Program 2027
Bookings will be possible, through our website www.piandeiciliegi.it, starting from Sunday January 17th 2027 at 8.00 a.m.
As per tradition, Dhamma teachings are offered free of charge, but we invite participants to show their appreciation with a generous donation for the teacher and, if applicable, the translator (practice of Dana ). Donations are accepted in cash only.
Download HERE the PDF with 2027 schedule
March 26th – April 4th
Hannes Huber
Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
The retreat is open to all, in English with Italian translation, and includes alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, regular individual interviews and Dhamma talks every evening. All participants will be asked to respect the Noble Silence and to take the eight or five precepts (see explanations on our website).
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day; departure is after lunch on the last day.
Hannes Huber is an experienced Austrian Dhamma teacher. He began meditating in 1985 with Godwin Samararatne of Sri Lanka and has long experience of retreats in the Mahāsi tradition with Ven. U Pandita and Ven. U Vivekananda, by whom he was authorized to teach. He reports the teachings of this tradition very faithfully while offering an accessible approach to the Western mentality, thanks also to his training in psychosynthesis with the teacher Sascha Dönges. He teaches Vipassanā meditation in Austria and other European countries and is an MBSR trainer.
He is the spiritual guide of the Pian dei Ciliegi Meditation Centre.
Retreat fee: 315 €
April 4th –12th
Gautam Verma
Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
The retreat is open to all and is in English with Italian translation. It includes alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, regular interviews with the teacher and Dhamma talks every evening. All participants will be asked to respect the Noble Silence and take the eight or five precepts (see explanations on our website).
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day, departure is after lunch on the last day.
Gautam Verma is a Vipassanā meditator of Indian origins and has been practicing for many years under the guidance of distinguished Dhamma teachers, besides doing long periods of solitary retreat. He’s been collaborating with Pian dei Ciliegi as a translator during interviews with English speaking Dhamma teachers. He’s been an assistant of Bhante Bodhidhamma since 2017, from whom he’s been authorized to offer Dhamma teachings. He has also been authorized to teach by Ven. Vivekananda, Hannes Huber and Beate Gloeckner
Retreat fee: 280 €
April 12th – 19th
Andrea Huber
Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
The retreat is open to all, is in English with Italian translation, and includes alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, regular individual interviews and Dhamma talks every evening. All participants will be asked to respect the Noble Silence and to take the eight or five precepts (see explanations on the website). Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day, and departure is after lunch on the last day.
Andrea Huber is an MBSR trainer who lives and works in Austria. She has trained at the Institut of Mindfulness and Stress Reduction of Dr. Linda Lehrhaupt, in Bedburg, Germany. She is an experienced Vipassana meditator in the Mahāsi tradition, having trained for long periods under the guidance of Sayadaw U Pandita e Sayadaw U Vivekananda.
Retreat fee: 245€
April 19th – 29th
Sayadaw U Vivekananda
Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
The retreat is open to all and is in English with Italian translation. It includes alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, regular interviews with the teacher and Dhamma talks every evening. All participants will be asked to respect the Noble Silence and take the eight or five precepts (see explanations on our website).
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day, departure is after lunch on the last day.
Sayadaw U Vivekananda began his training under Ven. Sayadaw U Panditabhivamsa in 1988. He is a German teacher resident at the Panditarama Lumbini International Vipassanā Meditation Center in Nepal, where he has taught insight meditation and Brahmavihāra meditation since 1998. He also leads retreats in other countries around the world, guiding meditators in English, German, French, and Burmese. He has translated Ven. Sayadaw U Panditabhivamsa’s Dhamma talks at Panditarama Lumbini and at the Forrest Refuge, which were collected and published under the titles “Beautifying the Mind” by Inward Path in 2007, and “The State of Mind Called Beautiful” by Wisdom Publications in 2006. Sayadaw U Vivekananda has also written several articles on Buddhism and the environment.
Retreat fee: 350 €
May 5th – 15th and May 15th -25th
Ayya Virañani
Loving Kindness (Mettā) retreat and Satipatthana Vipassana retreat
The retreat is open to all. You can register for each individual period, although participation in both is recommended, as Loving Kindness and Insight Meditation support each other. The welcoming and gentle attitude cultivated with Mettā allows one, in mindfulness meditation, to penetrate the deepest truths of phenomena as they are. Together, they help free the heart from attachment and pain. In this retreat, Ven. Virañani will share with participants the traditional Burmese teachings of Mettā as a foundation for building the practice of Vipassanā in an accessible and immediately applicable way in everyday life.
Ten places will be reserved for those who register for both periods, from May 5th to 25th.
