I moved to Vajraloka six years ago, from the centre of Manchester. Visiting on retreats, in the years prior to moving here, sort of cast a growing spell over me, and I eventually felt drawn to make this my home.
I’ve been surprised how much being in nature and living more simply has added something to my life and practice. I enjoy welcoming people to Vajraloka, and watching how they respond to the particular conditions here too.
I really value a central ethos of Vajraloka. That of encouraging people to open to, learn from, and be guided by, their own experience. In some ways I think our retreats are primarily set up to facilitate and cultivate this.
In meditation i particularly value the importance of body awareness. Whether it be how simply resting attention on the body can calm and still the mind. Or more broadly, how opening to the felt life of the body, can help us see the truth of the dharma, and bring ever deeper and revealing layers of healing and meaning.
When I’m not organising or leading a retreat here, I’m overseeing the marketing and publicity side of things. Coming up with posters, developing the website and keeping people generally informed of what we are up to. That sort of thing.