Updated BRC Newsflash - December 2020

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The Buddhist Retreat Centre
Ixopo, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa		For people of all religions
Dear Retreatant BRC Newsflash: December 2020

Louis leading the meditation		Image: Lien Duvenage
Recently, Shanil Haricharan offered his marvellous retreat “Deepening and gaining insight into your emotional intelligence through Mindfulness”. I was asked to lead the meditation. Upon returning to Ixopo after being in lockdown in Durban for almost 8 months, it felt like coming out of a long intensive meditation retreat such as you have in the East where you are completely divorced from your daily crutches and routine....and suddenly there you are again in the world, picking up where you left off. It felt like I seeing Ixopo with new eyes....but at the same time it felt like a homecoming after a long absence. It was invigorating to see those green hills again and feel the vibrant and reassuring energy of the place and - most importantly - to sit in meditation with a Sangha once again. Although one can practise meditation virtually anywhere at any time, there is a special power and exquisite connectedness when one is doing a collective meditation with fellow meditators in a space that is tailored to the practice. Shanil gave a series of inspiring and thought-provoking talks on how we can infuse more intelligence into the way our emotions operate in our daily lives. Usually, we tend to think of our emotions and our intelligence as being mutually exclusive. This retreat was about blending and harmonizing both using Mindfulness meditation as the principle tool to bring this fusion about.

Ixopo green		Image: Chantelle Flores
Our mid-week Sangha continues to grow with many retreatants finding solace and refuge in personal, silent retreating in Ixopo. The new BRC programme from January to August 2021 has been published on our website. It is an interesting range of retreats with something for everyone, from bird-watching and creative writing to yoga, qigong and tai chi and introspective meditation retreats. Ian Weinberg will be offering his stimulating retreat “Psychoneuroimmunology” in Ixopo from 11-13 December in which he will explore how positive mind states can promote optimal wellness on a physical, emotional and psychological level. In these uncomfortable times in which we are challenged at every level of our being, Ian’s expertise and insights will provide one with practical tools to explore integrated wellness, and to understand how our thoughts inform our immune system - and how by reframing the way we react to the world around us, we can completely alter our health and quality of life. The Christmas and New year retreats will be a chance to reflect back on the past and project forward into the new year with hope and optimism. The tranquil Ixopo environment is a nurturing space for you to just be - reflective and introspective. The retreats will be loosely structured with meditation, qigong and walks, and a lantern-lit circumambulation around the Buddha Rupa. Once a year in December we offer Raku - a feast of earth, fire, air and water - and Sumie - “when the brush dances and the inks sings.” Nina Calder will lead the Raku. The word means ‘elation’ and this is indeed the palpable mood that usually prevails as people gather round to see the unpredictable and beautiful effects of violent heat, sawdust and cold water on the pots they have painted on. The result is Shibuie - accidental beauty. Ingrid Adams will guide us through the fundamental brushstrokes of Sumie which magically bring alive the character and charm of the chrysanthemum, bamboo and plum blossom. We all need a bit of “Shibuie” in our lives at the moment. Try it! I enclose Graham Williams’ thoughtful piece on “Re-Imagining The Future”. Wishing you well, Louis

Sugarbird songs		Image: Al Nicol
Re-Imagining The Future Re-imagining the future can take many forms. Ask someone and you’ll get a list of what’s wrong with the current world (economy, society, environment, politics) or their life, a prediction, scenario, solution, vision, forecast, wish, some science fiction … It’s quite a challenging exercise because: We don’t know a lot more than we do know (or think we know). The amount of data we can access is growing, as is information albeit to a lesser extent. Even less available is practical knowledge. And wisdom is in short supply. We certainly don’t know the unknown, the future In difficult times such as a protracted pandemic it is hard to break out of a present that is characterised by suffering, overwhelm and being in survival mode. We may be swamped and hindered by anger, fear, powerlessness, sadness We find it hard to make the small shift from perceived reality to imagined reality. The heroine of Henning Mankell’s The Man from Beijing, when experiencing high blood pressure problems, is advised “Look after your roses and come back when you are healthy again”. She replies: “I don’t grow roses”. Her adviser continues: “That’s what my grandmother used to say. She thought you should concentrate on growing your imaginary roses”. Jumping from past to present to future is fraught with “noise”. Reflection on the past may awaken regret, resentment, what we have been unable to let go. And anticipating the future can induce anxiety, uncertainty. A Buddhist story: A man was running for his life to escape a hungry tiger. He came to the edge of a cliff, stepped over and held onto a vine. The tiger couldn’t reach him, but there was no way up again. Looking down he saw another tiger at the bottom waiting for him to let go and fall. A rat appeared and began gnawing at the vine. The man noticed a strawberry growing on the face of the cliff. He held the vine with one hand and with the other grabbed the strawberry and ate it. How sweet it tasted! (The first tiger may represent the past, and the second the future) We are inhibited by our worldviews, limiting beliefs and unconscious biases. Here is my condensed personal response, knowing that everything above applies to it: Humankind is still on its long journey from being generally ‘combative’ to ‘competitive’, and still has quite a way to go to reach ‘collaboration’. In today's World of separation politics and the continual reinvention task that will be demanded of each of us by an accelerating 4th Industrial (Technological) Revolution, high value DOING activities I’d love to see in the future will be: reclaiming sound ethics and loving-kindness as high values by the collective learning to learn better, faster and differently collaboration that results from a breaking from diversity differences to shared belonging and the consequent opening up of broader horizons sharing stories that don’t build walls but bridges - and allow for Armenian mystic G. I. Gurdjieff’s ‘law of three’ outcome, where two opposing stories may result in a new, unforeseen third story. (A wise teaching from Jesus is that if a seed (‘for’) falls to the ground (‘against’), then only with water and sunlight (a reconciling force) will there be a sprout (birth of the new) And a BEING activity I’d love to see and experience often is being able to be silent, content and together with another or others while in close physical proximity - with no need to speak, discuss, explain Hopefully this will go some way towards heeding Will Keepin’s call as the World shifts and the future opens up: “We are urgently called to action in two distinct capacities; to serve as hospice workers to a dying culture, and to serve as midwives to an emerging culture”. Graham Williams

