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Saturday 01 August 2020

  • Yoga Mind, Body And Breath: A journey of self-discovery

    Teacher: Marc Kress
    Cost: 2 day's accommodation + R150 surcharge
    Dates:

    marc kressThe practice of yoga brings the mind and body together, grounding us in the present, connecting us with where we are and what our body tells us about ourselves. Yoga is a process of re-connecting to our body and breath, coming back into the present moment. The ancient yogis realized that in order to be able to meditate effectively requires a healthy, strong body, so they developed yoga postures (asanas), cleansing techniques and breathing exercises (pranayama). Through regular practise of asanas, pranayama and meditation, yoga unlocks the deeper levels of our being. It is a way of moving into stillness in order to experience the truth of who we are. This retreat is open to beginners and experienced students. Please bring a yoga mat.

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    Marc Kress is a yoga teacher and percussionist living in Durban. He was attracted to the yoga path while travelling through India in 2003: “I discovered a path of self-practice and discipline that fulfils my desire to grow on a spiritual level by working with the body and mind”. Marc has been practising and studying in India and South Africa with various teachers in different styles of yoga, including Hatha, Vinyāsa, Iyengar, Sivananda, Tantra and Astanga. He has a Hatha yoga teaching qualification from the Yoga Alliance and is a certified Iyengar yoga teacher.

  • Open The Heart And Still The Mind: The Transformative Heart of Compassion (online)

    Teacher: Sue Cooper
    Cost: Dana (donation) for the BRC plus Teacher dana
    Dates: 09:00am - 01:00pm 

    sue cooper oct2019Online fundraising morning retreat via Zoom in support of The Buddhist Retreat Centre, Ixopo. Please download the Zoom app and the link will be emailed to you on confirmation of your booking. Please book with Sue using the links below.

    This dana-based online retreat is suitable for beginners and experienced practitioners and reminds us of the silent retreat experience. Please join us for a nurturing morning of contained silence, Buddhist wisdom teachings, guided meditations, qigong and contemplative reflection. Through the embodied practices of mindfulness and metta, we will establish a calm and open-hearted inner refuge, which strengthens our foundation of kindness and compassion. This fundraiser is an opportunity to come together as a sangha to offer support from wherever we are to the wonderful staff and centre with open-hearted generosity. A schedule will be provided ahead of time for planning your morning and the Zoom link will be sent on confirmation of your booking.

    Please confirm your booking with a deposit and indicate how you would like your dana to be allocated (see Pricing for suggested sliding scale).

    Bookings:
    Pricing: Dana (donation) for the BRC plus Teacher dana

    PRICING
    Dana (donation) for the BRC plus Teacher dana
    Please feel free to offer whatever dana you are able to, using the suggested sliding scale as a guideline which allows you to offer more or less, according to your means.
    Dana guideline for the BRC: R1000/750/500 - more or less (no-one will be excluded if there are financial constraints)
    Teacher Dana guideline: R1000/750/500 - more or less (no-one will be excluded if there are financial constraints)

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    Sue Cooper is a Cape Town-based Clinical Psychologist with extensive experience as a psychoanalytic psychotherapist, working in private practice since the early 1990's. She has a long-standing interest in the interface between psychological and spiritual approaches to self-discovery and inner healing, and has attended Buddhist meditation retreats, mainly in the Theravada tradition, for over 30 years, both in South Africa and at Gaia House in the UK. She has been inspired by the teachings of Ajahn Chah of the Thai Forest tradition, and is deeply grateful to her primary teachers: the late Godwin Samararatne, Kittisaro and Thanissara, Ajahn Sucitto and Stephen and Martine Batchelor. She has a particular interest in exploring how our practice enables us to embrace our humanness, integrating love and loss in our lives, so that we can live and die with compassionate awareness. She offers weekend and longer retreats throughout South Africa at Temenos, Mont Fleur, Blue Butterfly and Somerset Gift in the Western Cape; Dharmagiri Insight Meditation Centre and the Buddhist Retreat Centre in KwaZulu Natal; and Emoyeni Retreat Centre in the North West Province, as well as 6-8 week "Open the Heart and Still the Mind" courses, on-going weekly groups and monthly half-day/day retreats in Cape Town See: www.suecooper.co.za and please contact .

  • Chi Whizz: Finding Your Feet Again - Qigong (online)

    Teacher: Colin Kemery
    Cost: Donation to support the BRC during the COVID-19 lockdown
    Dates: 11:00am - 11:40am 

    colin kemerySo many of you have loved Colin’s sunrise qigong at the BRC. For an energising session join him for some gentle movements to move the chi.
    Chi kung is an art that combines aerobic conditioning, meditation and relaxation without the extremes of physical exertion, making it the ideal practice for people of every age and of all levels of fitness. Learn the gentle rhythmic dance of the shamans, increase your healing life force by dissolving blockages in your body and restoring the natural flow of Chi. Chi kung movements, practised on a regular basis, will prove to be invigorating and life-changing.

    Time: 11:00-11:40am | 25 July; 1 August
    Register

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    Colin Kemery has conducted his popular sunrise chi kung sessions at the BRC for 8 years. He is a resident member of the BRC and the Estate Manager, and has been a Buddhist and yoga practitioner for 41 years. He lived and worked in the UK, France, Denmark and the USA, and is a musician and song-writer, with a passion for cooking and nutrition. He and Shadow, the BRC kitty, are inseparable.