Relaxation in Everyday Life: Basic Practices of Mindfulness

5.–7. March

Course 1 B. With Br. Phap Trach and Br. Phap Chuong.

This course is designed for people who suffer from stress and for those who wish to be of help to others who are so challenged. We will practice mindful breathing throughout the day in all we do. We will stop, come back to ourselves and learn to identify the elements that lead to stress in our lives. At the end of the weekend, we will have mastered enough tools to help us guard ourselves against stress in our daily life.

This course will cover:

1. Sitting and walking meditation;
   

2. Mindful communication: deep listening, loving speech, techniques to restore and maintain good communication in the family, the community and in the work place;
   

3. The Five Mindfulness Trainings for an ethical behaviour in daily life;
   

4. Mindful breathing and walking in order to return to the present moment;
   

5. The capacity to be in touch with the many wonders of life in the present moment.
   

There is no Way to Happiness, Happiness is the Way: Facing and Transforming Our Suffering

5.–12. March

Course 4D with Br. Phap An

After six years of searching for happiness, the Buddha had found his solution and proclaimed it to the world in his first lectures to five of his companions. The issue of suffering has been a corner stone of the Buddha's enlightenment and it has helped the Buddha to concretely limit his scope of metaphysical search to a meaningful goal for human affairs. We will study in depth the Buddh'as first Dharma Talk and its implication for our happiness and suffering. A connection between this first talk of the Buddha and the teaching of the Zen school will also be discussed in light of the challenges we face in our times.

A Diet for Our Planet, Nutrition for Body and Mind: The Sutra on the Four Nutriments

12.–26. March

Course 4N with Br. Phap An

In this new millennium, we and future generations are standing at the verge of permanent and irreversible damage to our beloved planet earth. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, the rate of consumption, and along with it, great destruction, has grown enormously. Global warming is rapidly becoming a reality.  More than 2500 years ago, The Buddha  warned us the danger of unmindful consumption in the Sutra on the Four Nutriments. We will learn to look deeply into our way of life and how we consume the different forms of nutriments. The energy of mindfulness, both individual and collective, will help to protect and show us and future generations the right direction to get out of this dangerous situation.  Still and dynamic forms of meditation will be practiced as exercises for a deeper transformation of our body and consciousness.

The Joy of Walking Meditation

19.–26. March

With Sr. Jina and Sr. Lang Nghiem

Master Lin Ji once said, "The miracle is not to walk on water.  The miracle is to walk on Earth."  In this retreat we will have a chance to rediscover the joy of walking meditation.  With each step we make we learn to stop the running, to come back to ourselves and to touch the wonders of life that are happening within and around us.  Walking in this way will bring about peace, relaxation, and healing for our body and mind.

Throughout the retreat, each time we make a step shall be an opportunity to practice.  We will practice many different forms of walking meditation:  slow walking, fast walking, indoor and outdoor walking, walking to reconnect with our ancestors and the earth, walking to release pain and tension in our body and mind, even training to walk in the marketplace.

In our world where time is money, our movements are often geared to meet the demands of everyday life.  Learning the joy of walking meditation, no matter how busy our lives may be, we can reclaim our freedom and discover that to be alive and to walk on Earth is a real miracle.

Being a Mother–Devotion and Limits 

26.-28. March

Retreat with Bettina Romhardt, course given in German.

This retreat is an invitation for mothers of younger and older children and mothers-to-be  to come together for a weekend to cultivate Mindfulness and to offer themselves some loving care. We shall nourish our Mindfulness, practicing stopping (Shamatha) and deep looking (Vipassana) into our own minds.

Together we will explore:

1. How we can nourish ourselves as a mother and how we can maintain and strengthen our Mindfulness practice in daily life.
   

2. How our personal, common and collective views of motherhood shape the requirements and excessive demands we extend to ourselves.
   

3. How we can touch and nourish the joy and appreciation of our motherhood as well as the joy and appreciation of our children (and partner).
   

4. How we can learn to be good gardeners for our own consciousness and the consciousness of our children, by becoming aware of our wholesome and unwholesome states of mind (Mental Formations) and learn to take good care of them.
   

    In this circle of mothers we will shine the light of mindfulness on common, joyful as well as demanding situations and we will share our questions, experiences and insights.

One Buddha is Not Enough

Wake Up Retreat for Young People (16-28 years).

1.–6. April        

With the young nuns and monks from the EIAB.

