BRC Newsflash - November 2022
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The Buddhist Retreat Centre |
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Ixopo, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa |
For people of all religions |
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BRC Newsflash: November 2022 Dear Retreatants, |
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| Buddham sharanam gachchami | Image: Angela Buckland | |
Where Is Your Mind Right Now?The Blue Swallows have just returned from East Africa. It is always such a celebration for us in Ixopo - to think that these amazing birds with such a tenuous hold on survival return each year to the underground nest site that they used the previous year. We have been preparing for their arrival, but to spot the first bird of the season is always thrilling! Aldo Berutti will be leading a birdwatching retreat in early November: don’t miss this chance to spot this magnificent bird amongst many others that are returning residents. I recall in the early 80’s - before my interest in birds was piqued - an occasion when I was walking with some ’mega-birders’ during one of Gordon McClean’s birdwatching retreats, and I would hear “There’s a Golden-Breasted Bunting” and I would look in the direction they were pointing and not see anything. As I started to focus really mindfully - as I should be doing as a good Buddhist - I became much more aware of the glorious birdlife at the Centre. There I was too busy thinking about other things and so caught up in my inner busyness that I didn’t see what was right in front of my nose! |
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| A blue swallow | Image: Flack Photography | |
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It struck me then how stuck we are in our habitual patterns of thinking, so trapped in our incessant thoughts, cocooned, that we are not open to the magic of the world around us that is constantly renewing itself. The October and November retreats give one the opportunity to quieten the discursive and worrying mind - to pause - whether it be birdwatching or sitting like a mountain in meditation or standing like a tree in qigong or just eating your breakfast in silence. Mindfulness should not be separate from our normal daily routine. We should find mindfulness when we walk, when we sit, when we work; then your mind can find a resting place. When we leave a gap in our own storyline, and take a pause from our thoughts, we can see the things that are real and right front of us and feel their presence more clearly. With Metta, Louis |
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| Zendo | Image: Nhlakanipho Nkomo | |
Now And Zen: Reboot, Recharge And RetreatThere is no better place than the BRC to rejuvenate the body and mind with nature, meditation and movement to guide you into presence and stillness. For the months of October and November we are offering a 10% discount for a mid week sojourn in Ixopo. |
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| Stand like a tree | Image: Andrew Brown | |
There are still a few spaces left on the following October retreats:Stand Like A Tree To Power Up Your ChiPaul Dorrian | 2 days | 11-13 October Life Tides And Word Links: A Course In PoetryDawn Garisch | 3 days | 13 October-16 October Keystone Memoir Writing: Routes To MeaningDawn Garisch | 5 days | 18-23 October 2022 'You can't go back to the beginning and change what happened, but you can start from where you are and change the ending.' C S Lewis Writing about your life allows you to revisit the story you are telling yourself about where you come from, what happened and what is possible. That story is always too small, and is often unhelpful. Creative life writing helps you to reimagine life in such a way to stay curious, connected and present. The page is a safe place to explore your thought habits, and to surprise yourself with new possibilities for the future. Yin And Yang Yoga: Release And RelaxGeorgie Carter | 3 days | 25-28 October
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| Olive sunbird and clear skies | Image: Andrew Brown | |
Conducted Retreats November 2022
Begin Birding - And Reap Lifelong RewardsAldo Berruti | Weekend | 4-6 November At Ease in Mind and Body: An Introduction To QigongPaul Dorrian | Weekend | 11-13 November
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| Chi kung |
Image: Andrew Brown | |
About the BRCPerched 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 two 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, recently. 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 this year: new beds and bases, office chairs and a desk, bathroom towels, indigenous trees and seedlings, books for our library, a generator, a garden bench, clothing and Dana for our staff - 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, everyone who comes to the Centre keeps us open and viable. 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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