Earlier this year we explored how the Buddha’s teaching in the Shorter Suññata Sutta establishes emptiness in a very direct and experiential way, by noticing absence. Experience is empty of whatever isn’t right here in experience now. This seems obvious, but we delude ourselves into thinking that although something isn’t ‘here’, it’s still ‘there’ in some way, even when we don’t experience it.

Say you’ve been somewhere away from home (even just out shopping) – where is that place in experience now? Quite simply, it’s nowhere, other than in our imagination. This is not suggesting that the place ‘doesn’t exist’, it’s about directly knowing the distinction between what is experienced and what is imagined or mentally constructed. Once we gain clarity around this, the liberating path of insight (prajñā) can unfold.

We’ll use the Buddha’s method to explore areas of our experience of bodily form, space and consciousness – gaining clarity about what is actual experience, what is imagined or constructed and what the emptiness teachings are actually pointing to.

Friday 29th Nov – Sunday 1st Dec

Retreat starts Friday 29 Nov on the 3rd session, and ends on Sunday 1st Dec on the second session.

First session (2 hrs) USA PST 12:30 am | México CST 2:30 am | USA EST 3:30 am | IE & UK GMT 8:30 am | Europe CET 9:30 am | India IST 2:00 pm | Australia AEDT 7:30 pm | New Zealand NZDT 9:30 pm

Second session (1.5 hrs) USA PST 8:00 am | México CST 10:00 am | USA EST 11:00 am | IE & UK GMT 4:00 pm | Europe CET 5:00 pm | India IST 9:30 pm | Australia AEDT 3:00 am (next day) | New Zealand NZDT 5:00 am (next day)

Third session (1.5 hrs) USA PST 11:00 am | México CST 1:00 pm | USA EST 2:00 pm | IE & UK GMT 7:00 pm | Europe CET 8:00 pm | India IST 12:30 am (next day) | Australia AEDT 6:00 am (next day) | New Zealand NZDT 8:00 am (next day)

Join experienced writer and meditator Yashobodhi for this day retreat tuning into compassion through meditation and reflective writing.

We cannot force compassion to come, but we can certainly invite it to enter our experience as we delve gently into the realm of things waiting to be digested and excavated.

The writing on this day is about process rather than about a product. We are not writing texts, but using the writing for our personal reflections and explorations.

It works best if you attend both parts of the day, but you are also welcome to only come to the first or second session. And you won’t have to share your writing with anyone if you’d rather not!

The ingredients of the day:

• Guided meditation
• Reflective writing
• Some optional interaction in small groups (3-4 people)

Do come along if you want to regroup, refresh and reinforce yourself. We will be looking back together…

Sunday December 8th, 2024

First session (3 hrs): USA PST 2:00 am | México CST 4:00 am | USA EST 5:00 am | IE & UK GMT 10:00 am | Europe CET 11:00 am | India IST 3:30 pm | Australia AEDT 9:00 pm | New Zealand NZDT 11:00 pm

Second session (2.5 hrs): USA PST 6:30 am | México CST 8:30 am | USA EST 9:30 am | IE & UK GMT 2:30 pm | Europe CET 3:30 pm | India IST 8:00 pm | Australia AEDT 1:30 am (next day) | New Zealand NZDT 3:30 am (next day)

Event image by Alexander Milo