Winter Intensive Retreat

The Winter Intensive Retreat is a silent meditation retreat at Vajrasana Retreat Centre in Walsham le Willows, Suffolk, England, running over the turn of the year. It is led by Kusalasara and Manjusiha within the Triratna Buddhist Community, and organised through the London Buddhist Centre. It is meant for people who already have a steady practice and want to go deeper in an atmosphere of silence and reverence.

What to Expect

As the nights lengthen, we tend to turn inward, and this retreat invites you to steer that inclination toward something creative. The programme explores the stupa, one of the oldest Buddhist symbols. When his disciples asked how he should be remembered, the Buddha folded his robe into a rough cube and set his upturned begging bowl on top: the first stupa. In the tantric tradition it came to stand for both the human body seated in meditation and the six elements of earth, water, fire, air, space and consciousness.

You will meet this image through meditation, ritual and teaching. A sequence of talks looks at how to reach deeper states of meditation, and the stupa serves as a guide for letting go of restrictive delusions and opening toward joy, bliss and, through deepening concentration, equanimity and insight. You will also have one-to-one meditation reviews to talk through how your practice is going.

The days follow a simple rhythm. A wake-up bell rings at 6.30am, and breakfast, lunch and dinner are shared at regular times. Between them come meditation, talks on the Buddhist vision and simple rituals, with a short work period on most days and free time for walks, study, exercise or rest. Bedtime is by 10pm. As the retreat goes on there is more meditation and a longer period of full silence, held within a retreat community.

The retreat begins at 18:30 on the first evening and ends at 12:00 on the final day, nine nights later. An optional coach leaves the London Buddhist Centre at 15:00 on the opening day.

Your Teachers

Kusalasara and Manjusiha lead the retreat. Retreat leaders in this community are experienced Buddhist practitioners who set the programme and guide it. Like everyone on the team, they are volunteers who are on the retreat themselves, supported by others who look after the practical side and the cooking.

The Setting

Vajrasana Retreat Centre is in the countryside of Walsham le Willows, near Bury St Edmunds. Retreats here are usually for up to 60 people. Most rooms are shared and single-sex, with two to four beds, and toilets and showers are shared within the accommodation blocks. Rooms do not have locks. Couples are placed in separate rooms. Accessible four-bed rooms with an accessible bathroom and space for wheelchairs can be requested when booking. Single rooms are rarely possible, so anyone with a health need for one should contact the centre early.

Three vegan meals are served each day, and toast, biscuits, fruit and hot drinks are available at any time. Medical dietary needs such as allergies and intolerances can be accommodated where the existing menu allows. Food from outside is not permitted.

Getting there is possible by car, with parking on site (no electric vehicle charging), or by train from London Liverpool Street to Stowmarket. The optional return coach from the London Buddhist Centre in Bethnal Green is arranged when booking.

Before You Go

This is an intermediate-level retreat. You should have at least six months of regular meditation practice, prior retreat experience with the Triratna Buddhist Community, and familiarity with the Mindfulness of Breathing and Metta Bhavana practices. The centre advises against attending in the immediate aftermath of bereavement, trauma or major life transition. The retreat is held in English, and because it relies on a shared atmosphere, you should book only if you can attend for the full duration.

Alcohol, recreational drugs, news media and work materials are not part of retreat life. A Buddhist retreat is not a holiday or a spa, though most people leave refreshed and inspired.