Details:

Date: Friday 1st – Tuesday 5th November

Retreat Leader: Paula Chichester

Requirements: Everyone is welcome

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

Format: Onsite and Online (hybrid)

Start and Finish times: A schedule will be released 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. Camping can be an option at certain times of year if you have your own tent but space is very limited. Please read the relevant sections of the booking form carefully.

About the Retreat

Glorious White Tara is the healer of all ills and giver of long life. This beautiful practice will be the foundation for a hybrid retreat focused on experiential meditations that will introduce the tantric sadhana and mantra recitation as a healing method. White Tara is a favorite of our teachers so we will be dedicating the power of this practice to the long lives of our gurus. The retreat will include meditations and yoga practices to open up the body/mind to experience the bliss that arises from letting go of concrete mental self appearances and opening to the joyful vast realm of White Tara’s healing mandala. We can also use the practice to heal others and energise our already existing healing practices, whatever they are.

Paula has kindly offered to repeat the White Tara retreat she offered in 2019, 2020 & 2022 again, to give student’s who attended a wonderful opportunity to deepen their practice and for students who will come for the first time to develop a stable understanding of the White Tara practice and tantra in general.

About the Teacher

Paula began her studies of Buddhism when she was 14 at Berkeley High School in California where she realized liberating delusion was key to healing our planet and its inhabitants. The focus on systems theory and ecology at university prepared her to apply the whole body/mind/culture/ environment to this ancient contemplative discipline of human transformation.

As a dancer, healer, singer, student of psychology and ecology, she brings all these elements into the understanding of the whole person and how tantra works in this greater context – while preserving the classical format of Lama Tsong Khapa’s ear-whispered lineage.

Inspired by the example of the meditators in Dharamsala and Kyabje Zong Rinpoche, she devoted the last 34 years to following the guidance those she calls her awesome, amazing teachers, primarily Lama Thubten Yeshe, Kyabje Zopa Rinpoche and Kyabje Ribur Rinpoche. — which included 24 years preparing for and completing long retreats — 2 of which were 4 year solitary great maha-anuttara yoga retreats.

She studies with teachers from all 4 schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Her goal in life has been steady since childhood: to realize Mahamudra and do all she can to bring peace and environmental justice to our world.

Find out more about Paula and many other materials and resources which can support you in your practice on her website: http://braveview.org

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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