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| The Touching the Earth Sangha Retreat August 2012 |
Having just got back from a retreat with my local Touching
The Earth Sangha, (based in Glastonbury & Mid Somerset) I felt I had to
write about the experience because it was a powerful time for everyone there,
and helped to deepen our practice, and commitment to each other.
This was our second organised retreat as a Sangha, and was
based, once again, at the excellent East Down Centre situated on the northeast
fringes of beautiful Dartmoor. It is a perfect place for a retreat, possessed
with first class facilities, plus exceptional views across the wooded valleys,
and a lovely walk down to a nearby lake.
Our Sangha is very strong and growing well. We currently
meet on the second and last Monday in the month, and hold Days of Mindfulness
every six weeks or so in a wonderful barn a few miles from Glastonbury. We have
been in existence for over three years now, and look forward to a positive
future.
There were seventeen participants on the retreat, including
three year old, Tashi, a key member of the Sangha, who is much-loved by all. He
is particularly skilful at stimulating our chuckle chakras! He also teaches us
how to really be in the present moment, and to get in touch with our playful side.
He particularly enjoyed being serenaded by the mass Sangha choir with a
spirited rendition of ‘Bear Necessities’, a tune which I am now having trouble
dispatching from my brain!
The rest of the schedule consisted of the customary
practices of sitting & guided meditations, kinh hanh and outdoor walking
meditation, deep relaxation, touching the earth, qi gong, and working
meditation. We held Noble Silence from the end of the evening schedule until
the following day’s lunchtime. We all relished this opportunity to dwell within,
yet focusing mindfully on the task or activity at hand.
In the afternoon we had the chance to check in with each
other for our afternoon Dharma discussions, and this became fertile ground for
sharing deeply our inner worlds and opening ourselves up within a safe space.
We all felt secure enough within the Sangha to really be genuine about how we
were feeling, dealing with the stresses and strains of our life stories, and
this resulted in an often profound sharing between people, and many commented
that they had not felt safe enough in other groups to express how they truly
felt. We all felt this was testament to the strength of our brotherhood and
sisterhood in the Dharma. It was very moving at times, and I, personally, felt
touched by people’s emotional honesty and willingness to trust the process, and
to feel safe in the telling.
On the Saturday, in the evening we held a New Moon
Celebration where poems were recited (either by Thay or self-penned), songs
were sung, games were played and we also were taught how to make lotuses out of
crepe paper, into which were placed candles and these were then slowly paraded
outside in procession while we chanted ‘Namo ‘Valokiteshvara’ across the grass
to a waiting fire. The lit lotuses, of various colours, were placed beautifully
in a circle around the fire and we then deposited slips of paper into the fire
representing anything we wished to let go off or cultivate within ourselves. It
was a lovely way to end the day.
On the final morning we gathered together in the Dharma Hall
for our final sharings, before finishing with another sumptuous meal lovingly
prepared by our ‘Super Tenzo’
Rose. Then, reluctantly, we had to admit that the retreat was indeed
rapidly drawing to a close, and we began to pack our bags accompanied by much
hugging and determination to return again the following year. We all knew we
had been part of a special event, and it only served to draw us even closer
together as a Sangha. Roll on next year!
by Ark Redwood
by Ark Redwood