When light shines through		Image: Andrew Brown
Yes, we are open in Ixopo and it is time to put that spring back into your step There is no better place to reboot and rejuvenate and to get in touch with nature than in the beautiful, tranquil surroundings and open spaces of the BRC. All health protocols and Covid-19 regulations are in place - with social distancing, sanitizing and masks - for your safety and well-being.

In the pink		Image: Angela Shaw
Forthcoming Retreats: December 2020 People often yearn for an opportunity to recalibrate their lives and to spend some time in quiet reflection among like-minded people. The BRC provides such a refuge - where silence is a precious commodity. Choose practices such as yoga, qigong and meditation to live with more meaning, purpose and joy. Treat yourself to a personal retreat where you can wake up to bird song, walk in the morning mist, rake the sand garden, listen to the wind chimes and meditate in the company of the mossy Buddha.

Louis sounding the gong		Image: Angela Shaw
Conducted Retreats Grounded In Space: A Weekend Of Tai Chi And Qigong Alex Lister-James and Jeremy Lister-James \| Weekend \| 4-6 December Based on the Chinese philosophy of Taoism, tai chi is rooted in balance and flow, stillness within movement, and reflection during action. Just like the shape of the Taijitu - the symbol of yin and yang - every movement is based on circles. Al Huang, in Embrace Tiger, Return to Mountain, suggests: “Stop the words and start the doing.” With gentle movements and focused mind, we will teach a short sequence of yang-style tai chi, complemented with simple qigong (chi kung) exercises and movement-within-stillness meditation. Tai chi has been described as “learning to move with the wind and water in the course of everyday life”. Read more… A Neurosurgeon Probes Wellness And Performance: Psychoneuroimmunology Ian Weinberg \| Weekend \| 11-13 December In a series of talks and Mindfulness meditation sessions, we will explore the chemistry which mediates the effects of mind states on the body: psychoneuroimmunology or PNI. The talks and demonstrations will show that we can attain optimal wellness and performance by getting to know our temperament and personality traits; by being more present-minded; and through sensible, informed ways of living and behaving. Read more… Do You Suffer From Back Pain? Ari Michaeli \| 1 day \|15 December \| 10:30 - 12:30 Join an informative session with Ari Michaeli, a clinical physiotherapist, on how to treat back pain. Ari Michaeli, MSc PT, MCMT, a clinical physiotherapist and lecturer will conduct a demonstration on treating spine pain based on the latest evidence and his 30 years of clinical experience treating back problems. Although the workshop is designed for the public, professionals like physiotherapists and massage therapists can enrol. Read more... Shibuie: When Beauty Happens Accidentally: Seeing With Deep-Seeing Eyes - Sumie and Raku: Japanese Brush Painting And Pottery Ingrid Adams and Georgina Calder \| 4 days \| 17-21 December Shibuie is the ancient Japanese concept of Accidental Beauty in which the artist is just one ingredient in a number of dynamic interacting natural processes, the outcome of which is delightfully unpredictable, but strangely beautiful - not ego-driven or deliberate. Louis will teach the classical Japanese brush painting techniques (Sumie) as these are applied to traditional subjects, such as landscape, bamboo and flower studies, while Ingrid will introduce contemporary subjects. We will use the genuine, traditional materials: solid pine-soot ink, a hollowed-out slate to liquefy it, a deer-hair bamboo-stemmed brush and absorbent mulberry paper. Tools will be provided, but sets can be purchased (R850) from the BRC. Each retreatant will receive a bisque-fired tea bowl to sumie-decorate and glaze. Georgina will then fire up the kiln after which we will watch the magic as the pots emerge triumphantly from their ordeal of having been subjected to 1000ºC heat, smothered in sawdust and immersed in cold water. Read more… Christmas At The BRC Self Retreat \| 3 days \| 23-26 December Be here now. How do we do that when life keeps tumbling us along like a sand grain in a river? Take time out at the BRC over Christmas to slow down into the moment. This will be a loosely structured retreat with sitting and walking meditation, qigong, walks and quiet time where you will experience Christmas with a difference - in silence. Read more... New Year At The BRC Self Retreat \| 4 days \| 30 December-3 January 2021 The spiritual life is first of all a life. It is not merely something to be known and studied, it is to be lived - Thomas Merton New Year is a good time of the year to take stock and contemplate our moment-to-moment, here-and-now reality in all its fullness. It’s a traditional time for clarifying our motivations, and for starting afresh with new intentions. A time, in other words, to reboot the system. Give yourself the gift of time over this New Year period to focus on gratitude and contentment, to reflect on the past year, and resolve how you can best live your life in the coming year. This will be a loosely structured personal retreat with qigong, daily meditation practice, walks, rest and stillness, culminating with a New Year lantern-lit perambulation around the Buddha to ring out the old year with an ancient Chinese temple gong and welcome the New Year with a Tibetan bell. Read more...

