Information about Retreats

See photos of Vajrasana Retreat Centre

Retreat location

Vajrasana Retreat Centre, Potash Farm, Walsham le Willows, Suffolk, IP31 3AR.

Google Map of Vajrasana

Getting to Vajrasana map and in photos

What to bring

Toiletries, towel, comfortable clothes to meditate in. You may want to bring a notebook and pen.The countryside around where we will be staying is lovely – so you’ll need suitable clothing for going on walks and maybe some boots if it is wet.

What is a retreat?

A retreat is a chance to get away from the noise and complexity of modern life in order to deepen your experience of yourself and of the world around you.

Do you need to be a Buddhist?

You don’t need to be a Buddhist to go on one of our retreats. Nor do you need any previous experience of meditation. Meditation will be introduced as part of the retreat. If you have already learnt meditation at the London Buddhist Centre, or another Triratna Buddhist Community centre, there will be opportunity to deepen your practice and receive more guidance in meditation.

What happens on retreat?

There will be periods of meditation, talks on aspects of Buddhism, as well as Buddhist devotional rituals, called ‘pujas’, which you are welcome to participate in if you wish. As the retreat progresses there will be more meditation sessions and periods of silence to allow for more reflection building up to a few days of silence. There will usually be small groups led by a team member in which you can share your experience of the retreat.

We try to provide a peaceful context that is free from distraction and interruption We therefore ask you to turn off all mobile phones, laptops, and so forth, and not to contact anyone outside the retreat. An emergency phone number is provided above. In order to meditate effectively one needs to maintain clarity of mind, we therefore ask you not to drink alcohol or use any recreational drugs during the retreat.

Living Communally

Living communally is an important and usually enjoyable part of the retreat. Accommodation will be in shared single-sex rooms and we will eat together as a community.

Living communally means caring for each other. The team leading the retreat are volunteers who are on retreat as well; they are not paid staff. So we ask you to help out with simple chores. A team member will oversee these daily tasks. Working together is a good way of getting to know each other, and it also helps us keep the cost of retreats to a minimum.

Our retreats are known for being friendly and harmonious; we ask retreatants to cooperate with each other and to refrain from harsh speech or anti-social behaviour.

Diet

Our food on the retreat will be vegetarian. Vegetarianism is part of the Buddhist commitment to non-violence. The cooks on the retreat are voluntary helpers and will be on retreat themselves. This means that we will not be able to cater for special diets unless for medical reasons. If you do need a special diet for medical reasons then we need to be notified as soon as possible and at least one week before the retreat starts.

Your welfare on retreat

For welfare and safety reasons please let us know if you have any disabilities or serious health problems such as diabetes or epilepsy, or any clinical mental health problems – particularly if you are on medication. No pets are allowed on the retreat. The retreat centre is a non-smoking venue. If you do wish to smoke we ask you to do so in a designated place a short walk off-site. To protect people’s privacy we would prefer that you do not offer people on the retreat physical therapies such as massage, reflexology, etc.

Booking and cancellation policy

A deposit of £50 or the full amount must be paid at the time of booking. The full cost of the retreat must be paid at least one week before the start of the retreat. The concessionary rate applies to students on a full-time course; people over 65; people not working and drawing state benefits; people employed in Triratna TBRLs. Payments for retreats are not refundable unless the cancellation occurs more than two weeks before the start of the event in which case a refund will be made. In all cases we will keep £10 administration costs. Deposits for retreats are not transferable. We endeavour to run all the events we advertise. However, in exceptional circumstances we may have to cancel an event. In this case we shall, of course, refund all of your payments in full.

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