BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//7.4//EN TZID:Europe/London X-WR-TIMEZONE:Europe/London BEGIN:VEVENT UID:1695@anukampaproject.org DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20211206T083000 DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20211212T210000 DTSTAMP:20221129T101424Z URL:https://anukampaproject.org/events/ajahn-brahm-ven-canda-emboldening-t he-mind-with-fizz-and-sparkle/ SUMMARY:Ajahn Brahm & Ven Canda 7-day Online Retreat: "Emboldening The Mind With Fizz & Sparkle!" DESCRIPTION:"Ajahn Brahm and Ven Canda create a really safe\, supportive an d nurturing environment. It softens the heart. The teachings are wise and profound but delivered in a way that is funny\, sensitive and warm hearted . They lead by example in how to act through love\, acceptance and compass ion. I am glad I have found such teachers."\n\n~ Patricia\, a participant in Ajahn Brahm &\; Ven Canda's "Bliss Upon Bliss" online retreat\, Nove mber 2020\n \;\n\n \;\n\nMeditation is profound\, sublime and life -changing\, yet it takes courage to go against the stream of craving and e mbody kindness and gentleness in a world that often seems harsh. Courage c an also be an important quality in meditation practice. As we go inside\, we come face to face with our own attachments and hindrances\, which limit mindfulness\, prevent stillness and weaken our ability to see the inner a nd outer world clearly.\n\n \;\n\nHappily\, deep\, transcending experi ences are also full of joy and as we practice\, an ever-increasing mental pleasure becomes the main impersonal force that pushes through the obstacl es we face.\n\n \;\n\nIn this retreat\, the teachers will show how we can nurture happiness and a love of peace so that inner tranquillity bloss oms easily\, like a fragrant lotus of luminous beauty. Inspiration flows f rom within and emboldens courage in the mind\, enabling us to live with au thenticity\, and to gradually let go and perceive the liberating Dhamma (T ruth) as The Buddha timelessly taught.\n\n \;\n\n\n\n \;\n\n \ ;\n\n\nThe Ethical Precepts \n \;\n\nVenerable Ānanda once asked the Buddha:\n\n \;\n\n“Venerable\, what is the purpose and benefit of s killful ethics (sila)?” The Buddha answered\, "So\, Ānanda\, the purpos e and benefit of skillful ethics is not having regrets (avippati). The pur pose and benefit of not having regrets is joy (pamojja). The purpose and b enefit of joy is bliss (piti). The purpose and benefit of bliss is tranqui llity (passaddhi). The purpose and benefit of tranquillity is happiness (s ukha). The purpose and benefit of happiness is stillness (samadhi). The pu rpose and benefit of stillness is seeing things as they truly are. The pur pose and benefit of seeing things as they truly are is revulsion (nibbida) . The purpose and benefit of revulsion is dispassion or fading away (virag a). The purpose and benefit of dispassion is knowledge and vision of liber ation (vimuttinyanadassana). So\, Ānanda\, skillful ethics progressively leads up to the highest.” (Anguttara Nikaya 11.1) \n\n \;\n\nHere w e can see how practicing ethical precepts creates a strong foundation for the development of deep meditation. We therefore strongly encourage you to take the precepts - and you may choose whether you wish to observe the fi ve or the eight\, during the retreat.\n\n \;\n\nThe Five Precepts –  Pañcasīla\n\n \nI undertake the training-precept to abstain from kill ing living beings.\nPāṇātipātā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyā mi.\n \nI undertake the training-precept to abstain from taking what is n ot given.\nAdinnādānā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI u ndertake the training-precept to abstain from sexual misconduct.\nKāmesu micchācārā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI undertake th e training-precept to abstain from false speech.\nMusāvādā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI undertake the training-precept to abst ain from alcoholic drink or drugs that cloud the mind and cause heedlessne ss.\nSurā meraya majja pamādaṭṭhānā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ sam ādiyāmi.\n\n \;\n\nThe Eight Precepts – Aṭṭhaṅgasīla\n\n \ nI undertake the training-precept to abstain from killing living beings.\n Pāṇātipātā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI undertake the training-precept to abstain from taking what is not given.