To attend this retreat you will need to have been regularly meditating for at least two years and regularly attend retreats, a centre or a group within the context of the Triratna Buddhist Community. You must also be comfortable with extended periods of sitting meditation, Buddhist devotional practice and spending most of the retreat in silence.
In many myth and fairy tales the appearance of a white animal leads the hero or heroine to leave home and begin their adventure. This is the ‘call’ to leave the narrow confines of the familiar and marks the beginning of a spiritual journey towards a deeper experience of ourselves and our relationship with the world. The White Deer can therefore symbolise the start of the individual’s movement from a naive egocentric position to one of more maturity and aware connection with others. On this retreat we will take this journey together through meditation and ritual and the conscious cultivation of a sense of community and mutual support.
“...your body might reveal its self to you, as a home for the world, a glimpse that you, are entirely beyond yourself, like the white deer at the beginning of a fable, and if without hesitation you follow, you will find yourself gloriously lost, in the rise and fall of your seasons”
– From the poem ‘If you are lucky in this life’ by Paramananda
Paramananda has been teaching meditation and leading retreats around the world for over 30 years and is also a poet and author of four books on meditation: Change Your Mind, A Deeper Beauty, The Body and The Myth of Meditation.
Nagasiddhi regularly leads and supports retreats and is also a hospice chaplain and artist. He is known for the sense of humour and creativity he brings to his Dharma teaching. In particular, he helps others make connections between the Dharma and their own lives by using stories and images from other traditions. His own artwork can be viewed at nagasiddhi.com.
Covid-secure requirements
We are no longer asking each retreatant to take a lateral flow test before travelling to Rivendell, but we are asking that they bring a test with them in case they fall ill whilst here.
We want those that come to Rivendell to be confident that we are making their stay here as safe as possible.
Concession information
Rivendell has a concessionary rate available for most of its retreats. If you are in need of further financial assistance to help enable you to come on retreat here, please do consider writing to our office team via bookings@rivendellretreatcentre.com explaining your circumstances.
Cancellation policy
All deposit amounts are non-refundable and non-transferable in all circumstances.
If you wish to cancel your place on a retreat, we require a minimum notice of 4 calendar weeks before a retreat is due to take place.
If you cancel more than 6 calendar weeks before a retreat is due to take place you will receive a refund of all but the deposit amount, if you have paid in full.
If you cancel between 6 and 4 calendar weeks before the retreat is due to take place and we can't replace you, you will be required to pay half the total cost of the retreat.
If you cancel less than 4 calendar weeks before the retreat is due to take place then any refund will be at Rivendell’s discretion, depending on the circumstances.
Please let us know as soon as possible if you need to cancel, as there may be other people waiting for a place on the retreat to become available. The refund amount will still depend on whether we can fill your space.
Prices for this event are: £399 - £379 (Conc)