Sorry – as of Thursday 13th May (morning) this workshop is fully booked, and we cannot accept any more registration. We will do more in the near future. For other events had back to our home page.
Saturday 15th May, visiting teacher Venerable Pannyavaro will lead a one-day meditation workshop at the spacious, cool and quiet YBAT facility, Thonburi.
For those interested in starting, or developing, a meditation practise, take advantage of this special opportunity – it is not often we have a teacher of so much experience here!
Please book your place below – booking is essential as we must order food for you, and places are limited.
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Since there are a number of Thai speakers booked, for some of the day we’ll split the group, and give some of the indtructions and Q&A seperately in Thai
Meditation for Insight
One-day Meditation Workshop
In English Language
With Ven. Pannyavaro
Abbot of Bodhi Tree Monastery, E. Australia
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Meditation Method
This workshop will focus on Vipassana, or ‘insight’ meditation, by developing mindfulness with all states of body and mind. A. Pannyavaro has lots of experience teaching insight meditation and working with participants individually and as a group to help work through any obstacles or difficulties they might have in meditation practice.
The day will consist of formal sitting, walking and loving-kindness meditation, with clear step by step instructions. Emphasis will be given not just to the formal meditation, but also ways to maintain and use the methods with regular living.
The clear instruction should make it especially useful for beginners, and Ajahn Pannyavaro’s extensive experience in 40+years meditating, should provide fresh insight for those more experienced too.
The outcome of the workshop should be that it gives the participants increased confidence and skill in their ability to self-manage and develop their meditation practice, particularly in applying insight meditation skills to daily life.
Schedule/Cost
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8:30 am – Meet at YBAT facility, Petch Kasem Road, Thonburi (directions below)
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9:00 – 11:00 Introductory talk, sitting and walking
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11:30 – Monks will take almsround in the building. Food offerings can be offered into the monks bowls if desired.
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12:00 Quality Vegetarian lunch
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1:00 – 4:00 Sitting and walking meditation continue, with group Q&A for working through any problems or experiences.
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4:00 – 5:00 pm Final meditation and advice on integrating Awareness with daily life
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5pm car pool for returning to your homes
We are suggesting a donation of 400 baht/person for the whole day (to pay for food and room hire). Teacher donations to Ajahn Pannyavaro’s Bodhi Tree Temple and buddhanet.net project can be made separately (any excess from the suggested donations will also go to Bodhi Tree temple)
You must book for this event so we can order your food, and save a place (we’re limited to 40 people)
Facility
The YBAT facility in Thonburi should be well known to Thais – known as ‘Yuwaphut’ in Thai this group arrange continual insight meditation retreats throughout the year for tens of thousands of people.
We will be in the brand new Boonyong Wongwanij Building which is spacious, air-conditioned for both sitting and walking meditation rooms, and very quiet. There is a great sound system too, so the teacher will be easy to hear. There are plenty of sitting mats, and chairs for those who need them.
The place is very easy to get to – don’t be afraid of crossing the river !! Easiest is to take the skytrain to Wong Wien Yai, and there take a taxi to Petch Kasem 54. The roads are wide and empty on this side of the river, so it should only take 10 – 15 minutes. Perhaps 80 baht taxi fare. On the way back we will arrange car/taxi pooling.
If you take a taxi all the way, it should be very quick on a Saturday morning. You can come via any of the main bridges, from Pinklao, Saphan Phut, Sarthorn, or the extra speedy Rama III. From Central Sukhumvit area should take about 40 minutes, and cost about 140 baht.
All taxis will know Petch Kasem Road. Entering soi 54 go to the end of the soi, and turn right. You will see the big new YBAT facility right in front of you!
YBAT do run occasional retreats in English also, so it is worthwhile getting to know this venue (their main hall can hold 2000 people!) If you are coming from outside Bangkok you can hire a bedroom at YBAT and stay overnight – please let us know via the form below (room rate is about 600 baht/night – we’ll confirm this if anyone wants to book)
Click the map below for an even larger version:
The Teacher
about Ven. Pannyavaro . . .
Venerable Pannyavaro is an Australian Buddhist monk, ordained for 30 years, who has devoted his life to the meditational aspects of the Buddha’s teachings. During his meditation training he practiced under several meditation masters in Sri Lanka and Burma including Venerable Sayadaw U Janaka of Chanmyay Meditation Centre, Rangoon, who is the foremost disciple of the renowned Burmese meditation master, the late Venerable Mahasi Sayadaw.
Pannyavaro was ordained at Wat Borvornivet in Bangkok under Venerable Phra Nyanasamvarva, the Sangha Raja of Thailand.
For the past thirty years, he has studied and practiced meditation in most of the major Theravada Buddhist countries, including long periods of intensive practise of Satipatthana-Vipassana meditation at the Mahasi Sayadaw centres in Burma.
As a Western meditation teacher, Ven. Pannyavaro naturally empathizes with the concerns and needs of meditators in their own culture. His long training and life experience combine to bring a practical in-depth approach to the teaching of insight (vipassana)meditation in contemporary life.
Pannyavaro was the resident teacher with the Buddha Dharma Education Association Centre, Sydney and gives retreats from time to time at the Blue Mountains Insight Meditation Centre, Medlow Bath. Most recently he has set up Bodhi Tree monastery and retreat centre in Eastern Australia: http://www.buddhanet.net/bodhi-tree/
He is perhaps best known however for setting up and maintaining probably the internet’s most comprehensive resource on Buddhism : www.buddhanet.net
Booking
Sorry – fully booked already as of Thursday 13th (morning)