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RetreatsWithAjay.org is devoted to offering information about silent meditation retreats in India offered by Ajay Pal Singh.

~ What Happens on a Silent Meditation Retreat

A silent meditation retreat is a place where we can let go of many habitual ways of being and relating to the world.

Opening the opportunity to turn our attention inwards to gently investigate our inner world. In this relaxed and supported environment we can cultivate presence; the capacity to be where we are, as we are. Becoming familiar with ourselves in the existing moment awakens our capacity to respond more freely and creatively to all of life. We can loosen our need to know what I am doing and why, and through this uncover a calm depth supporting us into deeper allowance of who I am. This quiet exploration of natural aliveness can bring us to a discovery of profound transformation.

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Meditation is not a technique & cannot be practiced.
We use several techniques to help us go
beyond technique into the natural
spaciousness of real meditation

~ Open Dharma

OpenDharma conducts both drop-in sessions and retreats. Both encourage opening to the unknown depths of our nature through stillness, gentleness, and curiosity. From these unknown depths springs the freedom to live life honestly, courageously, fully and generously. By knowing ourselves we become able to know and understand others; by embracing the courage to see ourselves honestly we develop compassion for others and a loving regard for the world around us.

Open Dharma teachings draw on our personal experiences of life and spiritual practice in the light of the world’s wisdom traditions, including Vedanta, Buddhism, Kabbalah, and Christian and Sufi mysticism. Most drop-in meditation sessions in Victoria BC British Columbia offer group practice in vipassana (insight) and loving-kindness meditation, with modifications to suit individual practitioners of all backgrounds. It is well recognised that since each of us is a unique individual, each one will have particular strengths, weaknesses and requirements. There really is no one patent ‘medicine’ to suit all minds and temperaments. Therefore, one-on-one sessions to fine-tune individual practice or address personal issues are always available upon request

~ Open Dharma Retreats

Retreats – both open and intensive – are conducted in a variety of natural settings throughout the year, primarily in India and Spain. They offer an opportunity to investigate meditation in depth, while sitting, walking, standing and lying down so as to bring mindfulness and wakefulness into every aspect of daily life.

~The Role of the Facilitators

The Buddha said that we should be our own refuge, our own light, that he could only point the way but that we had to walk the path of awakening for ourselves.

Facilitators are only guides.

They are walking on the same path that students walk. They know some of the pitfalls and can help students avoid them or clear up confusion about them. They can inspire students to practice, but ultimately it's the students themselves who actually have to do the work and realize the benefits of these practices.

Facilitators are therefore spiritual friends who are willing to share whatever wisdom they have. This is how their teachers related to them. The point is that no one can free another. Why is that? Because the capacity for freedom is within each of us already. We simply need to discover ways to develop it.

At Open Dharma programs, all teachings are freely given.

www.opendharma.org

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~ Sanghaseva ~ retreats that integrate quiet meditation and positive action

Sanghaseva was born from the heart to give back to the world. To take the love, compassion and wisdom cultivated on the meditation cushion and spread them…. In the words of Pema Chodron: 'We work on ourselves in order to help others, but also we help others in order to work on ourselves.' In our retreats we are called to explore our balance of being and doing, to investigate what is really helping, and to expand our boundaries. To widen our circle of friends ….
		We aim to explore living fully through service; bringing together the wisdom of our meditation practice with the love that connects us all. This is not just an attempt to 'do good', but stems from a deep wish to bring compassion and love to the suffering on this earth. At the same time, and from the same depth, we acknowledge that we are a part of everything and therefore growing, learning, receiving and evolving through the process of giving.
Sanghaseva organise "meditation in action" retreats in the UK, India and Israel. Our retreats integrate time for quiet meditation, with time for offering ourselves to others. Whether we are planting trees on deforested land, openly listening to people’s suffering or massaging the stiff limbs of a healed leper, Love and Wisdom can come through. www.sanghaseva.org sanghaseva-poster.pdf

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www.whiteillustration.com

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Yogalaya – a space in which you can let go of needing to be this or that, and just Be. Be in the breath, Be relaxed in the body, Be calm, relaxed and open in the mind.

