Category Archives: Retreats

Wild geese and wood sheds

It’s the final full weekend of the August Training period in the Lake District and a small group of us (Stephan, Emma, Isshin and myself) are awaiting the new arrivals today for the final week of the retreat.  The weather is beautiful as we look out across the Lowther valley eating breakfast. We have maintained […]

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On Silence

Here’s a wonderful post from Karen Robbie who has just been on the Crosby Retreat: “My name is Karen Robbie.  I have been practising zen for 19 years.  I would like to share a few of my personal thoughts on silence. I’ve always wanted to write something about silence. It feels difficult to write about […]

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Ringsfield was a pain!

Sitting with aches and pains and occasional discomfort is a normal part of Zen practice, something I would just sit with, incorporating it into my practice. A raging toothache however, was for me an altogether different situation. It began the second day we arrived at Ringsfield Hall, the beautiful rural setting of the Suffolk sesshin. […]

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Ringsfield Hall Retreat, Suffolk, July 2013

Emily from StoneWater Zen London has written a piece on the Suffolk retreat with Keizan Sensei last week.  It can be found, with some lovely photos, on http://swz-northlondon.blogspot.co.uk. Sore knees, chilly early mornings, insects, sunshine, peacocks, birdsong. These are what first spring to my mind without much thought, and the list appears to get more pleasant as […]

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