20-Minute Retreats: Revive Your Spirit in Just Minutes a Day with Simple, Self-Led Practices

What can you accomplish in a few minutes? Eat a meal, fold laundry, talk on the phone--or refresh your spirit. Just 20 minutes a day is all it takes to retreat in tranquility and reconnect with your soul, according to Dr. Rachel Harris, a practicing psychotherapist and associate of Big Sur's (often celebrity-studded) Esalen Institute. "In our fast-paced lives, we desperately need retreats to regain our perspective, help us balance our inner and outer lives--a retreat gives us a chance to just say no to incessant stress and time pressure...." she writes.

Incorporating into her book the wisdom of multiple world religions and spiritual masters from Buddhism to Jung, Harris offers a variety of flexible approaches to finding that quiet place. She provides practical advice about finding the right retreat setting, as well as the appropriate tools to enhance the experience. Organized around 12 universal themes--faith, forgiveness, gratitude, healing, intuition, joy, love, patience, peace, relaxation, self-acceptance, and self-care--each chapter provides step-by-step instructions on structuring a self-led retreat to fit one's personal needs. Because "a retreat can be anything that allows us to intentionally enter another world," Harris advocates such varied practices as expressive drawing, journal writing, and dance as well as centered prayer, ritual magic, and music. Liberally scattered throughout the guide are personal observations and intriguing case histories drawn from Harris's 30 years as a practicing psychoanalyst.

Recognizing that setting aside even a small amount of time each day can be a challenge, Harris also includes suggestions on how to "retreat" for just one to five minutes at a time. What's a one-minute retreat like? Look at babies, she suggests--gazing into one's eyes will make you feel instantly joyful. -­Marianne Painter