"Yoga is a wonderful entry to the vast world of our innate spiritual heritage. It’s time-honoured techniques and insights offer the benefit of all-around support to one's well-being regardless of age, size, shape or walk of life. It is an absolute gift for me to share this with people. and I feel honoured and humbled by the opportunity to pollinate our community with the 5,000 year old benefits of yoga." ~ Natasha

The studio offers an oasis in the midst of life’s unyielding demands that allows the body to create some space in areas where there might be long-held tension or recently accumulated physical, emotional or mental stress. Breath-work encourages the body to let go, find space and ground, while the relaxed mind gains new insights into troubling problems. Each class finds you feeling ever stronger, less fragmented, more whole and connected, so that you cannot wait to come back and continue to explore more ways to

Natasha Boldireff, RYT
Orangeville ON Canada
519.938.9408
www.yogalaya.ca

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~ Transactional Websites on a Cooperative Model

‘I use computers to create "possibilities" that weren't there before.’

People generally tend to think that computer and logic are anti-creative (and often anti-spiritual as well), but I do not share this point of view. To me, these are the tools that I happen to be using, like someone else might use brushes or chisels, to create something that wasn't there before - and, very often, I have no idea of exactly what I will do or of how it will look before I actually do it...

The computer, and the Internet, are not ends in themselves but are great tools for "something else" – whether networking, sharing (knowledge, information, experiences), spreading, creating, etc.

I have founded a small IT company through which, among other things, I provide web hosting, web design, (web-related) project management, e-commerce, SEO (Search Engine Optimization), technical support (remote assistance), consulting, etc. Carrying my laptop with me, I continue to follow the Dharma to the strange and unexpected places it can lead me. Integrating work on computers into my practice is not always an easy thing to do, but it is definitively worth trying! In our age, the apparent gap between technology and spirituality needs to be bridged.

I also help and support, in my own way, a number of non-profit organizations and NGOs, by giving free web hosting for their website. My web hosting servers & costs are covered by my paying customers, so I offer unused resources to a number of great non-profits and NGOs (including this one :) that in turn bring so many positive results to the lives of many. I myself wouldn't be able to do everything that these good organizations do, but at least I can help them to do what they are doing. I provide, in a sense, a platform that allows "something else" to grow on it.

I also offer e-commerce websites that I call "Transactional Websites on a Cooperative Model", allowing new/small business from anywhere to start selling on the Internet in an affordable and cooperative way.

For more info on what I do with my company:
www.spun-shop.com

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Signature Homeopathy
Classical and modern homeopathy in Victoria BC
with Allison Douglas-Tourner

Allison Douglas-Tourner
C. Hom., D.I. Hom.
Homeopathic Master Clinician

“With over 1,500 hrs. of homeopathic study with the Vancouver Homeopathic Academy, The British Institute and the Homeopathic Master Clinican Course I am able to offer you the best and latest of homeopathic treatment. I also have over nine years of experience in homeopathic practice. I have over thirty years of experience in working with people including preschoolers and children in general, the elderly and those with special needs. I hope to be able to assist you in your health goals.”

Allison is a member in good standing and former board member of the BC Society of Homeopaths.

Signature Homeopathy

Allison Douglas-Tourner
Victoria BC Canada
Phone: 250.381.5013
www.signaturehomeopathy.com

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BuddhaDude.Net by Buddha Dude & Butterfly
A source of inspiration, Buddhist teachings – a place to be one with the Dharma

We welcome all visitors, from all walks of life, from all sects and all religions. Feel free to browse around and enjoy what we have to offer, who knows, you just might find what you are looking for, but do not look too hard or you will miss it.

Remember, the goal is not to want to become enlightened, for you already are, you just do not know it, yet... The goal is never the point, it is in the journey will you find your enlightenment. The world is your teacher, every being you meet, every moment, every situation, is your teacher, that is, if you let it/them.

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Mark Grizenko multi-media artist, massage therapist & meditation teacher "I would like to invite you into a world of creativity, healing and connection between seemingly different spheres of experience. A journey of self-discovery which unites my passionate interests in art, literature, movement, meditation, design, spirituality, healing and even virtual reality. For the last eight years I have been actively seeking to create a balanced and truly creative and satisfying career. The idea of hamonizing the senses has been central to my journey."

www.MarkGrizenko.com

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