A place to learn and practise Mahasi Vipassana Insight Meditation

Buddhist Retreat

Registered in England and Wales - Charity No. 1116668


Teachings

(Please see the Schedule also.)

Mahasi Vipassana Insight Meditation:

I teach insight meditation (vipassana) in the tradition of the Burmese meditation teacher Mahasi Sayadaw. The Mahasi Sayadaw was a renowned teacher who began teaching vipassana insight meditation after the war near Yangon in Myanmar (Burma). He developed a series of techniques which were designed to help the meditator maintain a moment to moment awareness from the instant they awoke to the instant they fell asleep. For every activity, whether it be the sitting posture itself or eating or walking or brushing one's teeth, directions were given so that the meditator over a short period of time, could build up a one-pointed concentration needed to make spiritual insights.

The techniques included using a simple word to note, to acknowledge what is happening, noting the various stages of the step in walking meditation, doing everything very slowly and having regular interviews with the teacher. Silence is to be maintained the whole while. Although the course is challenging, there is room for meditators to modulate their practice so that each starting from their own level can slowly advance in the spiritual faculties, especially effort, concentration and mindfulness.

Note, Experience is not necessary and remember you can often stay for one, two or more weeks.

Contemplative Living:

I run Contemplative Living courses over the Xmas and New Year period. These courses will be regular and more frequent additions to the programme at our new Centre.

These are times of personal, more individualised retreats where you can develop a fuller spiritual life. There is a basic communal meditation rota of 3/4 hours a day and communal chores, including cooking.

The schedule remains the same as a Mahasi Course. However, only four periods a day - before breakfast, after work period, after lunch and in the evening - will form a basic communal schedule of meditation. You will, I think, be relieved to know that you don't have to get up at 3.30 am (a sacred hour), but can delay your re-entry into sentient life until 5.30 am.

Sundays, and occasionally Wednesdays, will be meditation only days and they will be open to meditators living locally.

Personal Retreats can range from a meditation only course to one that includes quiet study and contemplation. There are also other spiritual exercises, such as developing the Four Illimitables (love, compassion, joy and equanimity).

Metta Goodwill Contemplation:

Metta means love, but it stands for all the Illimitables. These are the states of love, compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity that can be developed indefinitely. This is a contemplative practice widely used throughout the Buddhist world and there are various techniques to help the meditator develop these qualities.

The method used is to offer love to oneself and then to those close to us, then to friends and so on to all people and eventually all sentient beings. We bring to mind all these various categories and offer them blessings and good wishes. It is a means of transforming hatred into love, cruelty into compassion, miserliness into generosity and so on. In other words, it's a skilful way to change our attitudes and so live in a more wholesome way.

Metta or loving kindness meditation is a practice that helps us to open our heart and mind, reconnecting us with our innate capacity for compassion and kindness. We develop unconditional love, and radiate this out to all living beings. Metta can be practised as a meditation practice in its own right or as a support for the vipassana practice. In this silent weekend we practise loving kindness in walking and sitting meditation, as well as in all daily activities.

Healing Contemplation:

The exercise begins with reflecting on unskilful ways we are attached to the body and our relationship to sickness, aging and death.

Then we turn the very same metta energy towards the body itself and it then acts as a fortifying or if necessary healing energy. This is done by visualising the various parts of the body and, as it were, pouring our love into those areas.

We then open up to 'other energy' with an exercise taken from the Tibetan Tradition and finally we share it with others in the group and onto all sentient beings.

These exercises of metta and healing are seen as highly complementary to the main practice in Buddhism of investigating ourselves through the practice of vipassana, insight meditation.

Mindfulness Course for Stress Reduction:

The practise of Vipassanna forms the basis for 'Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction' (MBSR) which has been shown to have a beneficial effect on health, and to reduce the anxiety and depression associated with physical illness and other life challenges.

This weekend course will introduce the full range of practices involved in MBSR, combining these with the Mahasi noting technique. The latter helps sharpen our awareness facilitating deeper insight - participants can deepen their mindfulness practice by attending Mahasi meditation retreats at Satipanya or elsewhere. Thus, the weekend helps people to take care of their physical and emotional health more wisely, as well as providing an introduction to Buddhist spiritual practice.

Other Courses:

Occasionally I teach short courses on Forgiveness and Metta. I hope develop other such courses in the future and to offer courses to contemplate the teachings and the scriptures themselves.
Site Map © 2008 Satipanya Buddhist Trust Top