As young people we can bring peace to ourselves and to the world. We will have a chance to practice mindfulness while sitting, walking, eating, speaking and working, learning how to create peace right in the here and now. The topics we will investigate together will include how to find right livelihood – i.e. meaningful work that supports body, mind and also spirit; meaningful ways of spending leisure time, and a meaningful ideal for our lives. We will develop our own daily practices for physical, mental and spiritual health and well-being. We will have the opportunity to look into and share about our experiences and practices of creating loving personal relationships, including family relationships. We will also learn about and practice mindful communication and conflict resolution. 

The cost for this retreat is 100 euros for students 28 and under. Click here for the Registration form

My Parents in Me; My Children in Me:

Healing and Enjoying Parent-Child Relationship

1.– 8. April

Course 2F with the nuns and monks of the EIAB

This course is primarily for young people and parents who want to apply mindfulness practice to resolve conflicts and bring more peace and happiness to their family. It is also helpful for psychotherapists, psychologists and teachers who work with those who have difficulties in their relationships with their children or parents. Young people and parents/adults will practice separately during the first four days. During the last three days parents and children will practice together.

We will learn mindful breathing, mindful walking and also have time for exercise, cooperative games and community art. We will learn methods of conflict resolution, how to practice when we are angry or when communication breaks down, and how to use skillful and mindful speech to reestablish good communication. We will learn to recognize what is positive in us and in our parents or children and what positive elements we have received from parents or children, through practical exercises such as writing love letters of reconciliation. 

Click here for the Registration form

For a Future to be Possible: Protecting our Environment

9–16. April

Course 3Q with Sr. Annabel.

The course is designed to help us protect our environment without acting from destructive-anger. The practices offered will help us to develop compassion in the midst of environmental destruction through the insight into the interdependent and impermanent nature of all species. The Diamond Sutra is one of the oldest texts on protecting the environment. In this sutra the Buddha taught that the human species and other species are interdependent.  Moreover, species that we call sentient and species we call nonsentient interare.

This course is to help those whose concern is to protect the environment:

° To learn ways of mindfulness to avoid burn out, despair and destructive anger in the

   work of environmental protection.

° To learn how to create and maintain harmony and peace in themselves, their families,

   and in work for the environment.

°  To spend time in nature to heal themselves and to touch deeply the voice and

   wisdom nature offers.

° To study the “Five Remembrances” to help us accept and come to terms with the

   reality of impermanence, death and decay, not only of us as individuals, but also of

   societies and civilizations. With this acceptance we will no longer do our ecological

   work out of fear or despair, but out of freedom and peace.

Recommended reading:

° The Diamond the Cuts through Afflictions, Thich Nhat Hanh

° The World We Have, Thich Nhat  Hanh

 

MINDFULNESS PRACTICE FOR ARTISTS

16–23. April

Course 3 F with the monks and nuns of the EIAB.

This course is designed for those who are involved in the performing arts of music, acting and film-producing, and the creative arts of script-writing, painting, composing, sculpture, etc. The spiritual life is very closely connected to the arts. The artist is in a position to help give rise to the highest ideals in human life and conversely to incite and increase all that is most negative in the human consciousness. Mindfulness can greatly enhance the capacity of the artist to be an instrument for peace in the world.

We will calm body and mind in order to develop concentration.               

During this course the artist learns to:

1. Nourish his or her deepest ideals in artwork.
   

2. See the nature of sense impressions as food and examine the kind of food that he or she wishes to present to the world.
   

3. Discover new levels of creativity.
   

4. Discover the interconnectedness of all things: to feel more in touch with his or her own roots, to other people, to all of life.
   

5. Allow artwork to help us to be more mindful, present and alive.
   

We will also take some time to create together a presentation of the various forms of art (theatre, music, dance, fine arts) which we will offer at the end of the retreat.

The Art of Mindfulness

23.– 25. April                                                                                                 

Course 1A with the nuns of Plum Village. The course includes the study and practice of:

• Guided sitting meditation

• Walking meditation

• Mindful breathing at every moment of the day

• Total Relaxation

• Stress Reduction

• Mindfulness of Feelings

• Group discussions and sharing on the experience of the above practices

• Mindful Movement of the body

HOW DO THOUGHTS AFFECT US?

23.-25. April

A weekend retreat with Ilona Schmied

Thoughts influence all aspects of our life. Mindfulness helps us to take good care of them. Our feelings too are influenced by our thoughts. Whether our actions are wholesome or destructive depends on our way of thinking. This course will be given in German.