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day, and departure is after lunch on the last day.
Ven. Virañani began to practice meditation in 1979. In 2003, after several years spent working at the Insight Meditation Society in Massachusetts, USA, and training in the Thai Forest tradition, she began a four-year period devoted to intensive practice in the Burmese lineage of Mahāsi Sayadaw. She took permanent ordination in Burma with Sayadaw U Pandita on New Year 2006, and now resides at the Chanmyay Myaing Meditation Centre North of Yangon. She teaches loving kindness and Vipassanā meditation retreats in Burma, Europe, and Australia. In 2008 she co-founded Mettā In Action, a charity devoted to offering Burmese people in need the means and skills to help themselves. She is passionate about the Dhamma, about nature, and about using both to help others rediscover the intrinsic goodness in all beings.
Retreat fee: 350€ (first period), 350€ (second period), 700€ (whole retreat),
July 31st -August 10th
Hannes Huber
Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
The retreat is open to all, in English with Italian translation, and includes alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, regular individual interviews and Dhamma talks every evening. All participants will be asked to respect the Noble Silence and to take the eight or five precepts (see explanations on our website).
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day; departure is after lunch on the last day.
Hannes Huber is an experienced Austrian Dhamma teacher. He began meditating in 1985 with Godwin Samararatne of Sri Lanka and has long experience of retreats in the Mahāsi tradition with Ven. U Pandita and Ven. U Vivekananda, by whom he was authorized to teach. He reports the teachings of this tradition very faithfully while offering an accessible approach to the Western mentality, thanks also to his training in psychosynthesis with the teacher Sascha Dönges. He teaches Vipassanā meditation in Austria and other European countries and is an MBSR trainer.
He is the spiritual guide of the Pian dei Ciliegi Meditation Centre.
Retreat fee: 315€
August 10th –20th
Jan de Wurstemberger & Henrich Dahm
Assistant: Marcella Bagnoni
Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
The retreat is open to all and includes alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, regular interviews with the teacher and evening Dhamma talks. During the retreat the Noble Silence will be respected, and participants will be asked to take the five or eight precepts (for more information see the website). The retreat will be in English, with Italian translation.
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day, departure is after lunch on the last day.
Jean-Marie (“Jan”) de Wurstemberger began studying Buddhism in the Tibetan tradition in the mid-1990s. His principal teacher at the time advised him, above all, to “just sit” – guidance that seemed rather unusual in the Tibetan context and that reminded more of a Zen master’s instruction. Soon afterwards, an unexpected encounter with the Theravada monk and experienced meditation teacher Bhante Sujiva gave this advice a clear and incisive form: Vipassana. Jan has now practised insight meditation under Bhante Sujiva’s guidance for more than 25 years. In German-speaking countries, he also serves as Bhante Sujiva’s interpreter during retreats and co-translated his standard work on insight meditation, Tree of Wisdom, River of No Return, into German. In his professional life, Jan works in Switzerland as a teacher, counsellor, and systemic coach, supporting teenagers, their families, and young adults living independently.
Henrich Dahm’s Dhamma journey began in 1989 in Nepal, where he was introduced to Vipassana meditation by Sayadaw Jhanapurnika, a senior disciple of Mahāsi Sayadaw. Since then, he has practiced and explored various meditation techniques under the guidance of distinguished teachers such as Sayadaw U Pandita, Sayadaw U Janaka, Ajahn Buddhadasa, and Thích Nhất Hạnh. His practice took a new turn when he began practicing full-time under the guidance of Bhante Sujīva. Today, he spends most of his time in Asia, dedicating himself to deepening his practical and theoretical understanding of Vipassana.
Marcella Bagnoni has been practicing Vipassanā and Mettā meditation since 2016, following the tradition of Mahāsi Sayadaw, under the guidance of several experienced Dhamma teachers. She continues to study and practice under the guidance of Bhante Sujiva, her principal teacher, who in 2022 authorized her to begin training as a meditation teacher. She collaborates with Pian dei Ciliegi as a translator and assistant of several teachers during retreats. She also leads meditation sessions and short retreats, sometimes together with other teachers, in Emilia-Romagna, Marche and Piemonte. She continues to deepen her study and practice of Yoga and Qigong, which she has pursued for many years under the guidance of Indian, Chinese, and Italian teachers.
Retreat fee: 350€
August 20th – 30th
Piero Urban
Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
The retreat is open to all and includes alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, regular interviews with the teacher and evening Dhamma talks. During the retreat the Noble Silence will be respected and participants will be asked to take the five or eight precepts (for more information see the website). The retreat will be both in Italian and in English.
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day, departure is after lunch on the last day.
