Potent connections, mystery-work and the relational nature of retreat-going

Abstract

Retreat-going has mostly been understood through the lens of the self. Retreat-goers abscond from their obligations and relationships, their jobs and family duties, in order to spend time working on themselves, steeped in discourses and practices which prioritize self-discovery and self-mastery. But accounts given by retreat-goers often also emphasize the relationships and connections with others. Recent theoretical developments in the sociology of personal life provide useful tools to describe these relationships. Drawing data from interviews ( N = 27) with people who went on retreat, in this article I explore retreat-goers’ relationships via Jennifer Mason’s concept of ‘potent connection’. Specifically, I outline the ways in which uncertainty, surprise and mysteriousness characterize the relationships people made on retreat. Then, noting the importance of coordinated action in retreat-goers’ accounts, I describe how potent connections appear to be collectively produced, rather than just encountered – what I call ‘mystery-work’. This article extends the existing literature on retreats by adding further detail to the relational picture. Additionally, it suggests the generation of intense or ineffable relationships via mystery-work is a dimension of personal life that may be encountered in other contexts and that this is worth further study.