Stupa spire		Image: Chantelle Flores
Online Programme: November/December 2020 Transition Online For Women: Would you like to transition beyond current challenges into a better place than you were before? (maximum 10 participants) Monique Beekman \| Donation directly to Monique Part 1: 28 November Part 2 and 3: 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20 December 2 hours \| 7:00-8.30/9:00am OR 10:00-11.30am/12:00pm “ If you bring forth that which is within you, what you bring forth, will save you...." If you do not bring forth that which is within you....What you do not bring forth, will destroy you”.... Have you been feeling lost, blocked or stuck? Transition online is designed to support you through the effects of the emotional and mental challenges you have experienced during 2020 in a way that resolves even age old trauma and transforms not only your present, but also your future. 'To have what you do not yet have, you have to go where you have not been. There is no other way.’ With this in mind, we are thrilled to bring you TRANSITION ONLINE to deeply and profoundly resolve relevant and related issues. Read more and register

Hydrangea highway		Image: Angela Buckland
Up To The Elbows Dudu Mamela has been part of the BRC family for 26 years, and always transforms the buffets into colourful feasts for the eye and the taste buds. She loves to take classic dishes and add a little sparkle, and has transformed our macaroni cheese into a distinctive and luxurious dish:Mac Is Back. If you would like to buy our recipe books: The Cake The Buddha Ate, Plentiful and Quiet Food we are able to courier the books to your door. Please email: .

Dudu Mamela		Image: Angela Shaw
About the BRC Perched on a ridge at the head of a valley in the Umkomaas river system in KwaZulu-Natal, the Buddhist Retreat Centre looks out on a vista of indigenous valleys, forests and rolling hills receding like waves in the blue distance. Here, for thirty-nine years, people of all religions and none have come to experience peace and tranquility. It is a gentle, sympathetic space where one can be still and get in touch with oneself and reflect on the things that crowd one's life. The BRC was voted by CNN as one of the ten best meditation centres in the world. CNN Travel awarded another feather in the BRC’s cap by voting it as one of the ten best spiritual centres in South Africa, recently. The BRC was awarded Natural Heritage status in 1995 under the auspices of the Department of Environmental affairs and received a certificate to that effect signed by President Nelson Mandela for turning an eroded farm into the natural paradise it has become - thousands of indigenous trees were planted by retreatants under the supervision of Mervyn Croft - with 160 species of birds, including the Blue Swallow, otter, deer, antbear and indigenous forests. The Centre was also given the special status of “Custodian of the Blue Swallow” for its work in preserving the breeding areas of this endangered bird. The BRC facilitated the founding of Woza Moya, the community-based NGO, located in Ufafa Valley, twenty years ago, on the estate. Their vision is for all people in the community to be healthy and productive, to live in a safe and clean environment, with good access to services and social justice. The Centre continues to support the organisation in a variety of ways by contributing Dana, sponsoring their Directors, trainers and visitors' accommodation, and showcasing and promoting their wonderful crafts in the shop such as the sock monkeys, cushions, bags, scarves, beanies and stationery. The Woza Moya Crafters are local women who receive ongoing training and support to enable them to create these unique and charming best sellers. As a result of retreatants' Dana (Generosity) in 2019/20, the BRC was able to donate R 24,000 to Woza Moya to further enable their good work among the community and to help support the 50 children who attend the Woza Moya play school. Please continue to support the BRC to get back on its Dharma feet by becoming a friend of the Buddhist Retreat Centre (a non-profit organisation) and find out more about the BRC's Paid-Up-Yogi and Sangha Friends’ projects. We have been very touched by your appreciative letters, emails, support and friendship towards the BRC - your spiritual home from home. Chrisi Visit our website for further information, directions, image gallery etc.
www.brcixopo.co.za \| 087 809 1687 \| 082 579 3037 \| 031 2095995 Share: \| Follow us:
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