Dhyana and Insight

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Dhyana and Insight About the Retreat This retreat aims to make dhyana accessible to people within the Triratna Buddhist Community who have an established meditation practice. The main emphasis will be on helping dhyana to reveal itself, step-by-step, as we cultivate calmness, relaxation, and joy. We’ll be taking a fresh look at the traditional mindfulness of breathing and metta bhavana practices, as well as exploring other approaches to meditation. A secondary emphasis will be on exploring how the dynamic experience of dhyana supports the cultivation of insight. There will be many guided meditations. Individual meditation reviews will also be offered. The retreat is based on the assumption that the traditional dhyana factors can be seen not just as the destination but as the route itself, providing a step-by-step approach to the experience of dhyana. It’s also based on the assumption that dhyana is relatively easy to attain once you know how it is cultivated. Is there anything special I need to bring? Bring loose clothing to meditate in. If you have a favourite meditation bench, bring it along! What can you expect from the programme? The retreat day will start at 6.30 am with a rising bell and there will be a double period of meditation at 7.00 am. Mid-morning and afternoon there will be further meditation sessions, which will include some teaching input. The evening will involve meditation, chanting and ritual. The retreat will be in silence from the second full day to the last full day (except for teaching sessions and reviews). About the retreat team The retreat will be guided by Bodhipaksa, who has been teaching meditation full-time for many years, and who has led many workshops and courses on dhyana. He is a published author. He founded the Wildmind Buddhist Meditation website in 2001. He has published many guided meditation CDs and guided meditation MP3s. He teaches at Aryaloka Buddhist Center in Newmarket, New Hampshire, USA. You can follow Bodhipaksa on Twitter, join him on Facebook, or hang out with him on Google+. .

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