The Buddhist Retreat Centre |
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Ixopo, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa |
For people of all religions |
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BRC Newsflash: March 2024 Dear Retreatants, |
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Ajahn Sucitto walking like a Buddha | Image: Nick Halliday | |
A Tribute to Ajahn SucittoAjahn, thank you for bringing a presence of grace and friendship to Ixopo over the past 6 weeks. It has been an honour to host you and Nick. Your retreat has been profound and inspiring in bringing us closer to the heart energy - to what is good, true and beautiful. Thank you for embodying those qualities so superbly and for bringing great gladness to all our hearts. Over the last 39 years during which you have led retreats, your presence in Ixopo has always been a reminder of how the Dharma can settle and flourish in our lives and then radiate out to others who come to listen and practise. As one of the Elders of the BRC, your return anchors me back in those early unpredictable times in a country that was so unprepared for Buddhism - but we all jumped in feet first. Your support and inspiration enveloped us and urged us on. Your energetic engagement and application of the Dhamma, then and now - are truly inspirational. You have played such a prominent role in the history of the BRC - first visiting us off-the-beaten track in 1985 when you came to install relics and consecrate the Buddha Rupa. Your Dharma work in South Africa has been unwavering and has grown to incorporate other centres like Dharmagiri and Emoyeni. You have always made Buddhism so accessible - being the brilliant scholar and teacher you are – so authentic, so human – and so approachable. Please come back for an even longer sabbatical next time. You would be so welcome! With a deep bow of gratitude, And Metta, Louis |
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A step at a time |
Image: Nick Halliday | |
Sit Down. Breathe
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Cloud counterpane over the valley | Image: Nick Halliday | |
The present moment frees you from those aspects. Your attention is focussed on exactly what is here and now. Within that you can bring a sense of discernment. My work is also linking it to compassion. So if the present moment is uncomfortable – experiencing a friend suffering or our own suffering – you bring compassion to that. Mindfulness and compassion go together. How do we include meditation on our daily lives? Mindfulness is often achieved through meditation, a practice of sitting still and focussing on the breath, but we can also remain mindful throughout the day. The word “habit” is a really good one. To make your meditation as familiar a practice as brushing your teeth or having a shower. It is mental hygiene. Making it a daily practice, at a particular time of day helps people: it is less negotiable. As soon as we start negotiating with ourselves – should I practise, shouldn’t I practise – we often default to less healthy habits like scrolling the internet. In “The Compassionate Activist” I distinguish between five categories of contemplative practices: calming, insight, positive qualities, engagement and shadow integration. The soothing practices are the ones that calm us down. For most people a deep abdominal breath can be like a switch that shifts them from chaos to calm. Moving practices also help activate and then quieten the body. When expressive movement or yoga are carried out with a real conscious awareness of the body, they can be very useful to prepare the mind for meditation. Insight practices help us gain an understanding of our own habits. If you tend to find yourself in a state of depression or anxiety, just bringing your mind back to the present again and again can shift you out of these tendencies. We often don’t believe it is as simple as that, but it is amazing how much support we can give ourselves by just coming back to the present moment. There are also practices for cultivating positive, pro-social qualities such as curiosity, wonder, compassion, joy and gratitude which are innate aspects of being human. Training the mind to focus on gestures of care that people show us every day, even if it is being let into traffic, or someone making you a cup of tea, opens the mind to gratitude, appreciation, and wonder. Anger is often a result of fear. We go into fight or flight mode. Hurt is the result of sadness. So we don’t need to demonise any of our difficult emotions. We use them to gather information. What am I feeling in this moment? What do I need? We learn to look at our experience rather than being swamped by it.” |
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Aloe shadows on the stupa | Image: Reuben Heydenrych | |
Conducted Retreats March 2024☸ indicates retreats held in noble silence Speak Your Truth, Listen DeeplyFelicity Joan Hart and Lucy Draper-Clarke | Weekend | 1-3 March This retreat explores the principles and practices of mindfulness and non-violent communication (NVC), to foster connection and minimize the suffering of outmoded ways of engaging. The Union Of Calm Abiding And Insight MeditationChamtrul Rinpoche | Weekend | 8-10 March Traditional Hatha And Raja YogaDuncan Rice | 5 days | 10-15 March Yin And Restorative YogaPhumla Shongwe | Weekend | 15-17 March |
