BRC Newsflash - February/March 2025

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The Buddhist Retreat Centre

Ixopo, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

For people of all religions

BRC Newsflash: February/March 2025

Dear Friends,

The BRC’s 45^th Anniversary

Forty-five years ago, in April 1980, the first retreat was held on this mountain. The paths were still under construction then and the pine trees knee-high. There were only a few prefabricated buildings plus the meditation hall, library and the accommodation lodge. And there was no stupa or Buddha statue watching over the valley.

Louis van Loon was there with his wife, Molly, working day and night to get the place ready. I was on hand to fetch, carry and drive, there were a few women from the local village as well as the Zulu Induna or headman, Mbanjwa, who actually ran everything. Louis did not speak Zulu and Mbanjwa did not speak English but they communicated in an exaggerated miming ritual filled with mistakes and laughter. Molly worked on her own, sewing curtains and yellow meditation robes; those things ruined my eyes she said.

The afternoon before the first retreat was a desperate rush to get things ready. We replaced windows in the lodge that the ground hornbills had broken, thinking their reflections in the glass were ready for mating. We put up signs, including the now-infamous entrance sign with the misspelt word ‘Budist’. We made stands for gongs and platforms for teachers, we assembled cupboards and benches, and we sanded the wooden beds in the lodge while women waited in the passage outside with linen in their arms.

I don’t remember who came to attend that first retreat; I think it was mostly friends of the van Loons from what then went for the ‘alternative’ side of colonial Durban culture – people from the Vegetarian Society, the Natal Indian Buddhist Society, along with theosophists, homeopaths, yogis and journalists. There were Zulu women in the kitchen working under the eye of Molly to prepare meals – and it was from then that the ritual of cake at morning tea was established.

When people arrived that first evening there were welcomes and introductions and tours of the buildings and garden. There were even short periods of meditation in our shiny new golden robes, with myself marking time on the new wooden dias.

It was after that first retreat that the real work began. We waited for people to come. And they didn’t. Sometimes we had to cancel, and we often had only one or two people in attendance. What a change it is to see the centre now, with its full-time staff, continual retreats, visiting teachers, a thriving shop, and a wall of awards. What great commitment has fuelled all these decades of flourishing, a commitment that has survived the passing of the patriarch, Louis van Loon, and continues today in the hands of his widow, Chrisi. Bows to you all. And there is still cake with tea.

Antony Osler
Resident meditation teacher 1980-83

The BRC – 55 Years On

On a visit to India in 1969 Louis was struck down by an illness doctors could neither diagnose nor cure. They left for the highlands of Ceylon on the basis, as Clasquin records, that ‘at least it would be a more pleasant place to die.’ Having booked into a small hotel Louis promptly collapsed. He was unconscious for three days and two nights, perspiring copiously. ‘And then I woke up, crystal clear, reborn.’ After a day or two he was strong enough to go for a walk: ‘there were all these hills disappearing into the distance … I said to myself, “I must go back to South Africa as soon as possible.

And when we are back, we must establish Buddhism there. We must get a property … with hills receding into the distance and build a meditation centre.”

They duly found a 300-acre property and purchased it virtually sight unseen. ‘I couldn’t see a thing because there was such thick mist,’ Louis told me when I interviewed him some years ago, ‘but stepping on to it for the first time in my life I knew this was the place.

There was a strange sense of belonging.’ What the mist concealed was the Ofafa valley and a mind-expanding vista of interlocking hills melting into blue distance.

