Credit = if cancel day of the program, or beyond