a reflection I think most people who come to the Wangapeka experience the wholesomeness of this land and all the practice that has taken place over all the years. Even if you can’t say exactly what it is, there is a feeling! This weekend gave us an opportunity to explore that more as a group and individually. Personally, I found …

A reflection on Service as the Path The nostalgia flashes, the electricity in the brain finds its way to that old pathway of joy. The smell of soil fills my lungs, and the deep hole begins to vibrate. The spade goes in, crunch. The focus remains on the heaped soil as it moves through space and the background blurs like …

Here it is winter – and somewhat rainy – this is great.  The rhododendrons and mahoe suffered badly during the drought. We watered the Rhodos several times from January to June – responding to their drooping leaves – so the first rains were a great relief. Over the last year or two several pig families have taken advantage of the …

‘Oh, if only it were possible to find understanding,’ Joseph exclaimed. ‘If only there were a dogma to believe in. Everything is contradictory, everything tangential; there are no certainties anywhere. Everything can be interpreted in the opposite sense…. Isn’t there any truth? Is there no real and valid doctrine?’ The Master said …. ‘There is truth… But the doctrine you …

Kumanu is about getting feedback from the community on topical issues. The traditional Saturday hui on our AGM weekend will be a kind of spoken Kumanu.  Here is a taster of the issues where we really would like your input. SAP Service as the Path is half way through and ends in October. How will the second half be compared …

We’re letting you know about the launch of The Path of Victory by Namgyal Rinpoche in eBook form. It’s now available for pre-order on Kindle. Kindle (USA) Kindle (Canada) Kindle (Australia) To celebrate the launch we are sharing with you an interview with Sonam Senge, providing the text of the Acknowledgements section to bring attention to the volunteers, and a …

Trustees Dan Burgess-Milne of Christchurch has stepped down from the Board of Trustees. During his time on the board Dan was renowned for putting Dharma first and foremost when considering issues and applied skilful reasoning and perspective which helped us with many governance issues. Dan spent quite some time working on the build-up and preparation for Service as the Path, …

The new cabin is complete! On the new moon of Sunday March 10th, around 40 people gathered in the morning sunshine to celebrate and share in the blessing ceremony for the new cabin, Vast Expanse Hermitage. It was a joyous occasion! Speeches by the cabin team Jane Hobday, Glenn Harley and Graham Sandlant gave us a very personal sense of …

What would we do without Course Managers? by Mira Riddiford Course managers are Dharmic Angels who breathe retreats into being. They know their way around an excel spreadsheet and keep a laser focussed eye on costs and the dana to the centre board. It is a simple fact that retreats can’t happen without these kind hearted souls. So I give …

Breath is Energy Healing, Breath is Life retreat reflection by Tim Leyland (January 12 to 26, 2024) The Buddha states that mindfulness of the breath, “developed and repeatedly practiced, is of great fruit, great benefit.” It fulfils the Four Foundations of Mindfulness (satipatthana). When these are developed and cultivated, they fulfil the Seven Factors of Enlightenment. And when these are …