Louis and the centre he went on to create are inseparable; unavoidably the story of one is the story of the other. It would take ten years before the Buddhist Retreat Centre opened its doors. Ten years of planning, designing, and hands-on hard work involving Louis and many others. The first retreat at the centre was held in March 1980. At this stage Louis thought of himself as the centre’s administrator and continued to maintain his practice in Durban. Antony Osler was the first resident teacher (now a retired advocate who runs a Zen centre in the Karoo with his wife Margie). Over the years circumstances dictated Louis take on a more central role as a teacher. By the end of the 1980s the centre was not only viable but, as Clasquin says, had become ‘a vital factor in the life of the South African Buddhist community it had helped to create.’ From the outset the centre was non-denominational, unaligned to any Buddhist tradition, and hosted teachers, lay and religious, from around the world and locally; gaining an international reputation and being featured in a variety of media. Louis lectured on Buddhism at the then University of Durban-Westville. Like it or not, Louis had become the public face and voice of Buddhism in South Africa and was consulted in the constitutional talks leading up to 1994’s first fully democratic elections. Louis’s knowledge of Buddhism was encyclopaedic, referencing not only the life and teachings of the Buddha but also the archaeological, social and historical background of his times. Louis could chant verses in the original Pali, preside over Chinese and Japanese tea-ceremonies, draw, paint and make kites; all the while combining reverence with humour and a lightness of touch. From a core of retreats devoted to the Buddha’s teachings and meditation practice the centre’s programme expanded to include a bouquet of retreats and workshops on a wide variety of subjects: yoga, psychology, drawing, pottery, sumi-e-brush painting (Louis was an adept), birdwatching, even cookery, (perhaps not surprising as the centre is well known for excellent vegetarian meals and three bestselling cookbooks). Whatever the subject of a retreat might be, it was an entry point to mindfulness, and amid the centre’s beautifully tended gardens retreatants could get a taste of that old Zen Buddhist poem which Louis loved to quote: ‘sitting quietly doing nothing/spring comes/and the grass grows by itself’.

An excerpt from “Louis Van Loon 1935-2024” written by Stephen Coan published in Natalia 54 (2024) Natal Society Foundation

Change Your Mind – A Mindfulness Retreat

There are still spaces available for Ajahn Jutindharo’s 5-day mindfulness retreat from 13-18 February. We invite our Sangha to support and attend these precious Teachings to keep the Dharma flourishing in Ixopo.

Ajahn’s transformative Mindfulness Retreat will offer a unique opportunity to explore the ways in which our practice can support and nourish us in our daily lives and how we can connect with wholesome sources, providing us with a wider range of tools to address challenges we face in life.

With Metta,

Chrisi and The BRC Team

There are still a few spaces left on the following February retreats:

Change Your Mind: A Mindfulness Retreat

Ajahn Jutindharo | 5 days | 13-18 February
Ajahn Jutindharo’s approach is grounded in awareness of our own body, with practices based around body awareness and the breath. He emphasises an open attitude of kindness and curiosity, so that we learn to trust more in that which is already alive, awake and free within us.
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Getting To Know The Birds At The BRC: 160 Birds Of A Feather

Aldo Berutti | Weekend | 21-23 February
Join Aldo for an enjoyable weekend of identifying some of the BRC’s 160 species of birds - including the rare Blue Swallow. Included will be talks, slide shows, meditation and some quiet time communing with nature. Bring your binoculars and a sunhat.
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Healing Qigong For Health And Vitality

Dr Hu Jin-Yun | Weekend | 28 February-2 March
Explore this ancient Chinese practice that boosts one’s health and vitality. Participants will learn the key techniques of how to master qigong and incorporate it into their daily lives, effortlessly. Dr Hu will also introduce some Chinese medicine for detoxing, lowering cholesterol, decreasing body fat and relieving water retention. This retreat is designed to suit beginners, as well as those who have practised qigong previously.
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Conducted Retreats March 2025

☸ indicates retreats held in noble silence

Speak Your Truth, Listen Deeply

Felicity Joan Hart | 2 days | 5-7 March
When interacting with others, we often find ourselves triggered and then communicate in ways that hurt or harm - ourselves, the other, or the relationship between. Our conditioned ideas of what it means to communicate, especially during times of conflict, frequently results in a loss of connection. This retreat explores the principles and practices of mindfulness and non-violent communication (NVC), to foster connection and minimize the suffering of outmoded ways of engaging. You will practise both intra-personal and inter-personal mindfulness to cultivate skills of empathy, compassion, and a better understanding of yourself and others.

You can expect daily mindful meditation practice to support the empowering and enriching teachings of NVC and some down time for rest and relaxation.
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Relational Mindfulness Retreat

Annika Nicol | Weekend | 7 March-9 March 2025
Do you find it hard to stay present when you relate with others? Do you tend to lose yourself in your relationships? This retreat will provide the opportunity for a depth of enquiry into the practice of Presence, or Mindfulness, in our relationships. We will explore the space that opens when we are able to give ourselves quality attention in the relating and listening process. We will look at the unconscious patterns and obstacles that hold us back from being fully present in our relationships.

