Details: 

Date: 10th-13th September

Retreat Leader: Ven Robina Courtin

Requirements: Everyone is welcome

Cost: Generosity Model – Donation only (via the donation form at the bottom of the page; no suggested amount).

Format: Hybrid

Start and Finish times: A schedule will be shared closer to the time.

Accommodation: Land of Joy wishes for everyone who visits the centre to feel welcome, accepted, safe and secure. Our accommodation options are very limited, with mostly single sex shared accommodation and only one single room (which is sometimes needed by volunteers). This means single accommodation can only be offered to those who need it the most, but still won’t always be available. Please read the relevant sections of the booking form carefully.

About the Retreat

We spend our lives being seduced by the outside world, believing utterly that happiness and suffering come from “out there”. Even more fundamental than that, we assume that we are the handiwork of someone else, either a superior being or our parents. The experiential implications of this are blame, anger, and guilt, bringing ever-deepening levels of suffering and hopelessness.

Buddha’s view of reality is that we create ourselves: we come into this life at the first moment of conception in our mother’s womb fully programmed with our own tendencies and the seeds of our experiences in this life. As the Dalai Lama says, the view of karma is one of “self-creation.” We are, literally, the creators of our lives, our happiness, and our suffering. We are the boss.

Because we are not set in stone, we can change, therefore there is no tendency in the mind that we can’t reverse. As Lama Yeshe says, we create negative karma with our minds and so we purify it by creating positive karma with our minds.

During our four days together, we will discuss how we create karma and how we purify it in conjunction with the meditation on the Buddha Vajrasattva and the application of the four opponent powers. As Lama Zopa Rinpoche says, “We are insane not to do this practice every day.”

About the Teacher

Ordained since the late 1970s, Ven. Robina has worked full time since then for Lama Thubten Yeshe and Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s FPMT. Over the years she has served as editorial director of Wisdom Publications, editor of Mandala Magazine, executive director of Liberation Prison Project, and as a touring teacher of Buddhism. Her life and work with prisoners have been featured in the documentary films Chasing Buddha and Key to Freedom.

A Way to Say Thank You

As we don’t receive any subsidies from other organisations we rely solely on the kind generosity of others. If you would like to make a donation to help us cover our considerable monthly costs (including via an online bank transfer or postal cheque), please choose the amount you would like to offer using the form below (or enter a custom amount), click ‘Donate’, then choose a payment method and provide all the details we require to process your donation. Your generosity will help us continue to offer beneficial services to yourself and others.

You may also like to make a regular contribution to the centre by becoming a Branch of Joy. This kind of support gifts us a steady and ongoing income, which in turn provides the confidence and means for us to continue to flourish for many years to come.

Thank you and may you be happy.

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