Holiday Loving Kindness Meditation Retreat

We invite you relax, renew and rediscover your heart over the holidays with this five-day meditation retreat hosted by Nuie Setthanan and Dave Seabrook. Everyone is welcome. Some experience with meditation sitting practice is helpful, but not required.

This non-sectarian retreat will offer periods of meditation along with video teachings, discussion and practice based on the traditional Buddhist Four Immeasurables or Brahmaviharas (Loving kindness, compassion, joy, and Equanimity).

Each morning, there will be meditation practice, discussion and video teachings on the Four Immeasurables. We will offer perspectives from both the Theravada Forest Tradition by the Venerable Ajaan Sumedho and the Tibetan Nyingma school by Khenpo Sherab Sangpo.

Day 1 will feature a dhamma talk on the Brahmaviharas by Ajaan Sumedo, now-retired abbot of the Amaravati Buddhist Monastery in the U.K. and was the first western student to ordain as a monk with the famous Thai teacher Ajaan Chah.

Days 2-5 will have teachings by Tibetan Buddhist teacher Khenpo Sherab Sangpo, spiritual director of the Heart Enlightenment Institute (Minnesota). The Khenpo was trained in the Mindrolling monastic order in India and studied under many renown teachers, including Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche.

Afternoons will focus on personal meditation practice.

Participants can attend the entire retreat, or single days (Wednesday-Friday only) or both the final two weekend days. 

                         May all beings have happiness and it’s causes

                         May all beings be free from suffering and its causes

                        May all beings never be separated from bliss without suffering

                       May all beings be in equanimity, free of bias, attachment and anger     

 Tentative Daily Retreat Schedule

                 8:00am           Coffee

                8:30am           Opening chants & refuge practice (optional)

                9:00am           Shamatha meditation practice

                10:00am         Video teaching 

                11:00am         Four Immeasurables Loving Kindess practice

                11:30am         Discussion

                12:15pm         Lunch (bring your own lunch)

                1:30pm           Shamatha meditation (option for Vajrayana practice upstairs)

                3:00pm           Tea break

                3:30pm           Shamatha meditation with Four Immeasurables Practice

                5:00pm           Conclude (concluding chants optional)

Program fee:

Five-day retreat: $100 and a suggested $50 charitable donation to the Centre (tax receipt provided)

Single days (Wednesday-Friday only): $30

Weekend only: $50 retreat and a suggested $25 charitable donation to the Centre (tax receipt provided)