• We will slow down and allow space to clearly see, feel and sense what is happening in the present moment.
• We will connect with the direct experience of the feelings, sensations and thoughts in our bodies.
• We will practise staying connected with ourselves as we relate with others.
• In between sessions the retreat will be held in silence.

For psychologists the retreat is CPD accredited ( 15CEU’s) and fee- based. (Enquiries at ).
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Money As Spiritual Practice - Learn How Money Can Bridge Your Material And Spiritual Life And Become A Form Of Spiritual Practice

Felicity Joan Hart | 2 days | 11-13 March
In this retreat we will explore four spiritual disciplines, two spiritual laws and a self-directed challenge to change your beliefs about money, to be in right relationship with money and to allow money to become a form of spiritual practice.

Engaging with money can be stressful. Regardless of how much we have, it is often a source of fear and anxiety. Our minds can be preoccupied with thoughts around not having enough, or running out, or losing the money we have. Conditioned thinking patterns direct our focus to what is lacking, and this can lead to habitual judgment of ourselves, others and our circumstances. Over time, stress around money or feeling ruled by it can set up a feeling of dis-ease in our being and impact all aspects of our lives.

The intention of this retreat is to transform your relationship with money into a dimension of your spiritual practice. You get to assign money its proper place and perspective in your life while experiencing a deeper intimacy with your higher power. The process involves exploring the spiritual disciplines of Gratitude, Praying, Fasting and the Giving Way of Being.

This course is inclusive. It is friendly to open-minded people of all religions and wisdom traditions. You can expect daily mindful meditation practice to support the empowering and enriching teachings and down time for rest and relaxation.
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Tibetan Yantra Yoga And Meditation

Max Weier | Weekend | 14-16 March
Tibetan yantra yoga (Trul-Khor) includes vigorous movement and powerful breathing exercises, visualisation, meditation, the practice of mudras (ritual gestures) and the chanting of bija mantras (seed-syllables) i.e. OM, AH, HUM to remove blockages in the subtle energy system (chakras and nadis) and to regulate the flow of the so-called lung (prana).

Most of the body postures are performed either standing or sitting and are interspersed with periods of meditation. Tibetan yantra yoga presents effective means of healing and harmonising body and mind. However, the ultimate goal of Tibetan yantra yoga is to awaken to our natural state and inner wisdom
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The Way Of Dao Qigong - Meditation - Wisdom

Max Weier | 2 days | accommodation | 18-20 March
This retreat is based on the ancient tradition of Daoism. It offers a holistic approach that takes equal account of body, energy and mind. It combines breath work and moving qigong exercises to stimulate, free and balance the flow of the inner energy (qi). It includes silent meditation to calm and expand the mind. And it opens us to the inspiration of the profound and liberating wisdom teachings of Daoism and Zen. Ultimately, the Daoist path leads to the realisation of our true nature, the immeasurable Dao (or Tao).
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Finding Stillness: A Yoga And Meditation Retreat

Hannelize Robinson | Weekend | 21-23 March
Yoga teaches us the ability to remain present, calm and stable no matter what situation we find ourselves in. It is not about perfecting the shape of the pose or increasing flexibility – it is about knowing what the shapes do and how they impact our physiology, our energy and our mind. When carefully planned and sequenced, yoga helps us to thrive in the external world that is always changing and simultaneously allows us to disconnect from our daily lives and reconnect to that aspect of being that never changes.

In yoga, a complete practice includes physical postures (asana), breathwork (pranayama), and meditation. Postures and breathwork prepare us for meditation. When we regularly practise meditation, we train ourselves to pause before reacting, often based on habitual patterns, and instead respond calmly with more wisdom and compassion.
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Time To Renew Your Fire - A Weekend Retreat For Burnt-Out Phoenixes In Need Of Soul Rekindling

Elana Bregin | Weekend | 28-30 March 2025
Take back your life, it’s the only one you’ve got! The past few years seem to have been particularly challenging for many of us. Unsettling changes, prolonged stress, life crises of one kind or another, or simply giving away too much of your vital fire to another can leave you feeling dangerously close to burn-out and struggling to regain your sense of balance, purpose and passion.

