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Below is a recent podcast interview with Ayya Jitindriyā on the subject of Buddhism and Psychotherapy. The interviewer is Sol Hanna, from Western Australia, who hosts the Treasure Mountain Podcast.

Just click on the image below to link to the podcast platform and listen…

Dear Friends,

It is with great sadness that we let you know our dear little Catty, ‘Sumudu’, passed away yesterday (18th Jan.) after a brief illness. The likely cause, it seems, was infection by a paralysis tick. Even though we never found one on her or in the house, the vet said that all the symptoms matched that illness and speed of decline.

Our dear friend is sorely missed, and will be for quite a while. As a mature feline, she emanated such love and presence that she was always a source of pure joy and a cause for the emergence of spontaneous loving care. Her contented ‘beingness’ reflected the purity of consciousness itself, (well, 99.9% of the time)! Admittedly, she still had some preferences, and would let us know without hesitation when she wasn’t pleased with a meal offering served up from time to time… But, her old body had particular needs – like all of us! She was a grand 22 years of age, so, finding what supported her well-being was a pleasure.

Viveka Hermitage feels so much emptier without her physical presence… and it will take some getting used to, as she has been here since its instigation and was a significant part of our little community! But, in recollecting the Dhamma, we are remembering the unswerving truth of anicca – change and uncertainty – in all forms, in all conditioned things, and the life-lesson of not clinging to, not identifying with any manifestation of the khandas, whether as so-called ‘self-forms’ or ‘other-forms’.

And, while feeling the sadness of her loss, we are remembering too that it was the very essence of loving-conscious-awareness that emanated from Catty which was/is her true essence – as it is with any and all of us – that true nature which never dies, is never separate, has never been born, is never truly affected by changing conditions, even as the kammic forms undergo the cycle of change. This is the truth and essence of her being, as it is the truth and essence underlying all forms of being. Her little being was just so good at reflecting that ever-loving-presence in her form-being!

So, we are grateful for her gift of Dhamma and the time we shared together – grateful for her uncomplicated loving presence, and bless her passing out-of-form as a release from aging, illness, and the confines of death-bound phenomena. May she rest in perfect peace –  may she fully rest in the ultimate nature of nibbana – the deathless – the liberation of, and from, all cycling forms.

Happy New Year to you all!

On the 11th of February this year, we offered a one-day online retreat live on YouTube. It has been archived so those of you who couldn’t join live can participate whenever it’s convenient for you. Everything you need to know is below. Enjoy!

Cultivating Mindfulness & Wisdom

A One-Day Online Retreat with Samaneri Jayasāra and Ayya Jitindriyā

On YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@SamaneriJayasara

The cultivation of mindfulness, full awareness and wisdom are central to the path of awakening as taught by the Buddha. In this online day retreat, Samaneri Jayasāra and Ayya Jitindriyā offer teachings and guided meditations based on mindfulness practice, supporting the development of calm and insight, and integrating it into our daily lives.  

We encourage participants doing the whole retreat in a day to practice observing noble silence for the duration if possible, as this really helps deepen the practice. There are periods of Q&A (recorded from the ‘live’ sessions) both in the late morning and afternoon sessions . The whole retreat (in 4 video sessions) is archived on Samaneri Jayasara’s YouTube channel for you to engage in whenever it suits you.

See the retreat schedule below, and the links to the Retreat playlist on YouTube.

YouTube Playlist link here

Download Flyer and Retreat Schedule here

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Retreat Schedule

Session 1:

8:30am:     Introduction, Dhamma reflection & guided meditation

9:45am:     Walking meditation (30mins)

10:15am:   Tea Break

Session 2:

10:45am:   Guided meditation + Q&A

12:00pm:   LUNCH BREAK

Session 3:

1:30pm:     Dhamma reflection & guided meditation

2:30pm:     Walking meditation (30mins)

3:00pm:     Tea Break

Session 4:

3:30pm:     Guided meditation + Q&A

4:45pm:     Closing dedications and end of Live retreat

NB: For those who wish to continue the retreat practice into the evening to make a full day, we’ve provided links below for two guided meditations with Dhamma reflections. The first is from Ajahn Chah, and the second from Ajahn Dune, two great Masters from the Thai Forest Tradition. These talks are read by Samaneri Jayasāra and have been especially selected for the final sessions of this retreat. Listen to one or both, as you like.

Link to: ‘Developing Samadhi’ – by Ajahn Chah (62 mins)

Link to: ‘The Method of Developing Bhavana’ – by Ajahn Dune  (44mins)

~ May all beings be well ~

Its important in our spiritual practice not to disassociate or cut-off from emotions with the idea that we should be more ‘detached’ or ‘above’ such things. But rather, we can develop an attitude of real interest in them in order to begin to understand these states with wisdom. We also, of course, need to develop the heart qualities of kindness and compassion to fully embrace such experiences without judgement, as resistance merely sharpens the pain.

Ayya Jitindriyā has created a series of guided contemplations and meditations which offer a way of working with some of this more challenging emotional terrain that we encounter in life. The series invites us and guides us to come more fully into presence with these emotional experiences, allowing them to transform… and in the process, to transform us – into more fully integrated, balanced and wise human beings.

While the approach in the guided practice is aimed at supporting those in the midst of such states to come out the other side with a deeper understanding and a more peaceful heart, they may also prove beneficial for those who wish to process and understand more deeply these experiences from a recollective perspective (i.e. if not currently feeling too impacted by them). Regardless of your current mind-state however, we hope you’ll find them helpful resources!

You’ll find this new series on the ‘Guided Meditations’ page of this website (under the ‘Resources’ tab), and we’ve also linked to it here.

Working with Challenging Emotions Series

Here is a new set of Q & A’s which you might find helpful.

These questions from listeners and friends of Viveka Hermitage have been selected to share here as their topics would be of general interest to our audience, and some go very deep. They have arisen either in response to teachings uploaded on the ‘Wisdom of the Masters’ YouTube channel or from our live meditation sessions.

Just click on the question-links below to find the full questions and our responses… In some cases they are quite long, more like a back-and-forth conversation.

They have also been added to our Q & A page, found here.

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On Consciousness…

Q: Why is it that some people are so certain that our consciousness is single, shared between us all? I can see how logically our physical forms and our minds must all be connected together as one, but how do we know that we don’t each have our own unique awareness?…

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On Death, Fear and Practice…

Q: It recently came to me that I may die soon. And I am terrified… I am terrified that I will lose everything, memory, vision, and people who I love.. I’m terrified of dying because I will stop existing… How to deal with it?…

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On Awareness…

Q: Is there such a thing as a “basic space of awareness” consisting of a permanent consciousness outside the five khandas… or is awareness itself a momentary occurrence, a perfected aspect of Mano vinyana?…

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On Emptiness and Not-self…

Q: Is jhana [meditative absorption] the emptiness of anatta [not-self]?…

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On Abstaining from Intoxicants…

Q: I’m curious… What is the reason for abstaining from all mind altering substances? Doesn’t everything alter the mind? For instance, food and drink…

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On Thinking…

Q:  We can’t stop our thinking, can we? Or is it our wrong thoughts that ‘obscure the mind’ for us?…