All retreats at The Ammerdown Centre unless stated otherwise

for further information and registration from them contact www.ammerdown.org

Saturday 26 February   Zazenkai Led by Fr. Patrick Eastman Sensei

Cost: £40   9.30am for 10.00am to 4.00om

(all inclusive of coffee, lunch and afternoon tea)

Zazenkai is a day of Zen practice which provides the opportunity to deepen and intensify our practice, in a way not available to us in our usual daily meditation schedule. It is a silent day retreat of zazen (sitting meditation), interspersed with kin-hin (walking meditation), Zen chant, a one-to-one interview and a dharma talk. For those who have not yet attended a Zen retreat (sesshin) this is an excellent introduction.

March 18 -20 AWAKENING TO THE REAL

A weekend Zen retreat led by Fr. Patrick Eastman Sensei

At Minster Abbey, Ramsgate, Kent

For details and registration contact Marcus and Jenny Averbeck at 01227 766734 or avrc62@dsl.pipex.com   

Friday 27 May to Thursday 2 June                                         

Zen Gifts to Christians   led by Fr Robert Kennedy SJ and Fr. Patrick Eastman

 Please arrive by 6pm on Friday.  Course finishes with breakfast on Thursday morning, or earlier as suits.

 This Zen Sesshin (retreat) will be a wonderful help to Christians seeking to awaken to their own true nature. It will be led by Fr. Robert Kennedy S.J. Roshi and Fr Patrick Eastman Sensei. Together they will help us develop a deeper contemplative prayer life through the practice of Zazen (silent sitting ). This is the practice of attentiveness to the breath which, coupled with the stillness of the body, frees the mind from its ordinary mental activities. When practised attentively, Zazen offers an ever-deepening insight into the oneness of life just as it is.

This is a silent retreat where much of the time is spent in sitting Zazen and Kin Hin (walking meditation), Dharma talks, chanting and Daisan (one to one interviews with the teacher). The days start very early, with Zazen at 7am, and conclude with a simple celebration of Eucharist, for those who wish to stay in the spirit of our encounter with a Zen practice.

Participants can come for either the weekend or leave after any other day during the week. The cost will be adjusted according to the length of stay. 

Those who have never practiced Zen before are welcome to attend and there will be an introduction for them at the beginning of the retreat.

Fr Robert Kennedy is a Jesuit priest who teaches theology at St. Peter's College, Jersey City, and is a Zen Master (Roshi) in the White Plum Asangha. He studied with the great Yamada Roshi in Kamakura, Japan, with Maezumi Roshi in Los Angeles and with Glassman Roshi in New York. He is the author of Zen Spirit, Christian Spirit and Zen Gifts to Christians.

Costs (including the cost of Fr Kennedy flying from New York to lead the retreat):

·Full retreat: £475

·Weekend only: £220

·For each additional full day thereafter (but not the full retreat): £80

Saturday 20 August Zazenkai Led by Fr. Patrick Eastman Sensei

£40 includes coffee, lunch and afternoon tea

Please see February 26 for details

Friday 4 November to Sunday 6 November    Awakening to the Real

A Zen Retreat led by Fr. Patrick Eastman Sensei

Residential: £195, Non-residential: £130

Please arrive by 6pm on Friday.  Course ends with lunch on Sunday.

 Zen can be a wonderful help to people of any faith or none in seeking to awaken to their own true nature. Fr Patrick Eastman Sensei will guide retreat participants in the ways of a Zen practice that enables them to be open to the very gift of life itself without theories or speculation. He will lead the participants in the practice of Zazen (silent sitting), thereby helping them to still the mind through an attentiveness to their breath. This, coupled with the stillness of the body, will free the mind from its ordinary activities, and will in turn lead to a greater attentiveness to the very gift of life itself and the gift of accepting things just as they are. Ultimately, we will awaken to all that is essentially real and become more fully aware of our own essential nature that comes to us as a free gift. This is a silent retreat where each day starts at 7.00am. Much of the time is spent in Zazen and Kin Hin (walking meditation), Dharma talks, chanting and Daisan (one to one interviews with the teacher). For those who would like to attend, the weekend also includes on Saturday night, a simple celebration of a Christian Eucharist in the spirit of an encounter with a Zen practice.