When any of the hindrances arise, there might be this inclination to slam on the brakes and say “No, I don’t like this. This doesn’t belong in my practice.” As we slam on the brakes we spin out and lose control. We lose the plot in our practice. The invitation is to bring a sense of tenderness—some nourishment, some kindness when we see these arise in our experience. To begin to bring some gentleness, some compassion. We’re falling into the flow to see how we can move with this, how we can allow it to be a portal of wisdom.
Leslie Booker
Residential Retreat Teacher, Movement Teacher
Booker is a heart - centered, spirit - driven lover of liberation and meditation teacher committed to creating a culture of belonging through her teaching and writing. She trained at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in their Mindful Yoga and Meditation (2012), Community Dharma Leaders (2017) and Retreat Teacher training programs (2020). Outside of her formal training, she shared the practices of yoga and mindfulness with New York City’s most vulnerable populations for over a decade, and served as the Director of Trainings for Lineage Project for 10 years.
She spent many years sharing her expertise nationally as a guest lecturer at conferences such as Mind & Life Institute’s International Symposium, Wisdom 2.0, and Mindfulness in Education - expanding our vision around culturally responsive teaching, and changing the paradigm of self and community care. Booker has been a featured speaker and facilitator at the Fetzer Institute, Vassar and Pitzer Colleges, and the Contemplative Sciences Center at the University of Virginia. She’s especially passionate about supporting the sustainability of folks on the front lines including activists, organizers, educators and young adults; training future teachers through the Peace Corps’ Jaffe Fellows and Teaching Residents at Teacher’s College at Columbia University.
Booker collaborated with long time friends and co - conspirators to create the trauma - informed anthology Practicing Liberation - Transformative Strategies for Collective Healing & Systems Change, and its accompanying workbook for folks working towards social justice. Booker has also co - authored and contributed to several publications including Best Practices for Yoga in a Criminal Justice Setting, Georgetown Law's Center on Poverty and Inequality's report on Gender & Trauma: Somatic Interventions for Girls in Juvenile Justice, and Dr. Rima Vesely - Flad’s book ‘Black Buddhist and the Black Radical Tradition’. She is a co-founder of the Yoga Service Council at Omega Institute and the Meditation Working Group of Occupy Wall Street. In 2020 she was invited to be a Sojourner Truth Leadership Fellow through Auburn Seminary and was voted by her peers as one of the 12 Powerful Women in the Mindfulness Movement.
Booker moved to Philadelphia in August of 2020 to vote in a swing state, and currently serves as the Guiding Teacher of New York Insight.
Leslie Booker's Upcoming Programs
Class Series | Online | Dharma Institute
September 18 - October 9, 2026 | 4 Fridays | 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Mindful Yoga and Embodied Dharma: Living at the Pace of Presence
Amidst busy lives, slowing down to the rhythm of the body offers a profound refuge. This four-week online series illuminates the Dharma as a fully embodied experience, weaving together Buddhist teachings, meditation, yoga, pranayama, and somatic movement as one integrated path to awakening. Led by Spirit Rock's Dharma, Yoga, and Mindfulness Training teachers, sessions are accessible and trauma-informed. You'll gain practical tools for nervous system regulation and grounded presence — whether you're new to these teachings or deepening existing practice.
Retreat | On-Land
January 5 - January 11, 2027 | Tuesday - Monday | 6 nights
Winter Insight Meditation Retreat
Registration Open.The Buddha’s teachings and meditation practices remind us of the ever-present possibility of waking up to a sense of well-being, presence, and true nature that does not depend on circumstances. This silent Insight Meditation (vipassanā) retreat is designed for both new and experienced meditators, and will include systematic instructions in vipassanā meditation following the Four Foundations of Mindfulness. The retreat will also include lovingkindness meditation, meetings with teachers, and evening talks highlighting the central teachings of the Buddha and their practical application to our lives.
Howard Cohn
Erin Treat
Leslie Booker
Teresa Todoroff (Movement Teacher)
Ramona Lisa Ortiz-Smith (Teacher in Training)
Retreat | On-Land
June 23 - June 29, 2027 | Wednesday - Tuesday | 6 nights
Moving Into Meditation: Mindful Yoga and Embodied Dharma
Registration Open. We’ll offer teachings and practices from the Dharma and Yoga traditions for settling your nervous system, grounding your energy, and cultivating a felt sense of both stability and fluidity. Meditation in movement and stillness unfolds with ample time to rest, be in nature, and honor the rhythms of your own practice. A full week of retreat offers time and space for gripping and bracing to release at their own pace, while nourishing the capacity to meet personal and collective challenges with wisdom and compassion.
Upcoming Drop-Ins
Drop-in | Online
Monday, September 28 | 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Monday Night Meditation & Talk
For over 35 years, the Monday Night sitting group at Spirit Rock has been a welcoming refuge to gather, hear the teachings of the Buddha, and practice Insight Meditation together as a community. The program includes a 30-40 min guided meditation, a short break, and a Dharma talk.
Leslie Booker
Dharma Library
Can't join us live online or on the land? Study and practice at your convenience with Leslie Booker through our new library of recordings, articles, and self-paced online courses.