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.
Bookings on this page are for an online space only on this hybrid retreat.
The deposit amount is £99 to book, plus a suggested donation of £60-90 (this can be paid at the booking checkout).
Please note:
1. That the automated booking confirmation that you will receive will contain information that relates to a residential retreat, so please ignore that. It would cost money that we don't currently have to change our systems to reflect the circumstances of this hybrid event.
2. You will receive a joining email from us close to the start of the event, with a Zoom link that will work for the whole of that particular retreat online event.
3. Zoom is a simple online communications platform that is very easy to use. If you have not used it before, we suggest that you download this programme and install for free before your retreat is due to take place. You can find the programme at this link: https://zoom.us/download. If you have any questions about using Zoom, please contact us at bookings@rivendellretreatcentre.com
Retreat information
For experienced meditators
How do we keep ourselves motivated to practise the Dharma, day after day, year after year? How do we build momentum behind our practice, so that it grows deeper, richer and more fulfilling over time? On this retreat we shall look at a set of deep reflective meditations that empower us to practise effectively.
These reflections are all included in the Morning Verses that we recite at the beginning of the day on many retreats. Based on traditional reflections, the verses begin with the ‘four thoughts that turn the mind to the Dharma’ and end with the ‘four immeasurables’ – love, compassion, sympathetic joy and equanimity.
So, we’ll spend our time together focusing on what’s really important in our lives and what opens our hearts. We’ll practise setting up the conditions to pass the tipping point so that our mind turns towards freedom.
The retreat will be mostly in silence, and will include presentations, guided meditations, devotional practice, and (for residential retreatants) the opportunity for meditation reviews. As usual with Vessantara’s retreats, the aim will be twofold: to support you to get into your meditation, and also to equip you with new understandings and insights to take away and unpack over time.
In 2023 Vessantara will celebrate having been a Buddhist for fifty years. He and Ambaranta have often teamed up over the last decade to offer retreats for experienced meditators at Rivendell.
Concession information
Please do consider writing to our office team via bookings@rivendellretreatcentre.com if you really are in need of further financial assistance to help enable you to come on retreat here.
Cancellation policy
All deposits 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, in order that a refund (not deposit) will be possible. If you cancel and we can't replace you, you will be required to pay half the total cost of the retreat. 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. Any refund will still be on the basis that we can the fill your space.
Retreat Programme
Saturday (all sessions open 10 mins before)
*10:15 - 12:30 Teaching Session (*please note the slightly earlier start time and arrive promptly for some information from Vijayamala)
15:30 - 16:00 Optional tune in with others on the retreat
16:00 - 17:30 Teaching Session
20:00 - 21:00 Meditative and/or Devotional Session
Sunday-Thursday (all sessions open 10 mins before)
10:30 - 12:30 Teaching Session
16:00 - 17:30 Teaching Session
20:00 - 21:00 Meditative and/or Devotional Session
Prices for this event are: £99