Tag: chairs' letter

Chair's Letter – September 2023

By ratnadharini on Sun, 1 Oct, 2023 - 00:00

Chair's Letter – September 2023

By ratnadharini on Sun, 1 Oct, 2023 - 00:00

Dear Order Members and friends,

As I write, the public ordinations of five women – two from Venezuela and three from Mexico – are taking place at Adhisthana in context of pilgrimage retreat for Spanish speakers; welcome to Varamaitri, Akasadhi, Silabhadri, Parashanti and Chandrakanti. The theme of pilgrimage has been growing, as Adhisthana celebrates its tenth anniversary. Parami invited me to join the retreat one evening for an informal conversation about the search for, and early days at, Adhisthana, and...

College of Public Preceptors

Letter from the College – June

By ratnadharini on Fri, 30 Jun, 2023 - 15:42

Letter from the College – June

By ratnadharini on Fri, 30 Jun, 2023 - 15:42

Dear Order members and friends,

My experience this month has been dominated by preparing for, and enacting, a 150 mile pilgrimage from where Sangharakshita was born in Tooting, London, on 26th August 1925, to Adhisthana, Herefordshire, where he lived the last – and some of the happiest – years of his life, dying on 30th October 2018. Having had the inspiration for the pilgrimage, I realised I could share the experience with others and open it up as a fundraising initiative...

College of Public Preceptors

Chair's Letter – April 2023

By ratnavyuha on Tue, 2 May, 2023 - 10:57

Chair's Letter – April 2023

By ratnavyuha on Tue, 2 May, 2023 - 10:57

This month’s update from the College comes from Ratnavyuha – a Public Preceptor living in Auckland, who is not long back from leading an ordination course at Sudarshanaloka. He is one of the Deputy Chairs of the College. Ratnavyuha met Triratna at Aryaloka in North America, and a few years later moved to train for ordination in the UK, working at Windhorse Trading, and being ordained at Guhyaloka in 1999. In 2004 he moved to Oceania where he has been based ever...

College of Public Preceptors

Chair's Letter – March 2023

By ratnadharini on Fri, 31 Mar, 2023 - 12:02

Chair's Letter – March 2023

By ratnadharini on Fri, 31 Mar, 2023 - 12:02

Dear Order members and friends,

Thanks to Maitreyabandhu for the evocative account of our network of friendships last month.

First I’ll write with an update from the March College meeting – and end with a personal request.

At that point last month, I was involved in our annual Women Preceptors’ retreat at Adhisthana, which gets better each year as the body of experience grows and the connections between us become stronger. We’d decided to make it an ‘in person’ event, while making the study...

College of Public Preceptors

Chairs' Letter – January 2023

By ratnadharini on Tue, 31 Jan, 2023 - 22:56

Chairs' Letter – January 2023

By ratnadharini on Tue, 31 Jan, 2023 - 22:56

These letters are published here each month, as well as on preceptorscollege.online, and in Shabda, the Order newsletter, as a means to communicate the ongoing work of the College Chair and updates on current discussions and decisions. Responses are welcomed. You can comment below or write directly to preceptorscollege [at] adhisthana.org.

Dear Order members and friends,

I made the most of the lull in emails over the festive season, and spent a quiet couple of weeks...

College of Public Preceptors

Chairs' Letter – November 2022

By ratnadharini on Thu, 1 Dec, 2022 - 12:28

Chairs' Letter – November 2022

By ratnadharini on Thu, 1 Dec, 2022 - 12:28

Dear Order members and friends,

When I last wrote, a month ago, we had just marked the fourth anniversary of Bhante Sangharakshita’s death at Adhisthana. A meeting of the International Council was underway, and by the end of a very harmonious and enjoyable meeting we had clarified the purpose of the IC and agreed on strategic priorities.

A couple of days later, the annual international ‘in person’ gathering of the College of Public Preceptors began....

College of Public Preceptors

Chairs' Letter – October 2022

By ratnadharini on Wed, 2 Nov, 2022 - 12:41

Chairs' Letter – October 2022

By ratnadharini on Wed, 2 Nov, 2022 - 12:41

Dear Order members and friends,

Yesterday at Adhisthana we marked the fourth anniversary of Bhante Sangharakshita’s death; with several events taking place it was a full shrineroom, and many more joined us online. Ratnavyuha gave a delightful talk, sharing the history of his personal experience of Bhante and the development of their connection from when they first met at Aryaloka retreat centre in the US, through further encounters in the UK and Spain. I imagine we...

College of Public Preceptors

Chairs' Letter – September 2022

By ratnadharini on Fri, 30 Sep, 2022 - 22:03

Chairs' Letter – September 2022

By ratnadharini on Fri, 30 Sep, 2022 - 22:03

Dear Order Members and Friends,

I’m writing this month’s update from Aryaloka retreat centre, in the US. When I first became College Chair I planned to connect up with Order members outside the UK, but Covid restrictions put international travel on hold for a couple of years. Three weeks ago I set off on a road trip with Aryadrishti, one of the American Order Convenors, taking in some of the places I’ve not been to before: Seattle, Portland (Oregon), Missoula,...

College of Public Preceptors

Chairs' Letter – July 2022

By ratnadharini on Sun, 31 Jul, 2022 - 23:49

Chairs' Letter – July 2022

By ratnadharini on Sun, 31 Jul, 2022 - 23:49

Dear Order Members and Friends,

This month we hear from two of my deputy-chairs, Punyamala and Jnanavaca, who have recently arrived back from leading Ordination courses at Akashavana and Guhyaloka.

With metta,
Ratnadharini

***

From Punyamala:

It has been my great good fortune to spend the last 11 weeks at Akashavana, the forest retreat of luminous space, leading an international ordination retreat during which 18 women entered the Order.

It feels foolhardy to attempt...

College of Public Preceptors

Chairs' Letter – June 2022

By ratnadharini on Sun, 3 Jul, 2022 - 22:51

Chairs' Letter – June 2022

By ratnadharini on Sun, 3 Jul, 2022 - 22:51

Dear Order Members + friends,

This month I seem to have emerged more fully from the era of Covid lockdowns. As well as my regular visits to South Wales, I’ve also been to London, Stratford-upon-Avon (wonderful to get to the theatre again: Henry VI and Richard III), and Leek in northern England (checking out a possible property for Tiratanaloka). I’ve also been kayaking down the River Taff to Cardiff basin, negotiating a couple of weirs and a lot of rocks...

Tag: chairs' letter

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