This recalibration workshop is geared at those who feel they have lost the compass. Under the experienced guidance of creative journey guide and author, Elana Bregin, you will be led through the gentle process of rebuilding your inner fire and reclaiming the joie de vivre that may have gone missing in the stresses and traumas of daily life. Amid the quiet beauty and sacred peace of the BRC grounds, well supported by the Centre’s delicious meals, cosy fires and revitalising ambience, we will open our senses and heart chakras and start the conversation with our deeper selves that relaxed attention enables. There will be periods of writing reflection, group sharing, inspirational walks and uplifting talks, to help us get back in touch with who we really are and want to be.
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Doing Your Own Thing: A Personal Retreat

Find meaningful solitude on a Self-Retreat. These Retreats are unstructured: one does as much (or as little) reading, walking, meditation or resting as one chooses. Enjoy walks and bird watching; savour our delicious vegetarian food and browse our well-stocked library. Massage treatments as well as qigong, guided walks and meditation with the resident staff are available. Self-Retreats are an ideal opportunity to be in a gentle, sympathetic space where one can be still and get in touch with oneself. We are offering a 15% discount.
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About the BRC

Perched on a ridge at the head of a valley in the Umkomaas river system in KwaZulu-Natal, the Buddhist Retreat Centre looks out on a vista of indigenous valleys, forests and rolling hills receding like waves in the blue distance. Here, for forty-four years, people of all religions and none have come to experience peace and tranquillity. It is a gentle, sympathetic space where one can be still and get in touch with oneself and reflect on the things that crowd one's life.

The BRC was voted by CNN as one of the ten best meditation centres in the world.
CNN Travel awarded another feather in the BRC’s cap by voting it as one of the ten best spiritual centres in South Africa.

The BRC was awarded Natural Heritage status in 1995 under the auspices of the Department of Environmental Affairs and received a certificate to that effect signed by President Nelson Mandela for turning an eroded farm into the natural paradise it has become - thousands of indigenous trees were planted by retreatants under the supervision of Mervyn Croft - with 160 species of birds, including the Blue Swallow, otter, deer, antbear and indigenous forests. The Centre was also given the special status of “Custodian of the Blue Swallow” for its work in preserving the breeding areas of this endangered bird.
Recently, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife granted the BRC “Private Nature Reserve” for the conservation of the rare Blue Swallow and Mistbelt Grassland.

The BRC facilitated the founding of Woza Moya, the community-based NGO, located in Ufafa Valley, twenty-two years ago, on the estate. Their vision is for all people in the community to be healthy and productive, to live in a safe and clean environment, with good access to services and social justice. The Centre continues to support the organisation by showcasing their crafts in the shop and sponsoring their trainers and consultants.
We have been very touched by your appreciative letters, emails and friendship towards the BRC - your spiritual home from home.

We are deeply grateful for your generous gifts to the Centre in the form of PUY and Monthly contributions, new beds and bases, office chairs and a desk, a new refrigerator, microwave oven, bathroom towels, 20 indigenous trees and seedlings, books for our library, a generator, garden benches, pillows, towels and linen, geyser insulation blankets, clothing and Dana for our staff, an inverter and beautiful antique scrolls and Imari platters and ceramics, framed prints and Thankas, new tablecloths and serviettes, a brand new Magimix  and Kitchen Mixer, signage for our forest paths - and so much more. Thank you to all of you who continue to support our work in Ixopo with monthly and Paid Up Yogi contributions and donations, with gifts, or with skills and time. And, of course, to everyone who comes to the Centre - you keep us open and viable - and to our teachers who keep the Dharma wheels turning. We are deeply grateful for your generosity towards us; it encourages us to continue Louis’ beautiful vision and legacy for the future.

Please continue to support the BRC by becoming a friend of the Buddhist Retreat Centre (a registered non-profit organisation) and find out more about the BRC's Paid-Up-Yogi and Sangha Friends’ projects.

Chrisi

Visit our website for further information, directions, image gallery etc.

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