12 February 2027 at 14:00 to 14 February 2027 at 13:00

A long-weekend retreat from your own home. You’ll be supported to deepen your mindfulness and compassion practice with a particular emphasis on intention, on why we are practising.

How well do we really know ourselves? How well do we know our neighbours, our community, our fellow inhabitants of this island, this continent, this planet? Although psychological wisdom – ancient and modern – emphasises connection as the quintessential factor in wellbeing and thriving, we struggle so much to practice this – particularly when we encounter the unfamiliar, the unexpected, the unpleasant. The ‘not-me’, ‘them’: the stranger within and without.

We have been hearing the term ‘stranger’ weaponised in public discourse across the political spectrum in recent months. The term tends to be used in a negative way to identify certain groups of people deemed to be ‘not me’ and therefore somehow outside our legitimate field of care.
The programme will run through the Friday afternoon and early evening, all day Saturday and Sunday morning. There will be a mix of teaching, guided and unguided practice, and unstructured time. Most of the retreat will be held in silence. There is the possibility to talk to either of the teachers individually.

Monday 8 March 6-7pm, Monday 12 April 6-7pm, Monday 10 May 6-7pm, Monday 14 June 6-7pm, Monday 12 July 6-7pm, Monday 9 August 6-7pm, Monday 13 September 6-7pm, Monday 11 October 6-7pm, Monday 8 November 6-7pm, Monday 13 December 6-7pm.

Where is it?
Online. You can attend from your own home. You will be given guidance on how to prepare for this in an online orientation meeting a week or two before the retreat.

Who is the retreat for?
The retreat is designed for people with some experience of mindfulness and/or compassion practice who want to deepen their practice in a supportive, safe environment. As a minimum, you should have a regular practice and should have done an eight-week mindfulness-based or compassion-based course and/or have attended at least a one-day, silent retreat. It is also a great opportunity for mindfulness-based and compassion-based teachers to approach this area in a new way. The retreat will count towards the annual retreat requirement for teachers and supervisors on the BAMBA Register.

Retreat Leaders: Paul Johanson and Robert Marx