Dhamma Dena Meditation Center

We are a Vipassana Buddhist Center situated in the Mojave Desert of California, near Palm Springs and Joshua Tree National Park. It was founded almost forty years ago by pioneer Buddhist teacher Ruth Denison, one of only four westerners initiated as a teacher by the eminent Burmese meditation master Sayagyi U Ba Khin. The center is named for Dhammadinna, a female disciple of the Buddha renowned for her wisdom.

Mission & Values

Dhamma Dena Meditation Center is dedicated to supporting and awakening our capacity to love unconditionally and wisely. Through silent retreats, work retreats, self-retreats or as staff we orient towards building the strength to live our lives free of the clouds of anxiety, fear, obsessions, depression and confusion. We understand that the practice of transforming these energies benefits ourselves, our loved ones and our immediate communities, and ripples outward to the world. We care about ending ignorance and injustice in societal institutions and policies that sustains inequity, disenfranchisement, and the destruction of the earth. 

Dhamma Dena is committed to building accessibility by supporting all those who want to come to the center, those who are people of color, transgender, gay, lesbian, queer, gender non-conforming, those who have immigrated, those who live with physical disability, those with chemical sensitivity, and those without financial resources. We are dedicated to building beloved community where all parts of ourselves feel welcome and honored.