The community has continued to be well and covid-free. Thank you for your kind support, patience and consideration over the last eighteen months.
We have taken some steps towards reopening the monastery. On Saturday 31st July we had our first monthly meditation workshop and we have continued since - see the News section for details and dates. Booking will be necessary if you would like to come. The Sunday evening pujas restarted on September 12th, again please see the News section for details. At most other times the buildings are not open to the public, however the Dhamma Hall is open for a little while before the meal time for the giving of the anumodana and to speak with one of the monks.
We are receiving guests who would like to come and stay for periods of one to two weeks minimum. Because of this, we do not have a lot of space available, and so we prioritise people who have stayed before and are known to us (or one of our other monasteries). At this time, as well as the personal benefits of staying here, we particularly need people who are steady in their practice and able to contribute in practical ways such as cooking to the day to day life of the community.
For those coming to offer dana, for the time being there will still be no access to the kitchen. Offerings can still be brought to the conservatory entrance, and we are then inviting people to come into the Dhamma Hall for the anumodana.
Anumodana and much appreciation for the generous support of many friends over recent months.
For friends and supporters wanting to know how things are working at he moment, here is a brief summary:
1. The buildings remain closed to visitors for the time being, with the exception of the Dhamma Hall just before the meal time, on Sunday evenings for the meditation and talk, and for the monthly meditation workshop (see the News section for details of these latter events). 2. We are interested in guests who can stay for a minimum of one-two weeks.
3.You are welcome to come to the monastery to offer dana, whether cooked food or supplies. If possible please phone us on 01404 891251 or email prior to coming. One or more of the monks will be available to offer an anumodana and for a conversation.
4. If you are looking for online resources to help support you, we suggest that a good place to start is the website of Amaravati, our main monastery: www.amaravati.org They have an extensive library of free Dhamma talks, books, guided meditations and chanting which you can download. If you would like a hard copy of a particular book, many of these are also available on request from us or from Amaravati. Amaravati are also posting videos of Dhamma talks online at: https://vimeo.com/amaravativideo
5. Some supporters who are unable to visit in person have arranged deliveries of requisites, or sent funds to enable the lay residents to either go once a fortnight to the shops, or order requisites online. If you would like to offer support in this way please see details in the Contributing section. If you would like to dedicate an offering on a particular day or for a particular reason, please let us know.
We have tested the broadband availability to us at Hartridge and with most of the network operators we lie on the edge of reasonable internet reception. In practice this means that most of the time we have adequate broadband for receiving data, but that the performance when sending data is intermittent or poor, and this particularly applies inside the Dhamma Hall and cottage. We have therefore dropped the idea of live streaming of events such as talks. However, we have occasionally, on request from external groups, led live meditation classes, and will consider any requests.
Both Amaravati and Chithurst monasteries are live streaming Dhamma talks on a regular basis: www.amaravati.org www.cittaviveka.org
Thank you for your support and understanding. May all beings be well. May all beings be at peace.