DAY OF MINDFULNESS FOR FAMILIES

25. April     9:00 to 16:00

HEALTH AND HIKING RETREAT

29. April–2. May

with Sr. Jewel (Chau Nghiem). Br. Phap Lu
We will show our gratitude and care for the earth and our bodies by eating very simply: a grain, seeds or beans, and steamed vegetables. We will be in touch with the beauty of nature as we hike briskly for five to seven hours a day. We will hike in silence, imprinting our peace on the earth with each step. During the hikes we will do some practices that will help us to touch nature deeply. There will be teachings on health and healing as well as Dharma discussion. A Forest Ranger and a local friend will lead the hikes. (To prepare yourself for the rigorous hiking, you may want to go on several long, vigorous walks in the days and weeks before the retreat. Please bring comfortable walking shoes.) Br. Phap Lu will give teachings on health and diet based on Chinese traditional medicine.

BUDDHIST TEACHINGS ON LOVE

30. April–7. May

Course 4C with Sr. Annabel.

The practice of love is an important part of the practice of mindfulness. Love is a wholesome emotion that can help us realize true healing and awakening

True love is always understood in terms of the four immeasurable minds: Loving-Kindness, Compassion, Joy and Equanimity. We aim to increase the element of true love in our personal relationships and in relationship with society.

During this course we shall learn how to think, speak and act based on these four components. They help us to live our daily lives in harmony with our family and our community.

Students will train:

1. To always begin with learning how to love our own person. If we cannot feel compassion for our own suffering it is unlikely that we shall feel compassion for someone else.
   

2. To love truly our loved ones; how to give them space and freedom to develop spiritually.
   

3. To finally learn to love and forgive those who, in the beginning, seem the most difficult to love and forgive.
   

4. To understand and discern the difference between true love and craving or infatuated attachment.
   

Course text book: Teachings on Love by Thich Nhat Hanh

JOYFUL AND MINDFUL WORK

7.–28. May

We invite you to join us during these joyful and fulfilling weeks as we prepare as a four-fold sangha for Thay's visit in June.  We will have regular morning and evening sitting meditation sessions, as well as daily walking meditation. We will also continue to have Mindfulness days on Thursdays and Sundays. And of course there is the regular Lazy Day on Mondays. We will have the special opportunity to build sisterhood and brotherhood as we work more intensively for a period in the morning and afternoon to help prepare the EIAB for retreats and activities with Thay. This will involve gardening, preparing the grounds, cleaning, carpentry, office work, helping in the kitchen, etc. We offer a reduced price of 15 Euros per night for board and lodging during this work retreat. We thank you for your help and support and look forward to having you with us for a few days, a week or longer.

Thich Nhat Hanh Public Talk in Köln at the Rhineparkhallen 18:00-21:30    June 2, 2010

A Fruitful Relationship: A Course with Thich Nhat Hanh (with German Translation)                                                                                                            June 3-8, 2010

Registration form here

This is a very precious opportunity to practice stopping and looking deeply with the Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and the community of the EIAB and Plum Village. This course is about relationships. It is the wish of everyone to be able to relate well with himself or herself, with his/her family, community and the world. To relate well with oneself is to be able to recognize and embrace one’s body, mind and emotional self. Once you can do this you can more easily embrace someone else. Practicing in this course you will benefit not just yourself, but also your family, your society and the world. There will also be a program for children 6-12 and for teens 13-17. (There are no more rooms available at the EIAB, but EIAB camping and accommodation in nearby pensions and hotels is still available.)

Retreat for European Order of Interbeing Members and Aspirants    June 10–12

Sowing Peace, Harvesting Happiness: Day of Mindfulness with Thich Nhat Hanh                                                       

    at the EIAB                                                                                   Sunday, June 13

Living Happily Together: A Course with Thich Nhat Hanh (with Dutch Translation)       

                                                                                                            June 15–19, 2010

This is a very precious opportunity to practice stopping and looking deeply with the Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and the community of the EIAB and Plum Village. There will be a program for children 6-12 and for teens 13-17.

Summer Retreat            July 23–Aug 6, 2010

This retreat is a time for children, families and single people to practice joyfully together, to create peace in themselves and in the world. Activities will include: the practice of Beginning Anew to establish good communication and resolve conflicts, mindful consumption for the whole family, hiking in nature, arts and crafts, and performances. A mindfulness program for children and teens (ages 6-17) is offered with the participation of the parents. You can attend for just one or the whole two weeks but please arrive and depart on Saturdays only.

Reverence is the Nature of My Love:

Building a Happy, Enduring Partnership   Sept 24–Oct 1, 2010                                                                                                

This course is for couples who are intending to marry or live together and raise a family as well as for those who are already living together in a partnership and need help to strengthen and heal their relationship. Marriage counselors and psychologists may also benefit. It is recommended, but not essential, that both partners attend the course together.