The Art of Meditation Foundation Retreat with Burgs

Retreat Details

• The cost of retreat venues has gone up considerably since we last ran a retreat, but we have done our best to keep the prices down as much as we can. 
   The cost of your retreat is broken into two parts.

1. To book accommodation and food for the retreat, the cost is £TBC (all rooms are single shared bathroom)

2. The teachings are offered on a suggested donation of £250 paid in advance, or if you wish a donation at your discretion paid on retreat in cash.

• Donation for Teachings:

As mentioned above, the suggested donation is £250 paid in advance, or a donation at your discretion if made in person on retreat.

• Cancellation Policy:

If you wish to cancel your retreat, please email us as soon as possible. We do ask that you give us as much notice as is possible.

If you cancel your retreat, we will refund you the advanced donation for the teachings you might have made, regardless of when you cancel.

If you cancel your retreat outside of 4 weeks of the published start date, there will be a 50% cancellation fee applied to your accommodation (venue) payment.

If you cancel your retreat within 4 weeks of the event, you are eligible to pay for the whole cost of the retreat, ie. 100% cancellation fee.

• Concessionary Rates:

We do our best to try and support those who really are in financial difficulty. We are currently looking at ways in which to do this, such as a possible bursary to provide subsidised places on retreat. More information on this will be available in the coming months.

• The guided meditation sessions on retreat generally start at 20minutes, building up to 30 – 40 minutes.

• Regular 20 minute breaks are given between sessions.

• There are guided exercise sessions at least twice a day, along with a 2 hour lunch break to enjoy walking outside or to have a nice afternoon rest.

• Meditation sessions are guided by the teacher (or assistants on occasion).

• These sessions are supported by regular discourses which help clarify and explain the process and practice of meditation.

• There are regular opportunities to ask Burgs questions as needed to clarify the practices being taught.

• Instructions are always repeated throughout the day so there’s no need to remember anything during the week.

6.15am Wakeup
6.45am Morning Meditation (unguided)
7.30am Breakfast
8.30am Morning session (instructions for the day and meditations)
11.30am Exercise session (chi kung / yoga)
12.30pm Lunch
2.30pm Afternoon session (clarifying discourses and meditations)
5.30pm Exercise session (chi kung / yoga)
6.30pm Soup
7.30pm Evening Discourse and Meditation (generally of a motivational and inspirational nature)
8.30pm Bedtime

• This retreat is the entry point for everyone who wishes to learn with Burgs, regardless of experience.

• This retreat is open to both absolute beginners and experienced meditators alike.

• The only caveat to this is that in some cases where individuals are in treatment for certain health conditions, particularly any mental health issues you may be experiencing.

• We ask that you inform us of any pre-existing health conditions during the booking process.

• Have you learned with other teachers? Maybe you are well practiced with the Goenka vipassana practice? Or another teacher practicing vipassana or non-duality?

• Regardless of your experience, we do ask that you attend the Art of Meditation Level 1 retreat first, irrespective of experience.

• The Level 1 retreat provides a solid foundation to the way Burgs teachers and provides a framework and understanding to meditation practice, the technology of mind and consciousness and how it functions.

• For those interested, more details about this is explained in Volume One of the Flavour of Liberation.

• The basis for the successful practice of meditation is sīla (virtuous / moral conduct). It is extremely difficult to develop Strong Concentration (samadhi) and Insight / Wisdom (panna) while our mind is unrestrained and disorganised.

• When the Buddha taught meditation he suggested that those hoping to make real progress adhere to a simple code of conduct that would support this endeavour. While on retreat we will likewise follow these same guidelines.

• It is our aim to offer retreats which enable the student to develop and deepen their practice in the most supported environment possible. As such, each student is asked to observe a few simple rules so that they may get the most out of their time on retreat.

• The basic tenets with which we ask you to follow are:

– To abstain from killing any living being.
All meals will be vegetarian during the week.

– To abstain from taking what is not given.
All basic requirements will be provided for during your stay such as food.

– To abstain from sexual activity.
Male and female students will have separate rooms for sleeping accommodation during the retreat.

– To abstain from untruthfulness.
Noble silence will be observed for 6 days of the retreat.

– To abstain from all intoxicants.
No smoking, alcohol or other drugs use will be permitted. Please inform us of any prescribed drugs you will be using whilst on retreat.

• Noble Silence is a key aspects to your retreat. It is the foundation on which your meditation practice and progress will be built upon.

• It is a key part of this experience and will be maintained for 6 days of the retreat. The final afternoon on the last full day will be an opportunity to slowly start to come out of retreat mode.

• Although many people find the idea of remaining silent quite daunting at first, almost all find that it adds considerably to the whole experience of being on retreat.

• The main benefit of this practice is to allow the internal mindfulness of the student to develop over the week allowing them to be undistracted during their retreat.

• There will be opportunities to ask questions and seek clarification from the teacher or any of his assistants at appropriate times. It is not considered to be breaking your silence to seek clarification on what you are being asked to do.

Below are some aspects of Noble Silence we ask you to follow:

• Handing in Mobile Phones and other technology. All participants are asked to hand in their mobile phones at the start of the retreat (after supper on arrival day). This also includes smart watches, laptops, ipads and other tech devices you might have.

• To be secluded from your daily life for a whole week allows you to fully engage with the teachings being shared in an undistracted way.

• If there is a need to be contactable due to special circumstances such as family illness, then please use the emergency phone number provided. Please discuss this with an assistant upon arrival.

• No talking to or distracting of other students. Many people find it hard to take time away from their busy lives to attend retreat. If you feel you are struggling with the silence then you can always speak to one of the assistants who can help you with this.

• No reading. No note taking. No writing diaries or journals. All these activities engages the mind which undermines the process you will be engaging with during the week. There will be an opportunity to make notes and write in your diaries once we have broken silence on day 6.

• No physical contact with anyone is permitted as this disturbs all parties involved.

• Eye contact should be avoided within reason. Seeking to distract people while on your retreat is something that we advise against as this disturbs both you and the other person(s) involved.

• Our retreats do get booked quickly so it’s a good idea to book as soon as you can.

• If however you find that the retreat is already full, then it is a good idea to get onto the waiting list (via email contact).

• We do usually get a few last minute cancellations and people transferring to other retreats, so you might find that we can offer you a place on the retreat of your choice.

• This is particularly applicable to those of you who can make arrangements at short notice.

• You will still need to complete the booking process (pay for retreat place and accommodation ) when a space becomes available.