\nAdinnād ānā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI undertake the traini ng-precept to abstain from sexual conduct.\nAbrahmacariyā veramaṇī sik khāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI undertake the training-precept to abstain from false speech.\nMusāvādā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\ n \nI undertake the training-precept to abstain from alcoholic drink or d rugs that cloud the mind and cause heedlessness.\nSurā meraya majja pamā daṭṭhānā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI undertake t he training-precept to abstain from eating at the wrong time (after solar noon).\nVikāla bhojanā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI u ndertake the training-precept to abstain from dancing\, singing\, music\, going to see entertainments\, wearing jewellery\, using perfumes\, and bea utifying the body with cosmetics.\nNacca gīta vādita visūkadassanā mā lā gandha vilepana dhārana maṇḍana vibhūsanaṭṭhānā veramaṇ ī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n \nI undertake the training-precept to a bstain from using high or luxurious beds and seats.\nUccāsayana mahāsaya nā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.\n\n \;\n\n \;\nTentat ive schedule (8:30 on 6th Dec ~ 15:00 on 12th Dec UK time)\n \;\n\nThe retreat starts at 8:30 on Monday 6th Dec\, and finishes at 15:00 on Sunda y 12th Dec. On the last day\, there will be an opportunity to share your e xperience with other retreatants. The schedule is deliberately designed to be spacious and allow for plenty of personal practice time and rest\, so that you can take a break from the screen and find a supportive rhythm and pace. You will be guided as to how best to make use of your personal prac tice time and given instructions in walking meditation.\n\n \;\n\n&nbs p\;\n\n08:30 – 10:00  Dhamma talk\, guided meditation and precepts (Aja hn Brahm)\n\n10:00 – 12:00  Lunch for those on 8 precepts\n\n12:00 – 13:30  Teaching and discussion (Ajahn Brahm)\n\n13:30 – 14.30  Lunch o r rest\n\n14:30 – 18:00  Personal practice period\n\n18:00 – 19:15  Tea or dinner\n\n19:30 – 21:00  Short talk\, guided meditation and Q&am p\;A (Ven Canda)\n\n \;\n\n \;\n\nFull time attendance – includi ng the personal practice period – is necessary for this retreat\, so y ou can experience the full potential of the practice. Due to the timing it will therefore work best for people in the UK and Europe (or the east coa st of the US if you are willing to adopt forest monastery time and rise ea rly!) Places are limited to 93\, so we kindly ask that if you only want to attend the teacher-led sessions\, to please watch them after we upload th em to our YouTube channel.\n\n \;\n\nCheck the retreat schedule agains t your time zone here.\n\n \;\nHow To Have A Home Retreat \n \;\n \nPracticing on a home retreat can be a very rewarding experience. One of the most powerful ways in which it differs from watching online talks\, is that you carve out a space dedicated to silent practice with none of the usual distractions and disturbances. Essentially\, you take “time out” of ordinary life to delve deeply into your inner world. To support yourse lf in this process\, Noble Silence is encouraged throughout the retreat: t o remain in silence as much as possible and to not use any electronic devi ces\, including mobile phones\, other than the one you would use for the o nline Zoom sessions (only!). To help you decide whether this would suit yo u\, we offer some thoughts about the benefits of home retreat and consider some of the potential challenges – as well as possible solutions – so you can make the best use of your time.\n\n \;\n\n \;\nBenefits:\ n\n Continuity of practice which helps you get more benefit from meditati on\n Safety\, intimacy and support of an enclosed group\n Opportunity fo r personal guidance through questions to the teachers\n Renewed confidenc e in your ability to practice wherever you are\n The food that suits your tummy and no one snoring in your dorm!\n\n \;\nChallenges and solutio ns:\n \;\n\nIf you are living alone\, you have the ideal hermitage! T urn off your phone\, put on the vacation responder and do your weekly shop in advance. Use ear plugs if it is especially noisy and take a walk at th e quietest times of day. This will help you immensely in observing Noble S ilence and cultivating sense restraint\, which inclines the mind toward in ner happiness and facilitates quietening the mind.