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Sit down, breathe | Image:Reuben Heydenrych | |
From Fear To Fundamental Well-Being: Healing Relaxation, Yoga And MeditationAlbert Osel (Buhr) and Lulu Erasmus | 3 days | 21-24 March Open the Heart And Still the Mind: The Joy Of Heartfelt PresenceSue Cooper | 4 or 7 days | 28 March - 1 April or 28 March - 04 April This Easter long-weekend Open the Heart and Still the Mind Compassion Retreat with clinical psychologist Sue Cooper, is held in Noble Silence and is offered either as a 4 night Easter Weekend retreat or as an extended 7 night retreat. Inspired by the wisdom teachings of the Dharma and of Buddhist and western psychology, we will cultivate mindfulness and compassion practices which calm the nervous system and help integrate body, heart and mind. As we learn to listen and connect more compassionately with ourselves, drawing silent support from the sangha (like-minded practitioners finding solace in the shared silence), we will discover that the containment of ennobling silence allows us to find the courage to honour and embody our authentic, heartfelt presence with greater confidence, clarity and joy. As we embrace the joys and the sorrows of life with a greater understanding of impermanence, we move beyond fear, shame and crippling self-doubt. This frees us from our habitual reactivity and from the curse of perfectionism. After establishing some stillness and calm in the mind and the heart, we will explore the Brahma viharas (the four divine abodes/ immeasurables) to cultivate greater kindness and compassion for ourselves and others. These compassion practices bring more appreciative joy, equanimity and wisdom into our lives, strengthening our capacity for more open-heartedness and healthier boundaries in our relationships. This silent retreat includes teachings, guided meditations, daily qigong, time to walk, rest and replenish, as well as short, individual sessions with Sue to deepen our insight and sense of well-being. There will be relaxing massages and mindful movement offered as optional extras (the cost of which to be confirmed), to support our embodied experience. Please note: There is a teacher's fee for this retreat, which is offered on a sliding scale, with reductions and payment plans on request. A pre-retreat individual session via Zoom/Whatsapp is required for newcomers or if you have not attended one of Sue’s residential retreats before. The fee for this will be the 50-55 minute medical aid rate and will be reduced if necessary. Please contact Sue on to arrange a time and for the course fee. CPD accreditation for health and mental-health professionals will be confirmed, at an additional admin fee of R375. A Self RetreatThink peace over pressure and serenity over stress. Enjoy some time at the BRC mid-week, with nourishing vegetarian meals, sunrise meditation and nature's healing embrace to colour the mood of your day. There is no better place than the BRC to rejuvenate the body and mind to guide you into presence and stillness. |
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Contemplative cat |
Image: Nick Halliday | |
About the BRCPerched 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 forty-four years, people of all religions and none have come to experience peace and tranquillity. 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. 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. Recently, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife granted the BRC “Private Nature Reserve” for the conservation of the rare Blue Swallow and Mistbelt Grassland. The BRC facilitated the founding of Woza Moya, the community-based NGO, located in Ufafa Valley, twenty-two 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 by showcasing their crafts in the shop and sponsoring their trainers and consultants. We have been very touched by your appreciative letters, emails and friendship towards the BRC - your spiritual home from home. We are deeply grateful for your generous gifts to the Centre in the form of PUY and Monthly contributions, new beds and bases, office chairs and a desk, a new refrigerator, microwave oven, bathroom towels, indigenous trees and seedlings, books for our library, a generator, garden benches, pillows, towels and linen, geyser insulation blankets, clothing and Dana for our staff, an inverter and beautiful antique scrolls and Imari platters and ceramics, framed prints and Thankas, new tablecloths and serviettes, a brand new Magimix, signage for our forest paths - and so much more. Thank you to all of you who continue to support our work in Ixopo with monthly and Paid Up Yogi contributions and donations, with gifts, or with skills and time. And, of course, to everyone who comes to the Centre - you keep us open and viable - and to our teachers who keep the Dharma wheels turning. We are deeply grateful for your generosity towards us; it encourages us to continue Louis’ beautiful vision and legacy for the future. Please continue to support the BRC by becoming a friend of the Buddhist Retreat Centre (a registered non-profit organisation) and find out more about the BRC's Paid-Up-Yogi and Sangha Friends’ projects. Chrisi Visit our website for further information, directions, image gallery etc. |
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