Piero Urban graduated from the Faculty of Literature and Philosophy of the University of Bologna with a thesis on “Yoga and sound: observations on states of consciousness“. He has been active as a Yoga teacher for 25 years and has been a consultant for the Municipality of Turin, in the context of social and health assistance activities for the disabled over 14 years of age. He has been practicing Vipassanā meditation since 1993 and trained under the guidance of teachers from Eastern and Western backgrounds, monks and lay people. For over 20 years Ven. Bhante Sujiva has been his reference teacher, deepening the practice with him during long intensive retreats of Vipassanā and Mettā. He is his translator in retreats and has received authorization from him to teach. He was also a teacher in ethical-professional training courses and at the F.A.R.O. Hospice of Turin.
Retreat fee: 350€
September 18th – 26th
Gautam Verma
Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
The retreat is open to all and is in English with Italian translation. It includes alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, regular interviews with the teacher and Dhamma talks every evening. All participants will be asked to respect the Noble Silence and take the eight or five precepts (see explanations on our website).
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day, departure is after lunch on the last day.
Gautam Verma is a Vipassanā meditator of Indian origins and has been practicing for many years under the guidance of distinguished Dhamma teachers, besides doing long periods of solitary retreat. He’s been collaborating with Pian dei Ciliegi as a translator during interviews with English speaking Dhamma teachers. He’s been an assistant of Bhante Bodhidhamma since 2017, from whom he’s been authorized to offer Dhamma teachings. He has also been authorized to teach by Ven. Vivekananda, Hannes Huber and Beate Gloeckner.
Retreat fee: 280€
October15th – 24th
Ariya Baumann
Loving-Kindness (Mettā) and Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat
The practices of mettā and vipassanā meditation are like two good friends, supporting and complementing each other. Mettā meditation strengthens and deepens the heart quality of kindness, friendliness, and benevolence towards all beings and oneself. Vipassanā meditation aims at seeing clearly the true nature of things, paving the way to liberating insight and inner freedom. The kind and benevolent attitude of mettā is a great support, especially when facing difficult experiences, during vipassanā meditation; while the presence of mindfulness supports the deepening of mettā.
The retreat will start with three days of mettā meditation. During the following seven days of vipassanā meditation, there will be a daily session of mettā meditation. Mettā chants will be used throughout the retreat to keep the heart open and receptive. The teachings are in English with Italian translation. Meditators keep Noble Silence and observe the five or eight precepts. Suitable for both beginners and experienced meditators.
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day, departure is after lunch on the last day.
Ariya B. Baumann left her career as a music and dance teacher in favour of her deep yearning to understand herself and the world. Based on her many years of practice, twenty-one of them as a nun in the Burmese tradition, she now lays a strong emphasis on the practice of loving-kindness (including mettā chants) as a basis for the vipassanā meditation practice. She has translated a number of Dhamma books from Burmese to English and German, among these are Mahāsi Sayadaw’s ‘Manual of Insight’. She is a co-founder and president of ‘Mettā In Action’ which supports a variety of social projects throughout Burma, especially nunneries and monastic schools. Her website is: www.vipassana-metta.com
Retreat fee: 315€
October 29th – November 28th
Ayya Virañani
Intensive Satipaṭṭhāna Vipassanā meditation retreat in the Mahāsi tradition
This retreat is reserved for experienced meditators who have completed at least two retreats under the guidance of either Ven. Ayya Virañani, or teachers from Pian dei Ciliegi or other teachers in the Mahāsi tradition. It is in English with Italian translation. There is a daily program, with alternating sessions of sitting and walking meditation, but meditators are free to modulate their practice individually. There will be two scheduled weekly interviews with the teacher, with the option to request additional ones by signing up, and Dhamma talks will be offered two evenings a week.
Arrival is between 2pm and 5pm on the first day; departure is after lunch on the last day.
Ven. Vīrañāni began to practice meditation in 1979. In 2003, after several years spent working at the Insight Meditation Society in Massachusetts, USA, and training in the Thai Forest tradition, she began a four-year period devoted to intensive practice in the Burmese lineage of Mahāsi Sayadaw. She took permanent ordination in Burma with Sayadaw U Pandita on New Year 2006, and now resides at the Chanmyay Myaing Meditation Centre north of Yangon. She teaches loving kindness and Vipassanā meditation retreats in Burma, Europe, and Australia. In 2008 she co-founded Mettā In Action, a charity devoted to offering Burmese people in need the means and skills to help themselves. She is passionate about the Dhamma, about nature, and about using both to help others rediscover the intrinsic goodness in all beings.
Retreat fee: 1050 €