\n\n \;\n\nFor most however\, home retreat may pose the challenge of living with others who ar e not on retreat! In this case\, you may need to put a few extra measures in place (if they will not join you!)\, to enable you to observe Noble Si lence and maintain your inward focus. You might ask them to support you wh ile you are on retreat by keeping interactions to an absolute minimum and having a note system for anything absolutely unavoidable. Perhaps there is a room in the house that you can retreat into and someone kind may cook y our favourite food and leave your meals outside the door\, or negotiate ti mes to use the kitchen alone! If you have children or teens it might be di fficult to keep the noise down\, so\, if you are able\, you might even de cide to book into a quiet hotel or apartment (COVID conditions allowing) and tune in to the sessions from there.\n\n \;\n\n\n\n \;\nRegistr ation Fees\n \;\n\n \;\n\nThe retreat teachings are offered on a d onation basis to make the Dhamma accessible to all. Our volunteers have ge nerously organised this in their own free time and neither they nor the tw o teachers receive any remuneration. To honour the wisdom\, time and commi tment of our teachers\, you will be invited to offer donations at the end of the retreat. Your donations will help us fundraise toward a "Forest Mon astery\," which will be the physical hub of our community and a haven of p eace. Please give with a heart of generosity and joy\, whilst respecting y our own personal financial situation.\n\n \;\n\nThe registration fee i s on a sliding scale to ensure your commitment to attending the retreat\, as we generally experience a 25% no-show rate to online events. When this happens others may lose a potentially life changing opportunity to practic e. The registration fee will contribute towards our outgoings and rental e xpenses. If you are unable to afford this\, please contact us. Alternative ly\, you can listen to the teachings later on our YouTube channel.\n\n&nbs p\;\n\n \;\n\nPlease note that the registration fee is NON REFUNDABLE .\n\n \;\n\n \;\n\n \;\n\n \;\nApplication Procedure\n&nbs p\;\n\n \;\n\n1. *Please ensure you have read all the above informatio n carefully before you fill the application form below!\n\n \;\n\n2.  After submitting your application form\, you should receive email confirm ing that we have received your application within a few minutes. Please ch eck your junk mail inbox if you do not receive it. If it is not in your j unk mail please contact us\; you might have submitted the wrong email addr ess. We advise you to add our email address\, bookings@anukampaproject.o rg\, as a contact to prevent emails from us going into your junk folder.\ n\n \;\n\n3. We aim to approve your application within a day or two. O nce your application is approved\, your registration fee is needed to secu re your place. Upon receipt\, your ticket will be automatically sent to yo u.\n\n \;\n\n \;\nJoining from the same household\n \;\n\nIf m ore than one person from the same household wishes to join the retreat\, p lease make separate bookings and log in from separate computers. This ensu res our numbers are manageable for the Q&\;A sessions and enables you t o practice as though alone. \n\n \;\nPart-time participation\n \; \n\nShould you only want to attend the teacher-led sessions rather than si t the whole retreat\, please watch them later on our YouTube channel\, as places are limited to 93. In this case\, please do not register for the r etreat.\n\n \;\n\n \;\n\n~ IMPORTANT !! ~  Before you fill in the application form YOU MUST REFRESH your browser by pressing F5 OR clicking the ↺ reload sign. This will update the form to show the current number of spaces available.\n\n \;\n\n \; ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://anukampaproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2 021/04/meABLBV.jpg CATEGORIES:2021 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:Europe/London X-LIC-LOCATION:Europe/London BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20211031T010000 TZOFFSETFROM:+0100 TZOFFSETTO:+0000 TZNAME:GMT END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE END:VCALENDAR